Following more acquisitions through the years, Baldwin-Fairchild Cemeteries & Funeral Homes now consist of 10 chapel locations and 4 cemeteries serving all of the Greater Orlando area. Richard has always believed that families, regardless of their faith, social status or circumstances, deserve unwavering respect and dignity throughout the entire funeral process. It is that principle which has earned the Baldwin-Fairchild group of cemeteries and funeral homes their excellent reputation. At Baldwin-Fairchild, we strive to provide the finest cemeteries and the most caring ceremonies for every family we serve.
As you talk about Molly in the days and years to come, you will reminisce and laugh and cry. Eventually the times of grief will grow further apart and shorter of duration, while fears that she will be forgotten will lessen for memories of  her will grow stronger. And is it not true that  all the parts of our lives from one moment to the next become simply memories?
After the unexpected death of a family member, we were overwhelmed with the process of laying her to rest. Like anyone on a budget, I started calling around to get prices. It felt like an insensitive thing to do but cremation/burials is a competitive business, and believe me, the costs are startling. But then I called Oviedo’s National Cremation & Burial Society and their direct cremation option were surprisingly affordable – literally thousands less than the other local providers. Our family member made it known she wanted her ashes scattered at sea so a direct cremation worked for us. They even had biodegradable urns for sea burials. I had made my decision. Elizabeth Franco was the service manager who held our hands through this distressing time. She was kind, informative, and efficient. She maintained communication with us throughout the process and ensured we knew about all the keepsakes/services that their business provides to help preserve a memory. When we opted in, she offered guidance. When we opted out, she didn’t push. She replaced our stress with a sense of calm and that in itself was priceless. Elizabeth exemplifies what it means to serve during a time of crisis and hardship. I highly recommend Elizabeth and National Cremation & Burial Society.

What is a service for a funeral?


In early 2002, 334 corpses that were supposed to have been cremated in the previous few years at the Tri-State Crematory were found intact and decaying on the crematorium's grounds in the U.S. state of Georgia, having been dumped there by the crematorium's proprietor. Many of the corpses were decayed beyond identification. Some families received "ashes" that were made of wood and concrete dust.[127]
5 years later my mother passed at home. The central Florida office came to the house and took care of everything. They removed my mothers jewelry, which I hadn’t even thought of, and took my mother away. Before leaving, he asked me if there were any questions. He stayed and answered all my questions. And, again, they kept me in the loop the whole way. She was delivered back to me by a wonderful woman who listened to me fumble and ramble.

Can you be cremated without a coffin?


Ralph eventually grew tired of living in the suburbs and so in 1985, they moved to Goodrich, where he had purchased 5 acres of land. Linda says that Ralph was in his glory there. He had a huge vegetable garden, and as usual his goal to remodel one room turned into remodeling the entire house. Ralph loved to build, and was very handy. Then his shoulder was badly hurt on the job during a fight with prisoners; and he had to quite his job, so as not to risk hurting his shoulder again.
           Molly’s first child, Megan, was born in 1980, followed by little brother Colter in 1983.  Although Molly continued to work in the legal field, she was dedicated to her children. She managed to “do it all” by being very organized.  She took her children to the library and read to them frequently, sharing with them her own love of books, both modern titles and well-known classics.  As her children got older, she was the consummate soccer mom, driving them to their games and cheering from the sidelines. If they were playing basketball or in a school play, she was there.
On behalf of the family, we thank everyone for the amazing and overwhelming outpouring of support, prayers and love that has been expresses to us over the past 6 months. A special thank you to everyone at University of Children’s Comer Hospital, The nurses, doctors, Child life department to name a few. Remember Luke, talk about his life, remember our wild little boy.  Lucas will now be with his Grandfather Richard Lanoue.

What do you do after a funeral?


Our affordable plans have helped 100,000’s of Americans during one of life’s most challenging moments. We are proud to serve in Florida and to offer our families options to pre arrange with us. and residents can now make arrangements from the privacy of their home. Our simple 4 step process makes it easy to plan ahead. If at any point you have questions or would like to speak with one of our licensed funeral directors, just call our local office. We are here to help.
When you have experienced the loss of a loved one, you can trust us to guide you through the arrangements necessary to create a meaningful ceremony that celebrates the unique life being honored. Our staff is committed to providing the highest quality care and service in your time of need, and we take pride in our responsibility to lighten your burden as you take the first steps toward healing.

How long do funeral services take?


