When A Death Occurs

If in any case, the death of a family member should occur and you are not sure of who to notify or what to do, you may call Loudoun Funeral Chapels, (703) 777-6000 and a director will assist you in notifying the proper agencies.

When a death occurs, there are several issues to consider. The arrangement of the issues and responsibilities usually depends on whether the death occurred at a residence, a public place, a care center, or in a hospital.

While Under Supervised Care

If Hospice or a Home Health Care provider has been assisting the family. Please notify the provider first. The provider will come to your home to pronounce your loved one and notify the physician of their passing. They will contact Loudoun Funeral Chapels on your behalf once they arrive at your home, but you may with to contact us while you are waiting on the provider to arrive.

If Hospice or a Home Health Care Provider is not involved, but the person is under a physician’s care that would be willing to sign a death certificate, and family or friends are present, the family may want to call Loudoun Funeral Chapels, (703) 777-6000 directly so that we may help you with the proper notifications.

Unexpected Death

If the death occurs unexpectedly in a residence and no one is there at the time of death, please call 911. If 911 is called they will dispatch the police and rescue squad to your residence. If the paramedics are unable to help your loved one then the police will have their normal investigation that they will need to follow through with witch may include contacting the Medical Examiners Office. If the police are unable to confirm the cause death by means of their seen investigation and speaking with the decedents family and primary physician, an autopsy may have to be performed before they will release to Loudoun Funeral Chapels.

While in a Hospital or Care Center

If the death occurs in a hospital or care center, Loudoun Funeral Chapels as the funeral home provider may be left with the facility, and the institution will notify the funeral home at the time of the death. The funeral home will respond and at the next practical time review matters with the family. If a loved one dies while away from home within the United States, contact Loudoun Funeral Chapels and notify us of the death so we can help arrange through a local funeral home the transfer your loved one to our facility. If the coroner or medical examiner is involved, they can also help coordinate arrangements with our funeral home for the preparation and return of your loved one to Loudoun County.

Widening the Circle

Our staff members are experienced professionals who can provide much of the information you need, emotional support and compassionate guidance.

While you may ask the director any questions at this time, you will be able to discuss the arrangements in detail later when you meet in person. During this initial call, the funeral director will gather information to be able to transport your loved one to the funeral home.

The funeral director may ask you several questions, including whether your loved one made any pre-arrangements. The director will also schedule a date and time for you to meet at the funeral home and will let you know what you should bring with you. Others you will need to call are:

• Family members and friends
• Clergy or other spiritual advisors

Those Important Questions

If there is no pre-plan in place, there are several other questions that you may have to have answered in regards to the death of your loved one:

• Do I have to have embalming?
• Do I need to purchase a casket?
• What about cemetery arrangements?
• Does the family have to engage the services of a minister?
• What type of service should we have?

By contacting our staff, we'll be able to help answer your questions and assist in making the appropriate plans. You can reach us at (703) 777-6000.

However, as we’ve said before, one of the best ways to make sure that all of your questions and desires are taken care of is to make pre-arrangements. This is as simple as outlining your wishes to having all of the details written down and the financial arrangements prepaid. Please contact one of our staff at (703) 777-6000 to learn more about pre-arrangement.

What to Expect When You Arrive at the Funeral Home

One of the first things the funeral arranger will do is to provide you with our general price list. He or she will then guide you through the entire arrangement process, explaining how you can create a memorable personal celebration of your loved one's life. This is not a one-way conversation; we want to hear your ideas and desires, and use them as the foundation for the arrangement process.

This process may include:

• Preparing and filing the official death certificate
• Scheduling the location, date and time of services or events
• Selecting a casket, urn or other items
• Preparing an obituary notice
• Scheduling vehicles
• Selecting pallbearers

You may also sign necessary authorizations or make arrangements to have them signed by the appropriate family members.

We’d like you to bring any photos, a favorite song, or memorabilia so that you and your funeral arranger can better discuss how you would like your loved one to be remembered. Having these things, and knowing their favorite song or favorite gathering place – even their favorite activity – will help us create a truly fitting memorial service.

Our funeral arrangers will assist you in planning a loving tribute that captures the spirit of the person whose life you wish to honor. To learn more about personalizing the service, please read the Honoring Life section of this Web site. The funeral arranger will discuss personalization with you during your arrangement conference.

The following checklist will help you remember what information about the decedent and items will be needed when meeting with a funeral arranger.

• Full legal name
• Home address
• Social Security number
• Date of birth
• Place of birth
• Father's name
• Mother's maiden name
• Veteran's discharge papers (DD-214)
• Recent Photograph
• Highest education
• Occupation
• Place of burial (if applicable)
• Clothing
• Clergy name and phone number
• Survivors (name and relationship)
• Insurance policies (if applicable)

A staff member of Loudoun Funeral Chapels will be honored to explain all of the options available to you.