Funeral Services

We help select the service that represents your wishes.

A funeral represents a purposeful opportunity to reflect on the meaning of a life that has been lived and to determine the impact of that meaning for the family and friends. There is no single proper funeral service. It is a time for human sharing in its deepest sense. You and the ones you love are at the very center of the process. The choices you make will determine its significance for you. As you participate in the planning of the funeral service, you help create a meaningful experience for everyone.

It is the goal of Thomas M. Gallagher Funeral Home to help people complete the relationship with the one who has died and to provide a climate that encourages each person to give and receive emotional support. During the funeral service, family and friends have the opportunity to relate to each other at the deepest levels and find mutual support and strength.

Complete Funeral Service

Traditionally, the funeral will be a complete funeral service. This service includes a family or public viewing of the deceased. Following this viewing will be a service, typically in the place of worship or at the funeral home. This service would be followed by an earth or above ground burial of the casketed remains. Caskets selected may cost from several hundred dollars to several thousands of dollars depending on the material of which the casket is constructed. Many cemeteries require that a minimum grave liner be used to encase the casket when earth buried. These minimum liners are constructed of concrete and are designed to hold the weight of the earth, maintaining the cemetery property. A sealed vault may also be used. The vaults are also constructed of concrete and are designed to not only protect the gravesite, but are manufactured with inner liners that restrict the entrance of graveside elements (water and earth) and increase the strength of the vault.

Graveside Service

A graveside service can be another selection. This service often would follow a time of visitation at the funeral home. The casketed remains would then be transferred to the cemetery where a graveside ceremony could take place and be followed by the burial.

Complete Cremation Service

The complete cremation service is another type of selected offering. This service will be just like a Complete Funeral Service except cremation will follow instead of the casketed burial. This choice can be accommodated by the use of a cremation casket (casket that is designed to be cremated) or even a rental casket may be used. Following the viewing, service or ceremony, and eventual cremation, the cremated remains can be buried, properly scattered, or returned to the family for safe keeping. Urns are used to hold the cremated remains. Urns can be constructed out of basic materials like cardboard or plastic, or constructed out of more protective materials, like basic and semi-precious metals, ceramics and woods.

Immediate Cremation Service

The immediate cremation service can be arranged as an immediate disposition of the body. It is often followed by a memorial service at the place of worship, funeral home or other location. A Memorial Service is one where the body is not present. We recommend that if you select an immediate cremation that you are allowed a time, if possible, to privately view the body as a family. If the viewing can be done in a matter of a few hours after the death, then embalming will not be necessary. If there is to be a long delay (more than 8-12 hours), then embalming would be encouraged. State laws vary as to when embalming becomes required. Viewing of the deceased is a very important step in acknowledging that the death has occurred. Having some type of service or ceremony is also a key ingredient to a healthy recovery of a loss due to a death.

Personalized Services

At Thomas M. Gallagher Funeral Home, we encourage families to create very personalized services. It is important to acknowledge the life that has been lived and to offer to the community a way in which to celebrate that life. By offering services and memorialization features that are personal and special, a unique life can be remembered and honored in an individualized way that is comforting to the family and friends.

How Your Funeral Director Can Serve You

When a death occurs, your primary responsibility is to yourself and the ones you love. There are a number of things that require immediate attention. Regardless of the day or hour, Thomas M. Gallagher Funeral Home is always prepared to respond to your needs quickly and competently. The funeral director's main function is to assist you with the necessary details of the funeral process. Among the services funeral directors provide are:

  • Insuring care and custody of the deceased
  • Securing necessary permits and death certificates
  • Arranging funeral plans
  • Coordinating all details with the clergy
  • Arranging the music you have selected
  • Placing obituary and funeral notices in newspapers
  • Assisting in arranging for burial or cremation
  • Assisting in arrangements for cemetery space, grave opening and closing, flowers and monuments
  • Arranging transportation for you and the members of your family prior to, during, and after the funeral
  • Supervising of the funeral or memorial service
  • Making necessary arrangements for transportation, funeral service, and burial, if the deceased is to be sent to a distant location

For more information about our professional services, please contact us by e-mail or call at 203-359-9999. We're here to help.