Do You Know Who Will Decide Where You Are Buried?

It’s something many people don’t think about when planning, but the consequences of having no plan, or a bad plan, can be heartbreaking.

A few months ago I was contacted by Jenny*, whose father had died the day before. At the time of his death Jenny’s father was married to a woman who was not Jenny’s mother and he had not left any written instructions for his burial.

Jenny was extremely distraught because her father’s wife would not tell her anything about the funeral arrangements for her father. Jenny’s father was a veteran and she knew he wanted to be buried at Ft. Snelling Cemetery. Jenny could not find out from anyone what had happened to her father’s body, where he was to be buried, where the funeral was, or even if there was to be a funeral. It was a heartbreaking story, but unfortunately Jenny’s stepmother was acting completely within the law. Because Jenny’s father had not left any written instructions about who was to make burial decisions for him, Minnesota statute said that his wife was the person who got to make the decision.

This heartbreak could have been avoided with some good advice and proper planning, but nobody ever took the time to do it until it was too late. Don’t let this happen to you. Give us a call and let us help you set up a plan so that no detail will be forgotten.

*Not her real name.