Up until the 1950′s funerals commonly took place in the living room or parlor of the family home. It still happens on occasion with the last memorable one being Jackie Onassis in 1994. As a 6 yr-old I remember helping my father pack the chairs, kneeler, register stand, ferns with stands and, of course, the deceased into station wagons, delivering and setting them up in the family home.
Hosting the funeral for 3 days was common at the time. But in time the rigors of the ritual proved too much for most. Instead they now rent our home to be their home for the funeral. The Funeral Home was born.
Since then the Funeral Home has become almost an institution in the communities they serve. But this institution serves the public in a very different way. It is one that brings people and memories together.
They are places for husbands, wives, children and even strangers to share memories in one another’s company; a place for young and old to discover each other. Here the older generation can recapture the nostalgia of time past by and the younger generation can taste the future.
Both the Renaissance Funeral Home and New Hyde Park Funeral Home are based upon a dedication to the hopes, dreams and memories that each guest carries through it’s doors. They are designed to encourage the expression of these memories and dreams of the life lived and to propel them forward as hope and inspiration to all who visit.
These places are at the same time:
- a family reunion
- a walk down memory lane
- a community center
- a museum of time now immortal
They are filled with goodwill, the inspiration of fond memories and the realization of hope for the world we have inherited. It enables those who unite here to make all of these gifts part of our futures.
In serving mankind and the community they serve to provide for the final disposition of the dead and the kindling of memories. In a Funeral Home real life goes on. It is a Home to so much more than just a funeral.
