When someone gets engaged, planning a wedding can take months. The same is true when families find out that a new baby is on the way, a family vacation, or even a birthday party. Like it or not, dying is one of the few events in life that is guaranteed, yet many people don’t take the time to plan for it.

Every time we have an Advance Planning appointment, we ask a very simple question: “Why have you decided to make your plans in advance?” These are their most common responses…

• “We don’t want our family to have a car wash, garage sale, or use Go Fund Me to pay for our funeral”
• “We don’t want our kids to argue over what type of services to have”
• “We don’t want our family to spend too much money”
• “We know how hard it is to plan a funeral after someone dies”
• “We’ve heard that life insurance companies are taking longer to pay death benefits”

Funeral prices have doubled in the last 10 years and that trend is expected to continue. If a funeral is $7,000 today, the same service could cost $14,000 in 10 years. Also, since cremation has become so popular, prices for cremation are increasing every year. How do we know? Because we’ve been serving Porterville area families since 1914 and we’ve seen how prices have increased over time.

When you decide to pay for your services in advance, prices are locked…guaranteed never to increase over time. Pre-paying can protect you and your family from future inflation while providing the piece-of-mind of knowing that your family will be cared for after you are gone.

The best time to plan for your funeral is now, while you're thinking about it. While some people in their 40's and 50's may think it's too early to pre-plan, people who pre-plan now say that prearranging their funerals is smart financial planning and gives them added peace of mind knowing they aren't leaving this burden to family members. By taking time now to record your wishes and pre-pay final expenses, you'll be protecting your family against the stress of having to make these decisions at a time of extreme emotional stress. This way you can carefully choose specific items you want and need ... and pay for them today.

Having life insurance is very important but traditional life insurance doesn’t lock-in funeral prices. The only way funeral prices are guaranteed never to increase is by making a funeral plan with our Pre-Planning Director Darrin Cantrell. Because of our partnership with Homesteaders Life Insurance, families don’t have to fill out claim forms or wait weeks for their life insurance money. We handle everything so you don’t have to.

When you plan ahead it allows you to make your final arrangements at your own pace, at a time when you feel calm, healthy, and rational. You can pre-arrange your funeral using our pre-arrangement page or schedule an appointment with us at a time most convenient for you, including nights and weekends. If you have any questions or would prefer to speak to someone in person, please contact Porterville Funeral & Cremation Center at (559) 784-6458 or call our Advance Planning Director, Darrin Cantrell, at (559) 901-1603.