End-of-Life Planning: The Basics
There’s never a more distressing, exhausting experience than when we lose those we love. Additionally, this kind of emotional pain doesn’t necessarily begin only after a passing. In fact, it’s not uncommon for someone’s end-of-life period to be just as difficult.
Obviously, thinking about, discussing and planning the end of our lives is never easy. As a matter of fact, it’s often extremely disturbing for everyone involved. However, postponing important matters will only lead to much worse complications in the future. In this post, we’ll discuss the basics of End-of-Life planning.
What is End-of-Life Planning?
First and foremost, an End-of-Life plan is an estate planning document. It allows the individual to plan how they wish to be memorialized by their families. Also, it details how they want to be laid to rest following their passing.
End-of-Life plans are synonymous with (and serve as companions to) a Last Will & Testament. Of course, these are the legal documents in which deceased individuals specify how their estates will be distributed after their death.
Both of these documents allow anyone approaching the end of their lives to leave coherent plans to their friends and family of how to posthumously manage important affairs.
What Should Go In An End-of-Life Plan?
Ultimately, you want your End-of-Life plan to be a thorough, comprehensive plan regarding every monetary and legal aspect of your life. Its primary purpose is to help both you and your family make the right arrangements on every end-of-life matter. This includes, but isn’t limited to, your end-of-life announcement, funeral/memorial service, headstone design, service expenses, and more.
Often, End-of-Life plans are helpful in establishing:
How your family will announce passing: An obituary or death notice will suffice for some people. However, many would rather not publish any announcement at all. If you prefer a formal announcement, describe how you want to notify people about your passing.
Also, you can even create some custom statements and messages to incorporate in your notice. Remember: you should never be afraid to make it as personal as possible.
How to handle your remains: This topic can be super difficult to discuss. However, it’s critical to proper end-of-life planning. Of course, popular options involve burial, cremation or entombment, to name a few.
Of course, you can choose a more traditional burial, like in a family plot. Or, you can choose something unique, like a green burial. Whatever you go with, it’s imperative to include the details in your End-of-Life plan.
The type of service you prefer: Everything from family traditions to deep-seated faith, customs and cultural beliefs can have a major impact on someone’s service of choice. And like your remains, announcement and other matters, the service you go with should resonate with you, first and foremost.
Outline your decisions in your End-of-Life plan, and let your family concentrate on celebrating your life rather than struggling to plan everything.
How to manage necessary expenses: Funeral services, flowers, caskets, transportation, cremation vessels – what do these all have in common? They cost money. Just about every step of the way, your family will have to cut a check to give you the send-off you deserve.
Therefore, you can spare them the expense and the burden by allocating funds in advance within your End-of-Life plan.
Conclusion – St. Charles Monuments
Whether you plan for your end of life or not, we’ll always be here to ensure you receive a one-of-a-kind monument that honors your legacy. We’ll assist you (or your loved ones) throughout every step of the way to make the monument-commissioning process totally painless and stress-free.
