Greetings fellow Villagers! We hope this article finds all of you having enjoyed a blessed Holiday and season. Happy New Years to all of you and may we all be awakened and inspired by the lessons God is laying before us this year. We are sorry for those of you that have experienced a loss this past year. May God’s blessings and comfort be with you and your family today, tomorrow and always.

It is difficult, for many, to see anything positive coming out of our “failing” economy. We would encourage you to realize that it’s time to get back to the basics, living simply, and embracing the gifts that God has created all around us.

In the funeral industry, many families have come to us claiming it’s going to cost $15,000 to $20,000 to bury their loved one and have a funeral service. Believe you me, this “reality” is a shock to us as well. We have tried to encourage all families to “pre-plan”, minimizing the financial shock at the most difficult time in their lives – when we/you lose a loved one. We also use the term “fall victim to” as many make “forced decisions” because, now that the death has occurred, decisions have to be made NOW, leaving no time to do your homework and make decisions that fit the budget. Instead, you have a “need” that must be dealt with. We know it’s not a popular subject. It is, however, inevitable that we are all going to die, one day or another. Only God knows when and even instructs us in the Bible to prepare for our death.

One large conglomerate, (SCI-Service Corporation International, aka; Dignity) owns every cemetery here in the Valley, with the exceptions of the 3 Catholic cemeteries, the National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona, for Veterans and their spouses, and the Mesa Glendale City Cemeteries. Mesa is full and you must be a resident of Glendale to benefit from their lower cost cemetery spaces. Desert Hills, (at 6500 E. Bell Rd.) and Paradise Memorial Gardens, (in Scottsdale), are privately owned cemeteries, with prices that begin at about $6,900+, (includes the cemetery property, opening and closing of the grave, their least expensive outer burial container, and, in some cases, a modest headstone. When we opened our doors 12½ years ago, it was between $5,000-$6,000 for both the cemetery and the funeral! As stated in previous articles over the last 12 years, funerals double, and in some cases, triple every 10-12 years. We only wish that we were wrong.

But some things in this world still are free. We would encourage you to call, make an appointment and come in to get your wishes down on paper. This doesn’t cost ANYTHING! What it will do is help your loved ones keep things in perspective financially when a time of loss occurs. It will also avoid the situation of others being forced into ‘thinking’ they know(?!?) what you wanted to have done with your remains after you die. We would much rather assist families with armoring themselves with knowledge to prevent overspending. For those of you that would like to start funding your services, we will be happy to give you, as a gift, the “memorial package” which includes the memorial book, 100 memorial folders, and 25 thank you notes. You must mention this article to receive this free gift.

Many are choosing traditional services, which includes viewing and a church service, with final disposition being cremation. These decisions are being based on the fact that it’s $6,900-$15,000 to bury verses $150 for cremation. Both are considered to be “final disposition” of the human remains.

We, at Lowmans Arizona Funeral Home, Inc., have always prided ourselves on not raising our prices every year. In fact, it’s usually between every 24 to 36 months even though all of our merchandisers raise their prices 4-5% every year. Yes, we have to make a living, but we are mostly here to serve. To prove a point, our direct cremation price has only gone up once in our 12½ years of operations. Our goal has always been to; “educate the community of the various options available to you in this industry.” Our Mission statement has always been, and continues to be; “To provide the community with quality services and merchandise at a reasonable and fair fee treating our families with the ultimate degree of respect they deserve.”

As always, Bill & Ingried Lowman are available 24 hours a day/7 days a week at (602) 276-3601, toll free (877)-276-3601 and fax ((602) 276-1889. Again, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to read this article. We hope that it has provided valuable information to you. Please don’t hesitate to voice your opinion an a subject you would like us to address and, again, Happy New Year!!