The purpose of this website is to offer an affordable direct cremation service to families in the Orlando area. Compassionate Cremations Inc. is a family owned crematory. Owned and operated by Greg Banfield (licensed funeral director) and Korey Banfield (Licensed Direct Disposer). Our goal is to serve every family with the utmost care and respect during perhaps the hardest times of their lives.
The ash remaining represents very roughly 3.5% of the body's original mass (2.5% in children). Because the weight of dry bone fragments is so closely connected to skeletal mass, their weight varies greatly from person to person. Because many changes in body composition (such as fat and muscle loss or gain) do not affect the weight of cremated remains, the weight of the remains can be more closely predicted from the person's height and sex (which predicts skeletal weight), than it can be predicted from the person's simple weight.
           With her children  on their own, Molly had more time for herself and was able to focus on activities such as redecorating, listening to her favorite music on CDs and growing roses.  The gardening was a further extension of her green thumb. She had always had lots of house plants and many people commented that her home resembled a jungle inside. Molly also loved the natural environment and hated to see the desecration of the desert.

How can I have a cheap funeral?


           Those sunset moments it turned out were a metaphor for their life together. Molly kept fighting her disease to the end.  She thought she would have more time, she thought she could hold on until a cure was found.  So did her friends and family. Only in middle-of-the-night phone calls with Meghan and her friend Shaye would she admit that she was scared.  Despite considerable pain from the disease that was spreading through her body, Molly continued  working until October.
We’ll take you through the steps of arranging a funeral — from making the first calls when someone dies to taking care of the financial and administrative matters that have to be handled following the funeral. If a death has already taken place and you have not yet begun to make notifications, visit our First Call page. This page has information that can help you understand what steps you need to take right away.
Because loved ones are committing the deceased back to the earth, this intimate service is also called a committal service. A graveside service often follows a traditional funeral, but sometimes may be the only service a family chooses. Often a pastor will speak a few words of comfort (think “ashes to ashes and dust to dust”) or the funeral director may share a few remarks at the wishes of the family, but otherwise this service is usually fairly short and simple.

Can dead bodies sit up?


Christians preferred to bury the dead rather than to cremate the remains, as was common in Roman culture. The Roman catacombs and veneration of relics of saints witness to this preference. For them, the body was not a mere receptacle for a spirit that was the real person, but an integral part of the human person.[81] They looked on the body as sanctified by the sacraments[82] and itself the temple of the Holy Spirit,[83] and thus requiring to be disposed of in a way that honours and reveres it, and they saw many early practices involved with disposal of dead bodies as pagan in origin or an insult to the body.[84]
For Ralph, punctuality was #1. His co-worker and friend, Dennis, remembers how Ralph endeared himself to his co-workers because he would arrive at work an hour to an hour and a half early every morning. He’d change into his uniform, make a pot of coffee, and relieve the worker who was on duty. If Ralph were ever late for anything, he’d be in a bad mood all day. At home and at work at the U.S. Mint, one could always count on Ralph to have a pot of good strong coffee prepared. Dennis remembers the time fellow co-worker Joe Deleo served Ralph a cup  – Ralph took a sip and tasted cinnamon in it. He was so upset- just could not believe anyone would put cinnamon in coffee. The guys never let him live that down.

Balinese Hindu dead are generally buried inside the container for a period of time, which may exceed one month or more, so that the cremation ceremony (Ngaben) can occur on an auspicious day in the Balinese-Javanese Calendar system ("Saka"). Additionally, if the departed was a court servant, member of the court or minor noble, the cremation can be postponed up to several years to coincide with the cremation of their Prince. Balinese funerals are very expensive and the body may be interred until the family can afford it or until there is a group funeral planned by the village or family when costs will be less. The purpose of burying the corpse is for the decay process to consume the fluids of the corpse, which allows for an easier, more rapid and more complete cremation.

Do you legally have to have a funeral?


