When Death Occurs

Whether a death is unforeseen, or at the end of a long journey, the loss of a someone in our circle makes us feel emotional and overwhelmed. New Rochelle Funeral Home and its staff will help you complete arrangements in a respectful and timely manner.  The following is an example of what happens during the first 24 hours following a loss.

When death occurs at home

If the person was not under hospice care, 911 should be called.  The police along with emergency medical personnel will be dispatched to the scene and contact the medical examiner and attending physician, if one is available.  At this point, the medical examiner will either "release" the Deceased to the Funeral Home or order their staff to place the body into their custody and investigate further.  Unattended deaths or deaths involving an accident, homicide or other trauma, malpractice or mistreatment, or substance abuse will almost always trigger an investigation by the medical examiner.

Death at a facility

More and more people are electing to receive Hospice and Palliative Care at a Hospice facility, when facing a terminal illness, or choosing to reside in a Nursing Home, Assisted Living or Long Term Care Center.  Upon the death, the facility will contact you and instruct you to engage the services of a Funeral Home.  If arrangements have been made prior, the facility may also contact our office directly, but not always.  At times, you may be contacted in the nighttime hours, or over a weekend and be instructed by the facility that they do not have an area set aside to shelter the body, and that a Funeral Home will be need to respond within a reasonable amount of time.  After reviewing our information here, along with pricing, you can call the New Rochelle Funeral Home at any time of the day at (914) 633-0500. 

New Rochelle Funeral Home: The Next Step

Making Contact.  When you contact the New Rochelle Funeral Home, a staff member will take some basic information to begin a service file.  We will need to know who you are and your relationship to the person that has passed, and where and when the death occurred.  Our experience tells us death never happens during "business hours", so there is always someone to answer the telephone even if it is during the evening, a weekend or a holiday.  If the nature of the death requires a time sensitive response such as a death at home or facility which may lack an area to shelter a dead human being for an extended period of time, as explained above, we will adjust our response to the situation accordingly.  Sometimes a death will happen in a different state or country - we will make arrangements to have the body sent to our Funeral Home, a situation we encounter from time to time and are equipped to handle.  Your initial call to us will also include scheduling a time to meet with our funeral directors, for planning and finalizing the funeral arrangement.  If you are out of town, not to worry, arrangements can be completed via telephone with the required authorizations and disclosures being delivered to you via e-mail or overnight carrier.  

What we need.  We require some information about the deceased such as their Social Security Number, date and place of Birth, education level completed, occupation and most recent employer, their parent's names including mother's maiden name, armed forces veteran status, and marital status.  We don't need documents such as a birth or marriage certificate - if you have them available, great, if not, do not be concerned, we just need the information contained on them which you may be able to recall from memory.  We do not share this information with anyone except parties we need to in order to perform our services.  If the arrangement is to include a burial in an existing space or cemetery plot, please have the location of the space within the cemetery available as well.  Also, gather personal items such as clothing, including undergarments for the deceased, if you desire the body be dressed.  If service arrangements include using our facilities, you may wish to gather items such as photographs for display to those who visit

What we do for you.  When you meet with us, funeral related merchandise will be selected, service times and details will be finalized, the obituary if so desired will be prepared and placed into local newspapers, and all necessary authorizations and disclosures will be presented and signed at that time as well.  You will be asked to sign documents such as cemetery or crematory authorizations, forms designating the recipient of cremated ashes (cremains), and an itemization of goods and services selected.  You will receive copies of everything for your records.  Payment arrangements will also be finalized at this time.  Major credit cards, and assignable insurance policies are accepted by the New Rochelle Funeral Home.

Final thoughts.  Our staff of funeral service professionals will guide you through all these steps, using your wants, needs and desires as a foundation to create a memorable funeral for your loved one. From here the funeral services can be personalized.  Did your loved one have a favorite sports team?  What was their favorite type of music?  What activity was your loved one known best for?  Recalling fond memories assists with the grieving process and will help honor the life of your loved one.  For further guidance, please visit our "Advance Planning" section.  You may also contact us by clicking here.