Cremation Services
If your family has chosen cremation, we offer affordable services that help celebrate the life of your loved one while giving you several options for a public gathering, and a final resting place.
Direct Cremation- No Services
This service will include services of funeral director and staff, the arrangement, getting the death certificate signed, obtaining permits from the county, refrigeration of remains which is required by law until the time of cremation, transfer from the place of passing to the funeral home within 25 miles, cremation container in which the body is placed in for cremation, transportation to the crematory and crematory fees and a temporary urn.
*Items not included: certified death certificates $20 ea. Arizona State Board fee, Medical Examiners signature fee (cremations only). We have a selection of urns available for purchase.
Cremation with Memorial Services - (Without Body Present)
This service will include services of funeral director and staff, the arrangement, getting the death certificate signed, obtaining permits from the county, transfer from place of passing to the funeral home within 25 miles, use of the facility for one evening or same day visitation and chapel services.
*Items not included: certified death certificates $20 ea. Arizona State Board fee, Medical Examiners signature fee (cremations only), memorial book, folders / prayer cards, clergy, obituary notices, flowers, and cemetery fees.(if family choose the ashes to be interred).
Cremation with Viewing and/or Funeral Services - (With Body Present)
This service will include services of funeral director and staff, the arrangement, getting the death certificate signed, obtaining permits from the county, transfer from place of passing to the funeral home within 25 miles, embalming, dressing, casketing, cosmetic, use of the facility for one evening or same day visitation and chapel or church services.
*Items not included: certified death certificates $20 ea. Arizona State Board fee, Medical Examiners signature fee (cremations only), rental casket, memorial book, folders / prayer cards, clergy, obituary notices, flowers, and cemetery fees.(if family choose the ashes to be interred).
Permanent Memorialization
Cremation Services Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Whitney & Murphy Bueler Mortuary offers cremation with viewing and/or funeral services when families want the body present before cremation. This option can include visitation and chapel or church services, along with preparation such as embalming, dressing, casketing, and cosmetics before the cremation takes place.
Additional cremation expenses depend on the type of service and the family's choices. Whitney & Murphy Bueler Mortuary lists certain items separately from its cremation services, including certified death certificates, applicable state and Medical Examiner fees, upgraded urns, and, depending on the arrangement selected, memorial products, clergy, flowers, obituary notices, rental caskets, or cemetery expenses.
| Potential Expense | When It May Apply |
|---|---|
| Certified death certificates | When certified copies are requested |
| Arizona State Board fee | Listed separately from cremation services |
| Medical Examiner signature fee | Cremations |
| Urn purchase | When the family chooses an urn beyond the temporary urn included with direct cremation |
| Rental casket | Cremation with viewing and/or funeral services |
| Memorial book or folders/prayer cards | Memorial, viewing, or funeral arrangements when selected |
| Clergy | When clergy participation is requested |
| Obituary notices | When the family chooses a paid or separate obituary notice |
| Flowers | When selected by the family |
| Cemetery fees | When cremated remains are interred |
Both columbarium placement and urn burial provide a permanent resting place for cremated remains, but they differ in how the remains are memorialized. A columbarium places the urn in a niche, while urn burial places it in the ground. Families should compare visitation preferences, cemetery options, memorialization goals, and associated cemetery requirements and costs.
| Consideration | Columbarium Placement | Urn Burial |
|---|---|---|
| Placement | Urn is placed in a niche | Urn is buried in the ground |
| Permanent resting place | Yes | Yes |
| Family visitation | Provides a designated place to visit | Provides a designated burial location to visit |
| Memorial style | Niche-based memorialization | Similar in concept to traditional in-ground burial |
| Cemetery considerations | Depends on the columbarium and cemetery selected | Depends on cemetery burial requirements |
| Additional costs | Cemetery or niche costs may apply | Cemetery and interment costs may apply |
The cremation arrangement process includes completing information needed for the death certificate and obtaining required county permits before cremation. Whitney & Murphy Bueler Mortuary's cremation services include assistance from the funeral director and staff with these steps. Specific documents, authorizations, signatures, and information required can vary according to the circumstances of the death.
The arrangement process may involve:
- Meeting with the funeral director and staff to make cremation arrangements.
- Providing the personal information needed to prepare the death certificate.
- Completing required cremation authorizations or other applicable paperwork.
- Having the death certificate properly signed.
- Obtaining required county permits.
- Addressing any Medical Examiner signature requirements that apply to the cremation.
- Selecting direct cremation, a memorial service, or viewing and/or funeral services.
- Discussing the family's choice for the cremated remains and any desired urn.
Keeping an urn at home is a common memorialization choice that allows families to keep their loved one's cremated remains close. Before choosing this option permanently, families should consider where the urn will be kept, who will be responsible for it long term, and whether relatives would prefer a permanent resting place they can visit.
Questions to consider include:
- Is there a secure and appropriate place in the home for the urn?
- Who will care for the urn if the home is sold or the family moves?
- Do other family members want access to a permanent memorial location?
- What should happen to the urn when the person responsible for it can no longer care for it?
- Would a columbarium niche or in-ground urn burial better meet the family's long-term memorialization preferences?
- Would scattering the cremated remains in a meaningful place better reflect the loved one's or family's wishes?
Whitney & Murphy Bueler Mortuary provides cremation services for families in Chandler, Mesa, and Gilbert, Arizona. The mortuary is located at 14 W Hulet Drive in Chandler and offers direct cremation, cremation with memorial services, and cremation with viewing and/or funeral services. Families should contact the mortuary to confirm arrangements for a particular location.
Service area and cremation options:
- Areas served: Families can turn to Whitney & Murphy Bueler Mortuary for cremations near Mesa, Chandler and Gilbert, AZ.
- Mortuary location: Chandler, Arizona
- Direct cremation: Cremation without funeral or memorial services
- Memorial service option: Cremation with a memorial service without the body present
- Viewing/funeral option: Viewing and/or funeral services with the body present before cremation
- Transfer coverage: The published cremation packages include transfer from the place of passing to the funeral home within 25 miles
