The Frugal Undertaker

NOTICE:

I have been asked if I am still associated with Legends Funeral Home. The answer is yes and no. I retired on October 31, 2021 and have nothing to do with anything at the funeral home or crematory. I still have a 10% stake in the company due to the way the company was structured. If your family needs the services of a Hays County funeral home I would recommend Pennington Funeral Home, Thomason Funeral Home or Harrell Funeral Home. I will only refer to firms that I feel comfortable with and would use for my own family.

Horror Stories

I will be posting first hand cremation/crematory horror stories. If you have received the link that was sent to select people/organizations you can contact me directly at the email address given. Otherwise you can use the Contact Me tab on the left.

Cremation information

BEWARE of low cost cremation services. When it comes time to trust your family member to a funeral/cremation provider you need to visit them at their licensed facility/funeral home/crematory and see for yourself who you are entrusting your loved one to. Some funeral homes will say that they can provide cremation services in cities such as Houston, Dallas and Ft. Worth only to outsource the cremation to outside crematories. Families tend to be shocked when they pick up their family members cremated remains in an old industrial park. Always ask questions before you enter into a service agreement with a low cost provider. Sometimes you really do get what you pay for. Frugal means you get the best value for the money spent, not necessarily just cheap.

Funeral Directors/Embalmers

Not all Funeral Directors/Embalmers are created equal. All Funeral Directors/Embalmers must complete a course of instruction from an accredited Mortuary program by attending classes in-person or online. The student must then pass the State Board Examination. Next the student becomes a provisional licensee and has a chance to gain additional knowledge while working at a licensed facility for a year. The Funeral Director is then allowed to make funeral arrangements on their own. Many Funeral Directors do not make the effort to gain any additional knowledge. Once they are licensed, the desire to expand their knowledge of the funeral business stops. Even when you give them the tools to perform their jobs in a legal and ethical way they still won't use them. These Funeral Directors/Embalmers generally, but not always, end up working for direct cremation services where less knowledge about conducting an actual full funeral service is required. These Funeral Directors should still know the basics concerning Mortuary Law, but that is rarely the case. It would be nice if Funeral Directors/Embalmers would watch and learn from the movie Groundhog Day. Then again, they have to want to improve.