Southport, NY

A loved one’s death can be disorienting. Not only do you have grief to contend with but you also have the weight of not knowing what the next steps to take are. We at Roberts Funeral Home have been offering our services to all of Southport, NY, and we have seen, time and time again, how this disorientation can take a toll on health and can make stress levels spike. We are one of the more reliable funeral homes in Southport, NY and we offer dignified cremation service to families who lost their loved ones. Southport, NY is a lovely town that features the Newtown Battlefield State Park as well as Brand Park, and is family-friendly. We have worked in the area for a long time, offering cremations, funeral planning, and pre-planning, and can we know that having a clear idea of the steps to take right after a loved one dies is the best solution to avoid stress.

Unless you or someone in your family has gone through the loss of a loved one recently, you probably do not know how to even begin. The paperwork alone can be confusing. This is why we have compiled a list of steps for everyone in Southport, NY, to take after they have suffered a loss.

Certificate of Death and Notifications

The first thing you have to do is get the certificate of death. Without this, you will not be able to do much in terms of making arrangements. It is always a good idea to get a large number of copies of the certificate, since pretty much every institution you need to contact will require a copy. The certificate of death can be made by a doctor, hospice workers, medical examiners, nurses, emergency medical technicians, and more.

The next step should be to notify loved ones about the death. Start with immediate family members and request their help in contacting other people. This will take some of the stress from you, since each call can be difficult. If your loved one had an employer, call them, too, and cancel any pending appointments your loved one might have had.

Contact A Nearby Funeral Home in Southport, NY

If your loved one already knew what funeral home they wanted to use, this will be a much easier step. If not, then it will be up to you and the rest of the family to decide on the funeral home that is right for your loved one. Once you have chosen the funeral home, you will have to decide on whether burial or cremation is what you want. If you are not sure of the right option, a funeral home like ours can help with this decision.

Arrange Funeral or Memorial and Write the Obituary

A funeral or memorial service is always a great way to allow people to pay their respects and say their goodbyes to a loved one. A memorial service is usually what people choose when they have had a loved one cremated, but they are both great options. It takes time to plan this kind of service, so having a funeral home director helping is always extremely useful. We know just how trying this time can be and we have all the right contacts in Southport, NY, to ensure that the planning goes smoothly.

Once the funeral is set, it is time to write the obituary. Having it scheduled in a newspaper is usually a simple process and we can help with that, as well as the actual writing of it. The obituary does not have to be long, and it should contain crucial pieces of information, including when the funeral or memorial service will take place.

Contact Executor of the Estate

Starting to settle your loved one’s legal affairs does not have to take place until after the funeral, but it is a good idea to start contacting the lawyer and executor of the estate to ensure that everything is in order. This is especially important if your loved one made financial arrangements for after their death to help pay for the funeral and other services.

Once all of the above steps are done, there may still be a few legal things to complete. You should call the social security office to inform them of the death as well as the life insurance company if your loved one had life insurance. If he or she was a veteran, be sure to reach out to the VA to notify them. You will have to send them a copy of the death certificate, too. Credit card companies should also be notified and the DMV to ensure that no one steals your loved one’s identity.

At Roberts Funeral Home, we know just how difficult losing a loved one is. We have been a leading Southport, NY funeral home and cremation service provider for many years and we are dedicated to helping our community handle loss. We are located at 279 Main Street Wellsburg, NY 14894, and we are here to help with all of the necessary arrangements. Contact us at (607) 734-7811 to get started planning a funeral or memorial service.