Regardless of the type of service you select, it should be a reflection of your loved one’s life that makes an emotional connection with all those in attendance.

Contemporary thought as it relates to funerals incorporates not only a person’s religious tradition, if any, but also that which allows you to remember your loved one’s hobbies, interests, or a certain quality that made them like no other person.

If you have attended a funeral recently, you may have seen a collage of photographs, a memorial video, personal items of the deceased on display, special mementos, eulogies from close friends or family, special life tribute ceremonies, balloon releases or any other number of unique tributes. All of this is done to help make the funeral more personal, to illustrate that which was unique about the person’s life, and to help those who have lost someone special begin to heal.

If the funeral service you are planning will be following a prescribed religious ritual, your priest, rabbi or minister can advise as to when any personalized tributes can be incorporated into the events leading up to or during the funeral service, if appropriate.

To help you begin the process of planning a unique tribute, think of your answers to the following questions:

• What could your loved one do better than anyone else?
• When you think of your loved one, what do you think of?
• What were your loved one’s hobbies or special interests?
• What were some of your fondest memories of your loved one?
• What was your loved one passionate about?

The answers to these and similar questions will help you pinpoint those qualities and activities that are most identifiable with your loved one. Your NFDA funeral director can help guide you in this process and share ideas and make recommendations to help you plan a special and fitting tribute.