Cremation services Milwaukee WI families trust start with Paradise Memorial Funeral and Cremation Services, which arranges cremation for families across Milwaukee, including traditional viewing before cremation, a memorial service before or after, or a simple cremation with no ceremony. Paradise Memorial owns and operates its own crematory, so a family’s loved one stays in the firm’s care throughout the entire process rather than being transferred elsewhere. Families may choose from memorialization options including columbarium niches, urn gardens, family plots, scattering, traditional burial of cremated remains, and personalized keepsakes. Reach Paradise Memorial 24 hours a day at (414) 461-8000.
Overview of Cremation Services
The number of people choosing cremation has increased significantly in the past few years, yet cremation carries a long tradition and remains largely unchanged. What is done before or after the cremation is up to the survivors, or up to you.
Contrary to what some people believe, Cremation does not limit choices, but, in fact, increases one’s options. It is a process which is performed in a respectful and dignified manner and can be memorialized in many ways.
Plan Your Tribute
Choosing cremation neither eliminates nor does it require a funeral service. Traditional or contemporary services are often planned before or after the cremation process. A funeral service followed by cremation may be similar to a funeral service followed by ground burial. They can be elaborate or simple and traditional or nontraditional.
Here are some common examples of cremation services chosen most often by the family’s we serve. These services can be held over multiple days or can be accomplished on the same day if desired. We can tailor any of these options to meet your individual needs.
- Traditional viewing or visitation hours (with body present), followed by cremation
- Cremation followed by memorial visitation (without body) at the funeral home
- Cremation followed by a memorial service or life celebration at your church, our chapel or reception center.
- Private family goodbye, followed by cremation
- Cremation followed by burial or interment of cremains
- Simple cremation with no ceremony
What to Do With the Cremated Remains
Cremation allows families many choices for memorializing a loved one. Some families choose to keep the cremated remains with them at home, inter them in a cemetery, or to scatter the remains over land or water.
Our staff can assist you with the following memorialization options, among others, for cremated remains:
- Outdoor Niches – The cremated remains may be safely held in an above ground columbarium niches. They are typically located within a mausoleum or chapel.
- Urn Garden – Many cemeteries have areas designated specifically for the interment of cremated remains.
- Family Plot – If you already own a burial plot or have space in a family plot, you may choose to inter the urn there.
- Scattering – Your loved one’s remains may be scattered in a meaningful location that can be appreciated by future generations. There are also certain services which offer scattering among the sea or the stars.
- Traditional Burial – In ground burial on a family plot or in special cremation areas of the cemetery.
- Personalized Memorialization – Inscribe your family member’s name and a special saying on a tree plaque, park bench or other special memorial. We also have custom, unique urns and keepsakes, perfect for displaying inside your home.
Personalizing Your Experience Memorable Tribute Services
Our expert staff is here to help you plan a truly memorable Celebration of Life for your loved one. Whether you are planning a burial or cremation, we encourage you to consider our Tribute Services. These offerings will forever personalize your service.
Memory Tables and Memory Collages
Remember your loved one with a memory table display. You can include significant items from your loved one’s life, including a bicycle, golf clubs, gardening tools, hunting and fishing gear, a musical instrument, a motorcycle helmet or jacket, knitting or sewing equipment…the possibilities are endless. Display special photos, certificates, achievement awards and other significant items in a customized memory collage.
Life Tribute Memorial Videos
There is no better way to remember your loved one than with a special personalized DVD tribute. Our Life Tribute video program incorporates your family’s pictures with music into a presentation that can be played at the visitation, during the service or at the conclusion of the service. You can post the video online for family and friends around the world to see and purchase additional copies to share with generations to come.
Memorial Webcasting and Taping of Services
Do you have family members in another state or overseas who are unable to attend the service? No one should have to miss their loved one’s funeral. We can broadcast the funeral service live over the Internet and provide high quality recordings.
Personalized Music
You are not limited to traditional funeral music during your loved one’s service. Customize the visitation or service with your loved one’s favorite tunes. We are happy to help your family compile special music selections to play during the services from a CD or iPod. We also have an organ available in our chapel for traditional music.
Certified Celebrant
A Celebrant is a professional who is trained and certified to meet the needs of families during their time of loss. This expert can help your family create a personalized tribute service to celebrate your loved one’s unique life. You may choose to use a Celebrant alone or in conjunction with clergy. If you want an uplifting service that pays tribute to your loved one’s life or if you are not affiliated with a church, a Celebrant service may be the perfect option.
Pallbearers
Friends, relatives, church members or business associates may serve as pallbearers. If the family would prefer, we can provide some or all pallbearers for your loved one’s service. Each pallbearer will wear a special Lily or flag pin, making them easily identifiable.
Military Honors
We can help you honor your military member with a flag ceremony, color guard, trumpeter or even a final gun salute. We work with all branches of the military and can make all the proper arrangements easily and efficiently.
Receptions
We can coordinate and arrange an off-site reception at any venue of your choosing. Whether it be a restaurant, banquet center or golf club, this gives your family and friends an opportunity to gather and reminisce after your loved one’s service.
Choosing a Cemetery
Even with cremation, a green burial can take place in nearly any cemetery that allows eco-friendly methods of burial. Our firm offers several options that can help you ensure that your final resting place is both environmentally-friendly and honorable. Typically, cemeteries offering green burials follow these guidelines:
- Offer exclusive green burial sections
- Prohibit the use of urn vaults
- Dig graves by hand rather than using heavy equipment
- Often plant trees or shrubs in lieu of headstones
- Offer designated scattering areas
Why Choose Paradise Memorial for Cremation
- Owns and operates its own crematory, so a loved one is never transferred to an outside facility.
- Personalization options including memory tables, life tribute videos, memorial webcasting, personalized music, and Certified Celebrant services.
- Military honors arranged for veterans, coordinated across all branches.
- Green burial options available for families who prefer an eco-friendly disposition, even after cremation.
- 24-hour availability at both Milwaukee locations, (414) 461-8000 and (414) 374-1812.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
No. Cremation refers only to the method of disposition. Many Paradise Memorial families hold a visitation or funeral service before cremation, while others plan a memorial service afterward, combining traditional and contemporary elements as they choose.
Families may choose burial in a cemetery plot, placement in a columbarium niche, interment in an urn garden, scattering in a meaningful location, or keeping an urn at home, along with keepsake jewelry or personalized memorials.
Yes. Families who want a viewing or visitation can hold one before cremation takes place, or choose a simple private goodbye for immediate family.
Cremation can reduce certain cemetery-related expenses compared to burial, though the total cost still depends on the service type, memorialization, and merchandise chosen. Paradise Memorial’s staff will walk through pricing and options for your family’s budget.
Preplanning lets a family document its wishes in advance. Paradise Memorial’s free planning information is a starting point; contact the firm to learn more.