Third. As to cremation. This is not a Biblical or Christian mode of disposing of the dead. The Old and New Testament agree and take for granted that as the body was taken originally from the earth, so it is to return to the earth again. Burial is the natural and Christian mode. There is a beautiful symbolism in it. The whole terminology of eschatology presupposes it. Cremation is purely heathenish. It was the practice among the Greeks and Romans. The mass of the Hindoos thus dispose of their dead. It is dishonoring to the body, intended for a temple of the Holy Ghost and to bear the image of God. It is an insidious denial of the doctrine of the resurrection.[95]
Some of the various Protestant churches came to accept cremation, with the rationale being, "God can resurrect a bowl of ashes just as conveniently as he can resurrect a bowl of dust." In Anglican and Nordic Protestant countries, cremation gained acceptance (though did not yet become the norm) first by the higher classes and cultural circles, and then by the rest of the population.[21] In 1905, Westminster Abbey interred ashes for the first time; by 1911 the Abbey was expressing a preference for interring ashes.[29] The 1908 Catholic Encyclopedia was critical of the development, referring to them as a "sinister movement" and associating them with Freemasonry, although it said that "there is nothing directly opposed to any dogma of the Church in the practice of cremation."[30]
After the sudden passing of my wife, Caren, I contacted National Cremation. They met me at the hospital and set up an appointment with Mr. Stephen Barreto. He was very professional, knowledgeable, caring and while treating me with the utmost respect, he very patiently explained all my options. Within a very short period, all the arrangements were made and only five days later I received the urn in preparation for a Memorial Service at their location. Although we had a larger than expected turnout, Mr. Barreto went out of his way to accommodate everyone. His assistance and that of the... Read More
This site is provided as a service of SCI Shared Resources, LLC. The Dignity Memorial brand name is used to identify a network of licensed funeral, cremation and cemetery providers that include affiliates of Service Corporation International, 1929 Allen Parkway, Houston, Texas. With over 2,000 locations, Dignity Memorial providers proudly serve over 375,000 families a year.

However, because our society has become fast-paced, youth-focused and death-denying, the traditional funeral has lost meaning for some. Many experts are concerned that contemporary, simple funerals that do not incorporate meaningful ceremonies fail to provide the comfort loved ones can find in more traditional ceremonies. Successfully planning a meaningful service does not require a religious affiliation or a huge budget. It takes a thoughtful awareness of the practical requirements and emotional needs. See our article on Celebrations of Life.
We recently loss a family member to a car accident so it was very devastating for all of us. However, we are very thankful to have worked with the National Cremation & Burial Center in Oviedo. Mr. Chris Rhodes who is the director here was very patience in listening to our family’s wishes and accommodating them (even the unusual wishes due to our cultural beliefs). We also worked with Mr. Steven who was just as compassionate and helpful. Both Chris and Steven have went out of their way to make this event as painless for our family as possible. Thank you Chris and Steven for the great work that you do!!!
Adrienne’s sister Annette said, “I love Lukey Luke as if he was my own son.  He is my daughter's best friend. I was talking to Elise about Luke dying and she said “its ok mom he still is going to be ok”. “I know that we have a strong family and that we will get through this trying time.  However, I know that it will never be over; the grief will change over time and be about Luke’s life not death.  I know that Luke is now with my father enjoying his new life, and I'm sure that my father is enjoying Luke.  Luke was such a beautiful boy.  Even in the 4 years he was here he was able to teach me that he was never predictable (nor is life), you never knew what he was going to do next “Love Aunty Annette
In the Middle East and Europe, both burial and cremation are evident in the archaeological record in the Neolithic era. Cultural groups had their own preferences and prohibitions. The ancient Egyptians developed an intricate transmigration-of-soul theology, which prohibited cremation. This was also widely adopted by Semitic peoples. The Babylonians, according to Herodotus, embalmed their dead. Early Persians practiced cremation, but this became prohibited during the Zoroastrian Period. Phoenicians practiced both cremation and burial. From the Cycladic civilisation in 3000 BCE until the Sub-Mycenaean era in 1200–1100 BCE, Greeks practiced inhumation. Cremation appeared around the 12th century BCE, constituting a new practice of burial, probably influenced by Anatolia. Until the Christian era, when inhumation again became the only burial practice, both combustion and inhumation had been practiced, depending on the era and location.[8] Romans practiced both, with cremation the rule until the later imperial period.[citation needed]
I was fortunate enough to have Stephen Barreto assist me in making cremation arrangements for my husband, Robert H. Shaffer. Mr. Barreto was efficient and professional. He even arranged for the service at Cape Canaveral National Memorial Cemetery, in Mims, Florida. During this difficult time, his constant vigilance put my mind at ease. I would highly recommend National Cremation Services and Mr. Barreto to my friends and family. THANK YOU, MR. BARRETO!

