Memorial Donations

Things you should know before you go:
Memorial Donations

By Andrew Hodges
February 2007

Last month we began our look at funeral flowers as expressions of sympathy. This article will cover memorial donations to a charity in memory of a deceased person.

Usually a charitable organization is mentioned in the death notice for people to give if they so choose. When helping a family compose a death notice I usually say that, for those inclined to make a memorial donation, some will donate to their favourite charity no matter what is written in the notice, while others appreciate some direction to support a favourite cause of the deceased and/or their family. If the family has no preference of charity, then the phrase "donations to the charity of choice" is used. When someone dies who has young children, a trust account can be set up for possible use as a future education fund, which can then act as the suggested charity.

How to make a donation depends on the individual funeral home. The funeral home staff will record the donor's name and mailing address for the family acknowledgment and, if they accept donations on-site, to forward to the foundation so that a receipt can be mailed out. This can be done in person, although I would advise calling ahead if someone is planning to drop into the funeral home outside of visitation or service times.

For those who cannot make it to funeral home because of their schedule or distance, this information can be exchanged over the phone or on most funeral home websites. If a funeral is in a distant town and you are unsure of the funeral home's phone number, call your local funeral home, because we all have a funeral home directory for Ontario. If the funeral home is outside of Ontario, your local funeral home will need a little more time to find the contact information via the Internet or other directories that they may have.

As for the money itself, some funeral homes will accept donations in cash, cheque or credit card, while others will give the donor an envelope and/or the mailing address to send their donation directly to the charitable organization. A few reasons why some funeral homes do not accept money are that they want the money to be sent directly to the charity (reducing any possible errors with forwarding donations), to avoid added paperwork required to keep track of donations, the Ontario Board of Funeral Service does not recommend it and every once and a while a donor will want change, which can be difficult as funeral homes to not have cash registers.

When I first came to St. Marys and found out that the funeral home was accepting donations in cash and cheque, I said to myself "now there is something I'm going to phase out in hurry." However, I quickly realized how important it is to accept donations on site. If I did not, most people probably would not donate, which is certainly what I experienced in Toronto. In the city, I would estimate that about 10 per cent of those who came into funeral home would inquire about memorial donations. In St. Marys the majority do, giving needed help to worthwhile causes such as our local churches, hospital and disease-related organizations. The reason I do not accept credit card donations is simply because my funeral home does not have a credit card machine. Funeral homes that require families to make a deposit when arranging a funeral will have them, but not being one of those funeral homes I cannot justify the added cost.

So when looking to make a donation, it is best to call the funeral home and find out how they handle memorial donations. If they do accept donations on site, it is recommended that you donate with a cheque, especially if the foundation office is at a distance and the donation will have to be mailed.  

Memorial donations can also be made after the funeral, for those who did not hear of the death at the time.