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The eulogy is the part of the funeral service that celebrates the life of someone who has passed away. It’s a personal and often anecdotal speech that commemorates life and bids farewell while offering comfort to those left behind. The eulogy usually lasts for about five to ten minutes – although there are no rules to this – and can be delivered by a family member, close friend, the minister or celebrant, or someone else appointed by the family.

There are no rules for writing a eulogy story – the important thing is that it comes from the heart. But if you’re struggling to find the right words, following this simple structure might help.  

Research First

A good place to start is to call close friends and family members to gather stories or information they might like included in the service. Contact people from all walks of their life, from family and close friends to colleagues, sports team members, club members, carers, old friends and anyone else you think might have a unique story to share.  

Introduction

As the eulogy is a commemoration of a life, it helps to plan it as a life story. After introducing yourself briefly, start at the beginning with the deceased’s early childhood or information about their parents.  

School Years

Move on to their education and include anecdotes from people who knew them at this time. Do they have any embarrassing stories from school years? Did they make any major achievements? What sort of activities were they involved in and who were their friends? 

Career

Outline what kind of work the person did and what inspired or led them to do that work. This is a good time to bring in anecdotes from colleagues and employers. 

Family

The most important thing here is to talk about their relationships, how they were loved and how they were seen through the eyes of their family members. This is an emotional time for everyone, so it’s important to make all family members feel included.  

Personal Interests and Achievements

Include information about the person’s interests, hobbies and achievements as a separate section or lace it throughout the eulogy as you refer to their time in school, work and family life.  

Closing

Each person’s eulogy will be very different. It should celebrate the uniqueness of the person and honour their life and their death. To finish the eulogy, you might like to add a few sentences about their personal qualities and legacy they leave behind. If you have a quote you’d like to include in the eulogy – either one that relates to the person’s life, a religious quote or one that simply seems relevant – this makes a solid closing to the speech. 

If you need advice or options for an affordable cremation and funeral service, we’d love to help you. Call Cremations Only on 1300 311 747 to discuss or email us.

Because we all experience grief in a unique personal way, it’s not easy to know how to help someone who is grieving. 

Lend a Sympathetic Ear

Listen attentively and sympathetically. It’s important your friend or family member knows you are actively listening and to their concerns and not judging.

Everybody grieves differently, and their experience is likely to be different from your own or others’ experiences of loss, so it’s important to respect the uniqueness of their grief. They may repeat the same stories over and over, or they may not wish to talk about the death at all. Whatever the case, be patient and show them that you are actively listening. Just knowing that someone is there is a great help to those in grief. 

Give Them Space

People who are grieving need to feel supported while also having room to express their loss. People might react to loss in ways that seems strange to you, and while it’s important to make sure they know they’re safe and supported, sometimes they also need space to grieve in their own unique way without fear of criticism. They might cry, laugh, be completely silent, or express feelings of guilt, anger or blame. The best thing to do in this situation is to accept their behaviour and give them space to express their feeling while gently letting them know that you are present and listening.  

Offer Practical Help

Grief can be a huge disruption to normal life. Simple tasks like washing dishes and doing the laundry tend to seem meaningless to those who are mourning. And especially if they’ve lost a spouse or close family member, they may have relied heavily on the person who died to help with particular chores. If you can, offer to help with tasks like preparing meals, doing laundry, babysitting and grocery shopping. 

Help Make Arrangements for a Funeral

Funeral services are usually arranged by the next of kin or the Executor of the Estate (the legal term given to the person appointed to manage the deceased’s property and assets after death). Sometimes the deceased person has not made a Will or has no family in which case the Public Trustee is available to help. 

If you offer to help with the funeral arrangements, keep in mind the expenses involved. While there are many great affordable funeral services available, it’s easy to get carried away by spending more than you need to. Affordable funeral services generally cover the essentials – such as transfer of the deceased, a beautiful, polished satin lined coffin, cremation or burial, a celebrant or minister, flowers, a death certificate and some printed material such as memorial books or orders of service. Organising an affordable funeral is a great place to start because the family can easily add extra options if they decide to. 

If you need advice or options for an affordable cremation or funeral service, we’d love to help you. Call us on 1300 311 747 to discuss or email us.

Planning a funeral is a big job – there are many choices to make that you may not have considered before. At Cremations Only, we’re here to guide you through the arrangements and ease the burden of planning. Our funeral directors in Brisbane will guide you through each step of the proceedings, and all legal requirements, surrounding professional funeral services. Take a look at our brief guide below to get an idea of the processes involved. 

Step 1: Notify Authorities and Funeral Directors

When a death occurs unexpectedly at home (not while in medical or aged care), contact the police immediately so that it can be legally documented. They will firstly contact your family doctor to see if he or she will issue a Death Certificate. If the doctor has not seen the deceased person within the past 3 months, they will not issue a Death Certificate and the case will be referred to the Coroner for investigation. The police will organise transportation to the city forensic unit for autopsy. 

Most deaths occur naturally in hospital where the doctor will issue the death certificate. Whether the death is at home, at the hospital or at a nursing home, the next call should be to Cremations Only funeral directors in Brisbane. Our funeral directors will organise transport from the place of death whether in Brisbane, Gold Coast or anywhere in Queensland and begin working with you to make the funeral arrangements at a pace you feel comfortable with. When choosing a full service funeral one of our amazing celebrants will come and see you and put together a beautiful service with you, or you may choose your own priest or minister. 

Step 2: Notify Others

Once the authorities and funeral directors have been notified, the next step is to notify others who knew the deceased and any organisations they were involved in. Some people/organisations you may need to notify include: 

• Family members
• Friends
• Solicitor (to look after the Will)
• Employer
• Educators
• Centrelink
• ATO
• Real estate agent
• Banks and credit providers
• Insurance providers
• Super fund
• Health fund
• Medicare
• Utilities providers (phone, internet, electricity, etc.)
• Home carers, helpers, gardeners, etc.
• Electoral Office
• Motor vehicle registry
• Clubs and groups 

Step 3: Choose Cremation or Burial and Select a Venue

At Cremations Only in Brisbane, we specialise in providing cremations and and full funeral services at a number of recommended crematoriums across Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and surrounds. However, we are happy to cater for other needs where possible and will help guide you to a solution and a venue that’s right for your family. We have held services in sporting venues, private homes and of course churches and chapels. The most important thing in funeral planning is that the family feel comfortable with the decision. 

Step 4: Choose a Funeral Plan

Your funeral directors will point you towards funeral options that meet your requirements and budget. At Cremations Only we are transparent with our pricing so there are no nasty surprises at a time where you should least be bothered by monetary matters. Take a look at our funeral options below.

• Unattended Cremation
• Economy Option
• Elite Option
• White Swan Option
• Royale Option
• Expression Option

Step 5: Personalise with Extra Details

For affordable extra fees, you might wish to personalise the service with any of the following: 

• Urns and keepsakes,
• Casket spray floral arrangements,
• Press notices
• Extra flowers and/or decorations
• Catering

 If you need advice or options for an affordable cremation or funeral service, we’d love to help you. Call us on 1300 311 747 to discuss or email us.