In the United Kingdom, the body is not removed from the coffin and is not placed into a container as described above. The body is cremated with the coffin[48] which is why all British coffins that are to be used for cremation must be combustible. The Code of Cremation Practice[49] forbids the opening of the coffin once it has arrived at the crematorium, and rules stipulate that it must be cremated within 72 hours of the funeral service.[50] Therefore, in the United Kingdom, bodies are cremated in the same coffin that they are placed in at the undertaker's, although the regulations allow the use of an approved "cover" during the funeral service.[50] It is recommended that jewellery be removed before the coffin is sealed, for this reason. When cremation is finished, the remains are passed through a magnetic field to remove any metal, which will be interred elsewhere in the crematorium grounds or, increasingly, recycled.[51] The ashes are entered into a cremulator[52] to further grind the remains down into a finer texture before being given to relatives or loved ones or scattered in the crematorium grounds where facilities exist.[53]


When a friend or loved one dies or death is expected to take place soon, there are many details to take care of. This can be a very stressful time. You are grieving and may have assumed a great responsibility by taking on the task of making funeral arrangements for someone you care about. The following information will make this difficult time easier for you.

However, Protestant churches welcomed the use of cremation at a much earlier date than the Catholic Church; pro-cremation sentiment was not unanimous among Protestants, however.[96] The first crematoria in the Protestant countries were built in the 1870s, and in 1908, the Dean and Chapter of Westminster Abbey—one of the most famous Anglican churches—required that remains be cremated for burial in the abbey's precincts.[97] Today, "scattering", or "strewing," is an acceptable practice in many Protestant denominations, and some churches have their own "garden of remembrance" on their grounds in which remains can be scattered. Other groups also support cremation. Some denominations, like Lutheran churches in Scandinavia, favour the urns being buried in family graves. A family grave can contain urns of many generations and also the urns of spouses and loved ones.


We are not meant to avoid life in fear of death. We are meant to live each moment fully, to connect with our environment and the people in our lives, to share the best of ourselves generously, to have courage, to do what needs to be done, and to practice our deepest convictions. Thus in the end, whenever our time may come, we can face it with peace, satisfied in our hearts that we were human and we really, really lived.  

Is it OK to wear jeans to calling hours?


After the unexpected death of our daughter, Funeral Director Stephen ** guided us and assisted us with all of our needs. He coordinated with another funeral home to assist in the process due to the distance between our home and hers. He guarded and respected our privacy when we met in his office to discuss the details and make sensible decisions. He explained every detail. We didn't have to worry about a thing as he took care of everything. He continues to be available to assist us, answer questions and provide support.
^ Shimizu, Louise Picon; Maruyama, Meredith Enman; Tsurumaki, Nancy Smith (1998). Japan Health Handbook. Kodansha International. p. 335. ISBN 4-7700-2356-1. Not only is cremation of the body and internment [sic] of the ashes in an urn a long-standing Buddhist practice, it is also a highly practical idea today, given the scarcity of burial space in crowded modern Japan.

Should I attend both the wake and the funeral?


Ralph completed training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training center on July 2, 1993. This was quite an achievement -- at that point he was 43 years old, the training was rigorous and he was competing with 20-something year olds. In 1994, the family moved to Texas, where Ralph got at job at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. During this time, Linda remembers she worked first shift and Ralph worked second shift. When she came home for lunch, he’d have dinner made, and he’d clean up after. She says she could clean the whole house in the amount of time that it took him to clean the kitchen, but that kitchen would be immaculate. John says his Dad was very detail oriented. “It wasn’t about the speed, it was about the quality of the job.”
We recently loss a family member to a car accident so it was very devastating for all of us. However, we are very thankful to have worked with the National Cremation & Burial Center in Oviedo. Mr. Chris Rhodes who is the director here was very patience in listening to our family's wishes and accommodating them (even the unusual wishes due to our cultural beliefs). We also worked with Mr. Steven who was just as compassionate and helpful. Both Chris and Steven have went out of their way to make this event as painless for our family as possible. Thank... Read More
Here are some ceremonies for moments and occasions that have been neglected as opportunities to express care and love. Whether a funeral or memorial is organized by the religious orientation of the family, or is created to express sanctified and unique expression, there are ideas here to consider. Our Language for the Journey suggests poems, readings, and prayers. Below you'll find templates and ideas for different kinds of end-of-life ceremonies.

Sometimes a family desires to bury their loved one, but does not plan a funeral or other formal ceremony. In this case, they may choose a direct burial option. With direct burial, there is no visitation, funeral, or even graveside service. The funeral home simply buries the casket. Sometimes, a family will choose this type of funeral with plans for a memorial service at a later date.


Here are some ceremonies for moments and occasions that have been neglected as opportunities to express care and love. Whether a funeral or memorial is organized by the religious orientation of the family, or is created to express sanctified and unique expression, there are ideas here to consider. Our Language for the Journey suggests poems, readings, and prayers. Below you'll find templates and ideas for different kinds of end-of-life ceremonies.
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