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| - I was tasked with planning a memorial service for my grandmother who passed away at the age of 93. We had previously interned my grandfather at the same location 24 years ago. We had already secured a plot and a stone for her so we just needed to hammer out a few details and make a few purchases.
So my family and I worked with our customer service representative. We ordered the casket, death certificates, flowers, car service, escort service, stationary, a memorial package, etc. I was keeping a running tally in my head. When I was handed a final balance, I noticed that it was several thousand dollars more than my estimate. But perhaps my arithmetic was a little off due to feeling physically, emotionally, and mentally worn out.
So when I consulted my 'Statement Of Funeral Goods and Services/Purchase Agreement,' I noticed several charges that were never discussed. I would like to state that I would have gladly paid whatever I had to pay to give my grandmother a respectful and dignified service. What I object to is not being told up front about all the charges. It felt deceptive and sneaky to me. But since we had the plot and were also coordinating with out-of-state family members and my grandmother's church, we didn't exactly have time to shop around, and I certainly didn't have the bandwidth to argue or dispute. So one could say we were over the proverbial barrel. Green Acres certainly didn't miss their opportunity to take advantage.
So to rundown some of the unmentioned charges -
1. Basic Professional Service Fee - $2,695
2. Embalming - $845
3. Dressing, Casketing, and/or Cosmetology - $295
4. Visitation - $105
5. Funeral Ceremony - $595
6. Transferring Remains to Funeral Home - $695
7. Funeral Vehicle/Hearse - $145
The next day we had an appointment to verify the plot location. While my wife and I were there we were exposed to a clumsy, crass and repelling sales pitch for us to buy our own plots.
When we arrived at the church service, I first noticed the flowers, the casket spread, in particular looked like they were pulled from the garbage. They were all wilted. It was an embarrassment. In my opinion, if you are going to get charged $600 for flowers, they ought to be in top condition. The next thing that i noticed was that there was a brand name on the casket. It just gave it an air of 'cheapness.'
At the cemetery, I heard a few comments regarding our customer service representative who also doubled as the hearse driver. Apparently, she has a snake tattoo on her lower back that was unnecessarily visible, I would think, if one is attending a memorial service in a professional capacity. Particularly, if that service is a conservative Eastern Orthodox service, one should take measures to not expose their tramp stamp.
Those are the major bullet points. From my experience, I would say that Green Acres was able to take a difficult family situation and make just a little bit worse.
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