Avondale Family Funerals
We believe that everyone deserves a memorial as unique as the life they lived. We create custom funeral services to be treasure by all who attend. It is our promise to work with you one on one to develop a memorial ceremony that reflects the distinctive personality of your loved one.
We’re With You Every Step of The Way
When you first begin the process of designing a funeral, the decisions you will face might seem overwhelming. Our professional staff are here to help guide you through the choices one by one and make the journey one of love, healing and life celebration.
PrePlanning
Arrangements
Burial & Cremation
Funeral Services
Bereavement Support
Pre Planning Services
In most circumstances, the arrangement of a funeral occurs during a period of grief which makes it difficult for family of loved ones to manage. Pre planning services allows you to have control over the way your funeral takes place, helping your family at the time of need.
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Our Personal Information record can be filled out at the time of pre planning. The personal and family details are required at the time of death and although this is not a legal document, it will provide vital information to help the family meet requirements and fulfill your wishes.
Burial Services
There are different elements you can choose from when arranging a burial, depending upon your individual needs and preferences.
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Burials can take place before of after a traditional service or the service can be conducted at the graveside.
We will arrange a burial in the cemetery of your choice.
Immediate burial means that your loved one’s physical remains are buried without a public service or gathering.
Viewings
Viewings are normal in many cultures and can be very helpful in coping with grief. To be able to visit or view your loved one allows family and friends to gather in a room (in an open or closed casket) and gives everyone the opportunity to say goodbye and offer their support and sympathy to the bereaved.
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A viewing is where your loved one is dressed and presented for family and friends to privately pay their respects and say their final goodbyes before the funeral service takes place. It is a matter of personal choice and requires a sensitive approach.
Graveside Services
A graveside service is a type of memorial service that is set at the graveside. It may follow a traditional funeral service, which can take place at a different location, or it may stand on its own. The type of graveside service you plan can be personal and reflect the religious and spiritual beliefs of the person being laid to rest. It can be paired with other types of ceremonies or stand on its own as a way of honouring a person and saying final goodbyes
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If you want to have a private ceremony with just a few close friends and family members, the graveside service may be private, however you can also open it to the community to pay their respects if you decide you want it in addition to or instead of a funeral service.
Arrangements
We understand that arranging a funeral after losing a loved one can be overwhelming and stressful. Our team will take time to discuss all the service plans with you in the comfort of your home or if you prefer to meet with us, our team will assist you with a suitable appointment time.
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When a loved one passes away there are plenty of questions to be answered and plans to be made. While this time may feel daunting we are here to help you understand what is needed throughout the funeral planning process.
Cremation Services
Many people choose the cremation process as an alternative to a traditional burial for their loved one. Around 70% of all funerals in Australian are cremations. The biggest misconception about cremation is that there can’t be a funeral service. This is not the case. When you choose to care for the physical remains through cremation, we encourage you to consider holding a memorial service before or after the cremation occurs.
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Interment means that you will bury, entomb or inurn your loved one’s cremated remains. This can be in the family plot, a crypt, a memorial site, a cremation niche or urn garden, or in a variety of other indoor or outdoor locations.
Graveside services are similar to those celebrated alongside a traditional ground burial, in which loved ones are present at the burial of the cremated remains and honour the deceased through memorial prayers or other meaningful tributes.
Scattering allows you to spread your loved one’s cremated remains in a memorial garden, a cemetery, over water, or across any other meaningful site. You can also choose to scatter some of the cremated remains and retain the rest in an urn for interment or another form of disposition.
Placing cremated remains in multiple urns allows family members who are separated by distance to each feel the comfort of having their loved one’s final resting place in a nearby location.
Funeral Services
A funeral service gives family and friends an opportunity to express the love and respect they feel for someone who was important to them. Often, just seeing how much others care can be a great help to a family in adjusting to their loss. Funerals have been a means of expressing our beliefs, thoughts and feelings about the death of someone we love.
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Coping with a loss is never easy, and services are an essential part of the recovery process. Having a funeral helps us acknowledge that someone we love has died and gives us time to say goodbye and a supportive environment. Gathering family and friends gives everyone the opportunity to connect, share memories, offer words of sympathy, and create a lasting network of comfort and support as they start the journey toward healing and peace and offers hope for the living.
Bereavement Support
Grief is a normal emotional response associated with any form of loss. Most of us will experience close personal grief during our lifetime, the intensity is often associated with the value we placed on the person we have lost. We remain accessible long after the funeral, and are here to offer whatever support you may need.
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For the person who has suffered the loss, there will be significant adjustments. Most of us learn to live with our experiences of grief and bereavement with the support of family and friends. Grief provides an opportunity for deeper human connection. If you are struggling to manage and would like to speak with someone beyond your family or close friends there are a number of organisations that can help.
