The Burials and Cremation Act, created over half a century ago, needs to reflect modern funeral requirements of the ever broadening racial and religious mix in New Zealand families, an industry expert says. Michael Powell, general manager of Davis Funerals, said gaps in the law have seen families of mixed ethnicities and religions spending tens Read more
Posts Tagged ‘Funeral’
Call for law update as burial disputes can cost mixed-race families thousands to resolve
Thursday, November 9th, 2023Mourners get a big shock at funeral
Thursday, July 20th, 2023The loved ones of a Brazilian man were taken aback after reading online that he had died. He had not told anyone he was ill. In the comments section, individuals expressed their condolences and inquired about the circumstances of his death. However, no explanation was provided; instead, his funeral service details were shared on his Read more
AI and Chatbots; new media for communicating with the dead
Thursday, July 13th, 2023
Carrie Rowell still misses the 7 a.m. phone calls from her father, who died six years ago. He would use her nickname, “Toots,” or ask, “Hey, babe, how’s your morning going?” “I would give anything to hear that again,” Rowell said. But interacting with a version of a departed loved one is now more accessible Read more
The (funeral) Mass has ended…
Monday, October 31st, 2022
The Catholic Church has always been very good at baptising, marrying and burying people. Those who avail themselves of the liturgies that celebrate and solemnise these key moments of our Christian existence are often called cradle-to-grave Catholics. And if you believe the Vatican’s statistical office, we are growing in number. Its latest figures claim that Read more
A final message at her funeral made everyone laugh
Thursday, September 22nd, 2022Michelle Neumann recently lost her battle with cancer at age 63 but she managed to send her friend a message from beyond the grave. As more than 200 people gathered for her funeral, a plane carrying a sign flew overhead which read,“I’m watching you … cry harder. M. XXX”. Read more
‘Dead’ woman bangs on coffin during her own funeral
Monday, June 13th, 2022A funeral in Peru was dramatically interrupted after ‘knocking’ was heard from within a coffin. A woman had been pronounced ‘dead’ following a horrific crash, and later put into a coffin ahead of her funeral. But when her relatives hoisted the wooden structure onto their shoulders, they began to hear strange sounds. Read more
Death during lockdown: A collective nightmare, but we do it alone
Monday, November 23rd, 2020
Last Thursday afternoon, ostensibly on holiday in the Wairarapa, I sat with my husband on a couch that didn’t belong to us, in a house that wasn’t ours, and watched his mum say goodbye to her brother on the same TV we’d been glued to the night before watching US election coverage. The same TV Read more
The funeral as we know it is becoming a relic
Monday, May 13th, 2019
Dayna West knows how to throw a fabulous memorial shindig. She hired Los Angeles celebration-of-life planner Alison Bossert — yes, those now exist — to create what West dubbed “Memorialpalooza” for her father, Howard, in 2016 a few months after his death. “None of us is going to get out of this alive,” says Bossert, Read more
Alan Grey RIP: Businessman, rugby enthusiast and philanthropist
Thursday, April 5th, 2018
Hundreds gathered in Apia on the Wednesday before Easter for the funeral of prominent businessman and philanthropist La’auli Alan Grey in what’s been described as a who’s who of Samoan society. His funeral Mass was celebrated at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Mulivai. Grey was the unassuming but astute businessman who took the legendary Aggie Read more
Funeral for bisexual goose draws a crowd
Thursday, March 1st, 2018Kāpiti Coast’s blind, bisexual goose, Thomas was laid to rest in public ceremony earlier this month, marking the end of a life spent delighting residents and bird lovers. A headstone will be added to the grave to mark Thomas’ life. He was believed to be 38 when he died. Continue reading