At the time of a death, if the deceased is in a nursing home or in a hospital, Wetzel and Son should be called immediately by either a family member or a staff member of the health facility. If the death takes place at home and the deceased is under a hospice care program, call the hospice program first. They will authorize you to call the funeral home, or they will do so for you. If the death takes place at home and there is a family doctor that has been caring for the deceased, the physician should be called first, and will authorize you to contact the funeral home, If the death takes place at home and there is no attending physician or hospice program, the local police department should be called. They may authorize Wetzel and Son to come to the house or possibly decide to take the deceased to a local hospital, at their discretion.

When a person passes away and Wetzel and Son is called, please notify the secretary or staff member who answers the telephone that a death has occured. We will make the necessary arrangements to have the deceased brought to the funeral home. We will also discuss an appointment time to meet with the family to arrange for the funeral, or set a time for one of our directors to make a return call to the family to set that appointment.

• Generally, funerals are planned for two days after the family meets with the funeral director.
• It can be arranged to have the service delayed additional days if family circumstances require it.
• Wetzel and Son will normally contact and arrange the following for you, if desired:
  • Contact and schedule the services with the clergy.
  • Initial contact and schedule of services with the cemetery or crematory. Many cemeteries that are owned by large corporations require a family member to visit the cemetery, after arranging the funeral with Wetzel and Son, to sign authorization forms before the funeral day.
  • Newspaper notices or Obituaries.
  • Floral arrangements.
  • Veterans and Social Security benefit filing.
  • All required governmental filing.
  • All other aspects of funeral services.
• If you contact the church on your own, be sure to verify the information immediately with Wetzel and Son if service times and dates are discussed. This will eliminate scheduling conflicts.

Wetzel and Son will meet with you during the morning or early afternoon and assist in the planning of all funeral related items. Arranging a funeral in the daytime allows the Wetzel and Son staff to be in contact with all other people involved in the funeral service and verify the timing of services and availability of all people involved immediately.

Several items are needed to plan a funeral with a funeral director. Some of the items are statistical items, required for documents which are filed with local, state or federal governmental agencies:

• Medicare and Social Security cards or numbers.
• The date and city, state and country of birth.
• The parents names including the mother's maiden name.
• The number of years of education completed.
• The industry and occupation during the working career.
• The veteran's discharge papers for a veteran or spouse of a veteran.

In addition to the statistical information, the funeral home will need other personal information or items:

• The church or clergy which might provide the religious services.
• The deed to the cemetery lot.
• A full set of clothing, including undergarments, stockings, socks, shoes or slippers.
• A recent photograph as a guide for appearance and hair style, all photos will be returned to the family on the day of the services.

The following items will be needed if a viewing or visitation is to take place at a Wetzel and Son funeral home:

• Up to 50 loose photographs, ranging over a lifetime, to be used for a video slideshow.
• Music on CD or casette tape to be played duing a funeral home visitiation.