Lifeline 13 11 14
Beyond Blue 1300 224 636
Griefline 1300 845 745
Pricing
Avondale Family Funerals has a reputation for providing funeral services with openness and transparency in every dealing we have. We will provide information and pricing regarding the funeral process. This is essential to assist you and the family make an informed decision and Avondale Family Funerals will strive to make this information available.
Before entering into any agreement with your family we will provide you with information relating to the price of each particular goods and services that will be supplied.
Funeral Pricing inclusive of GST
Every funeral service is individual, and this means that the cost will depend on the arrangements you request. Some prices, cremation or burial and legal requirements are necessary for all funerals, although many elements differ from funeral to funeral and these may vary depending on the choices you make.
Funeral Pricing Guide
Certain items are required for every funeral arrangement and the following costs apply. The cost of some of these items are fixed, while others will vary according to the choices made.
Planning and Professional Fee $3030
Coordination and conduct of the funeral. Our professional service fee covers the management of the funeral, burial or cremation including all administrative and legal requirements and reflects the advice, guidance, care and creativity our team provide throughout the process.
Transport $95 - $400
Transportation of your loved one from the place of death or other location within 100km radius into our care. Additional fees charge for regional or out of state repatriation.
Care $250
Accomodation of the deceased in our mortuary. Refrigerated storage of body for seven days from transport into our care (additional charges may apply thereafter).
Preparation $250
Use of accredited mortuary facilities and fully-trained personnel to sanitise, cleanse, and dress the body.
Coffin $940 - $2200
Purchasing a coffin (range includes coffins and caskets constructed from a variety of materials, including fibreboard, veneered timbers and solid wood with different finishes; environmentally friendly options and custom printed options are available; metal caskets are price on application (additional fees charge for the oversized version of the coffin.
Doctor's Fee $220
Providing services for identification purposes (where necessary) and required documentation, including Attending Practitioner’s Cremation Certificate, Medical Referee’s Cremation Permit
Death Certificate $90
Providing registered death certificate, including 7 certified copies delivered via registered post.
Chapel Fee $400
Hire of venue for up to two hours, including: Setting up and presenting the service and reception rooms, Coordinating the running of the service, Providing any required personnel, Cleaning (additional charges apply in 15-minute increments where facilities in use for more than two hours).
Using third-party facilities as charged by the supplier.
Optional items
To personalise your loved ones farewell, a range of options are available. Costs will vary according to the choices made.
Vehicles $540
Hearse hire, 4 hours including driver
Flowers from $350
Floral tributes can include, casket cover, rose petals, single roses and tall back arrangements. Provided by a third-party supplier.
Viewing and Embalming $220 - $775
We will arrange for your loved one to be prepared for viewing prior to a funeral service, temporarily preserved or embalmed according to your wishes.
Funeral and/or Death Notice estimate $275
Preparing and lodging newspaper notice.
Clergy or Celebrant as charged by supplier
We have a number of Clergy and Celebrants that we regularly work with and are more than happy to help you through the process of finding the perfect person to help you celebrate your loved ones life.
Order of Service per copy $2.25
A funeral program is important to help family and friends navigate through the funeral or memorial service and is a reference document that lists the order of service.
Burial Fee as charged by the cemetery
Burial fee and associate plot fees as charged by the individual cemetery.
Cremation Fee $775
Cremation at Smeaton Grange Crematorium (owned and operated by Dale Neale) or government-operated crematorium, including: Transporting coffin/casket in hearse (or other accredited vehicle) from Avondale Family Funerals to crematorium, Cremation services, Returning ashes to our office (in a plastic urn, with nameplate)
Packages
We are committed to the families we serve and we understand that each person’s life and death are unique. We have a high regard for what we do and dedicate our work to providing all of the necessary support to grieving families and friends in our community.
No Attendance Cremation Service $2450
We understand that there are circumstances where only the basics are needed. That is why we have put together our least expensive package. This can be arranged over the phone, in person or via email for your loved one.
This service includes the following:
Professional service, transport from the location of death, mortuary care, cremation coffin, all legal documents, presentation of ashes in a plastic urn from the crematorium. If flowers , press notices or viewing is required, these will cost extra. We will deliver the ashes to you along with the registered Death Certificate during office hours on a weekday.
Cemeteries and Crematoriums
Avondale Family Funerals has strong relationships with all major cemeteries and crematoriums across the Greater Sydney, Central Coast and Newcastle regions.
We transfer your loved one in our purpose-built accredited vehicles with our fully trained professional staff, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year to our care.
Our care facilities are located at:
- Avondale Cemetery Services (Mark Windus ~ Manager), 20 Central Avenue Cooranbong
- Independent Mortuary Services (Tanya Wilson ~ Manager), 1/5 Joule Place Tuggerah
- Personal Services Australia (Dale Neale ~ Owner), 186 Hartley Road Smeaton Grange
Let Us Lend a Helping Hand
We understand that the days, weeks and even months following the funeral can be the hardest for many people . Our family remains accessible long after the funeral, and are here to offer whatever support you may need.