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GLENWOOD SPRINGS — Funerals can take a lot of planning.
It took a lot of work by friends and family members of Hunter S. Thompson to fire his remains out of a 153-foot cannon adorned with his trademark, double-thumbed fist clutching a peyote button, while Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man” was played at Thompson’s Woody Creek home in 2005. According to reports, Thompson’s plans weren’t a secret and he spent time planning the whole event with a little help from friends.
Even if your funeral is not as elaborate and unconventional as Thompson’s, a prearranged funeral is a good way to go, according to Steven Pollard, manager of Farnum Holt Funeral Home in Glenwood Springs.
“It alleviates a lot of the questions of what they wanted to be carried out,” Pollard said. “They are able to make decisions when they are still able, with a clear mind and without grief.”
More and more people are planning their own funerals. Pollard said prearranged services have increased in popularity in recent years, but have been around for a long time. He said he’s prearranged funerals as long ago as the early 1980s.
The prearranged funeral has several advantages and saves family members stress during a time of hardship, according to Pollard.
“First of all, you get to discuss with the person what their wishes are,” he said. “If you wait you don’t know. This way they give their input and it makes it a lot easier than if there are four kids and none of them really know what their mother had planned.”
And, the prearranged funeral also freezes the price of the funeral, Pollard said. Farnum-Holt offers two ways to pay for the funeral plan. The first is through a trust account. The family pays for the cost of the service and the money is put into a trust account and accrues interest until the funeral home provides a death certificate to release the funds. The funeral home gets to keep the interest for inflation costs of the funeral. A funeral prearranged 30 years ago may have cost only $2,000 but now could cost upward of $6,000.
The second option is for insurance to cover the cost of the funeral at the time services are rendered. And Farnum-Holt offers payment plans in some instances, Pollard said.
Prearranged funerals are a popular way of planning a final celebration of life.
“I think more and more people are planning nowadays,” Pollard said. “But they are planning when they get to a certain part in their life.”
Pollard said in his experience most people come in for prearranged funerals when they qualify for Medicaid, or have moved into an assisted-living complex or a nursing home.
Farnum Holt performed the cremation of Thompson’s body after he committed suicide on Feb. 20, 2005, but it didn’t have any part in the celebration that took place at Thompson’s Owl Farm in August of the same year.
“Oftentimes the funeral homes aren’t involved in that aspect,” Pollard said. “(Thompson’s) was quite an event. It was on the elaborate end right there.”
Other times, Pollard said, families like to just have a remembrance at a park with some wine. Farnum-Holt offers services for those funeral receptions as well. But it’s a good idea to go and speak with a funeral director so your wishes are carried out accordingly.
“It’s best that they come in,” Pollard said. “We ask them if they have any ideas or what the family has discussed. The main thing is if they wish to be buried or cremated, or have their body donated to science. A lot of times religious decisions come into play so it’s just best if they come in.”
Contact John Gardner: 384-9114
jgardner@postindependent.com
It took a lot of work by friends and family members of Hunter S. Thompson to fire his remains out of a 153-foot cannon adorned with his trademark, double-thumbed fist clutching a peyote button, while Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man” was played at Thompson’s Woody Creek home in 2005. According to reports, Thompson’s plans weren’t a secret and he spent time planning the whole event with a little help from friends.
Even if your funeral is not as elaborate and unconventional as Thompson’s, a prearranged funeral is a good way to go, according to Steven Pollard, manager of Farnum Holt Funeral Home in Glenwood Springs.
“It alleviates a lot of the questions of what they wanted to be carried out,” Pollard said. “They are able to make decisions when they are still able, with a clear mind and without grief.”
More and more people are planning their own funerals. Pollard said prearranged services have increased in popularity in recent years, but have been around for a long time. He said he’s prearranged funerals as long ago as the early 1980s.
The prearranged funeral has several advantages and saves family members stress during a time of hardship, according to Pollard.
“First of all, you get to discuss with the person what their wishes are,” he said. “If you wait you don’t know. This way they give their input and it makes it a lot easier than if there are four kids and none of them really know what their mother had planned.”
And, the prearranged funeral also freezes the price of the funeral, Pollard said. Farnum-Holt offers two ways to pay for the funeral plan. The first is through a trust account. The family pays for the cost of the service and the money is put into a trust account and accrues interest until the funeral home provides a death certificate to release the funds. The funeral home gets to keep the interest for inflation costs of the funeral. A funeral prearranged 30 years ago may have cost only $2,000 but now could cost upward of $6,000.
The second option is for insurance to cover the cost of the funeral at the time services are rendered. And Farnum-Holt offers payment plans in some instances, Pollard said.
Prearranged funerals are a popular way of planning a final celebration of life.
“I think more and more people are planning nowadays,” Pollard said. “But they are planning when they get to a certain part in their life.”
Pollard said in his experience most people come in for prearranged funerals when they qualify for Medicaid, or have moved into an assisted-living complex or a nursing home.
Farnum Holt performed the cremation of Thompson’s body after he committed suicide on Feb. 20, 2005, but it didn’t have any part in the celebration that took place at Thompson’s Owl Farm in August of the same year.
“Oftentimes the funeral homes aren’t involved in that aspect,” Pollard said. “(Thompson’s) was quite an event. It was on the elaborate end right there.”
Other times, Pollard said, families like to just have a remembrance at a park with some wine. Farnum-Holt offers services for those funeral receptions as well. But it’s a good idea to go and speak with a funeral director so your wishes are carried out accordingly.
“It’s best that they come in,” Pollard said. “We ask them if they have any ideas or what the family has discussed. The main thing is if they wish to be buried or cremated, or have their body donated to science. A lot of times religious decisions come into play so it’s just best if they come in.”
Contact John Gardner: 384-9114
jgardner@postindependent.com
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