What is a Home Funeral? Reclaiming the Lost Art of Caring for the Dead and Having a Funeral at Home

SevenPonds is proud to introduce our readers to an amazing conference on home funerals and green burial

The home funeral has proven to be a re-emerging trend, as more and more people are making moves to reclaim the lost art of dying at home.The home funeral offers an alternative to the act of transporting a loved one who has passed to a potentially impersonal funeral establishment; rather a home funeral encourages family and friends to care for the loved one in the comfort and intimacy of their own home. The practice was standard many generations ago — often out of necessity. Home funerals have also experienced more popularity as a way for families to have a planet conscious funeral, as they can often fall under the category of a “green burial.”

A home funeral

A home funeral

To start the process, family and friends gather for a few hours or days between the time of death and the time of burial or cremation.  The experience can be very touching and beautiful. Overall, it is much different from the experience of going to a funeral home for viewing.  The loved one can be laid out on a sofa, bed, table, or in the backyard for a home funeral ceremony, thus allowing the family and friends time to say good-bye and let go of a loved one. The movement to bring death care back into the home is growing. To learn more, check out SevenPonds’ information on planning a home funeral.

SevenPonds is a big supporter of The National Home Funeral Alliance (NHFA). If you would like to learn how to care for your loved one at home when they die and understand what a green burial is, this upcoming conference is for you.  Join in a wonderful circle of kind, gentle and loving experts who will teach you the art of caring for your loved one as you let go of them. These passionate professionials will teach you how to plan and carry out the most personal of events – a home funeral – with friends and family.

2013 Annual Conference

 “Home Funeral in Community:  Reclaiming the Lost Art”

October 18 – 20, Raleigh, NC

The National Home Funeral Alliance aims to educate and empower the general public, meaning families and communities, to care for their own loved ones after they die. At the conference, you’ll be educated on the practice of home funerals and green burials. The conference will also provide you with the right tools to go home and talk about the death of a loved one, particularly  by finding support within your own community. More specifically, you’ll learn about:

* Current American trends on end-of-life and death care

* Pre-planning and carrying out a home funeral – practical, legal, social and emotional aspects

* Green disposition (field trip to Pine Forest Memorial Gardens green cemetery included!)

* Building community through the work of home funerals

* Providing families and loved ones with the support to create meaningful deaths and goodbyes

*Nancy Jewel Poer will be the conference’s Keynote speaker. Also presenting is Dr. Monica Williams-Murphy, author of It’s OK to Die.

Contact Info: nhfaconference@gmail.com or call 608-606-4808. We hope you’ll join us!

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What is a Home Funeral? Reclaiming the Lost Art of Caring for the Dead and Having a Funeral at Home

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