Our Services Arranging a Funeral
When someone you love passes away, our compassionate and experienced team will guide you through the entire process, taking care of all the details and enabling you to say goodbye in a way that is meaningful to you.
You can choose any of the following:
Celebrants and Ministers
We can select a celebrant or minister who would best suit your family. Alternatively, you may already have someone in mind that you wish to use. They will spend time with you arranging the content of the ceremony.
Writing the Eulogy
It is impossible to sum up a life story in a few minutes. However, we can tell stories and recall memories in valuable and creative ways.
A helpful eulogy is much more than a list of dates, but it is right to include important ‘milestones’ – birth and marriage, significant moves and changes of career.
Often it may be better to begin with a poem or reading than simply with a birth date. If the subject of the eulogy had a particular spiritual outlook or favorite passage of literature, it may be easy to choose something that sets the tone perfectly.
Choosing a casket
We have a wide variety of caskets available to suit every budget. Please see view Caskets & Urns to view our range.
Informing friends and family
We can place notices in the NZ Herald and/or any other publications you require. Social Media has also become a very powerful and cost-effective way of letting people know of your loved ones passing and about funeral details.
Service Sheets
These are the booklets that are handed out at the funeral, detailing the order of service and any poems, hymns or prayers included in the ceremony. Usually there is a main photo on the front cover and a small selection of photos for the back.
Following the service, we can also provide matching Thank You cards.
Catering
We can arrange catering, either in our reception lounge at Fountains or at a different location. There is a selection of menus, as well as vegetarian and gluten-free options should you require them. You just need to decide how many people to cater for.
Photos, Presentations & Momentos
To personalise the chapel, we recommend bringing along photos and perhaps belongings that were special or evoke memories of your loved one, such as trophies, sports equipment, or arts and crafts that they have created themselves.
Photo presentations with music featuring moments in your loved ones life can be displayed on a large screen in our chapel. We can create this for you or someone in the family may wish to do it themselves (it’s always best to bring in a digital presentation to test, well in advance of the funeral). Generally, 50 photos per song works best. A photo board is another option that the family may love to create.
Memorial Book
This is a personalised book in which the names of attendees are recorded, plus any messages or memories that they wish to share with the family.
Viewing the Funeral Service Online
In our chapel, we use OneRoom. This enables friends and family to view the service live online from anywhere is the world. We set up the recording and email you a link, which you can then forward to others.
Flowers
We have a wide array of beautiful casket sprays and flower arrangements to suit your taste and budget. Farewell petals are included.
Pallbearing
Do you want the casket to be set up and/or remain in place, or carry into/or out of the chapel? Caskets are usually carried by six pallbearers. It is helpful to ask the bearers prior to the day.
Music
With its ability to evoke emotions and precious memories, music is often an important element of the funeral service.
We recommend you select at least three pieces of music.
- To carry in (or begin the ceremony)
- For the photo presentation (or time of reflection)
- To carry out (or conclude the ceremony)
Messages, cards and photos
It can be nice to place momentos and messages in the casket with your loved one. This can be a particularly good contribution for children to make.
Compassionate Airfares
If family and friends are travelling by plane, whether international or domestic, they can apply for assistance with fares on compassionate grounds. We can provide supporting letters to assist this.
Repatriation
Fountains offer an expert worldwide repatriation service. Please contact us to arrange.
Phone (09) 298 2957.
Memorial Services
There are many reasons for choosing a memorial service. Perhaps the person who died requested not to have a traditional funeral or perhaps there are family members who are unable to get there in time for a funeral.
The ashes may be present at a memorial service but is not strictly necessary. Although the deceased may not be “present,” memorial services can be personalised and have a focal points of items that had special meaning in their lives.
With a little creativity, flowers, clothing, momentos and photos can be on display, truly reflecting the life and loves of your loved one.
A memorial service is by no means any less significant than a funeral service. We can still honour and celebrate a life well lived, we can still express our sorrow, and now, we can have everybody who valued the person who died come together to say goodbye to them.
Information for the Death Certificate
At the time of the arrangement, our Funeral Director will ask you for details that will be used for the Death Certificate.
DVD or Presentations
A picture is worth a thousand words – and that is often true. Many families like to display some photographs or other life symbols at the funeral service.
Photographs need not be recent, provided they are characteristic of a person’s life. Sometimes, a family photo or other group shot can be just the thing to capture personality. We can arrange enlargements and enhancements of existing photos easily. This can be really useful if you want to lift a single image from a larger picture.
Other items, like a favourite hat, prized trophy, art or craft sample, tennis racquet or golf club can all help symbolise a life. The possibilities are vast. Sometimes, family members like to bring these symbolic items with them, and place them on or near the casket before or after the eulogy.
Finally, a carefully chosen piece of music can provide a pleasant reflective space after the eulogy. This may reflect the personal taste of the deceased, or simply be a track that the family find helpful for themselves.
What Fountains customers say about their experience with us