My Funeral, My Way


Book Description

Whose funeral is it, anyway? Why, it's yours, of course! Death is one topic that many people feel dreadfully uncomfortable discussing. Planning a funeral, burial, or service for a loved one can be devastating. I believe that the attendees at a funeral, burial, or service deserve to learn about the life and character of the deceased. Wouldn't you want everyone who attended your funeral, burial, or services to know what an amazing person you were? Wouldn't you like them to walk away with more than just tears and sadness? How about if they learned more about your hobbies and interests? What if they discovered that you rescued animals, loved children, loved a particular sport, or enjoyed books, traveling, and classical music? What about the awards you received, the offices you held, the organizations in which you were affiliated. I believe that if your service was personalized, family and guests who attended might have a more intimate experience and leave with an everlasting impression of you and your life. That's why I've created My Funeral, My Way: A Journal for Those Who Would Like to Assist in Planning Their Own Funeral. REVIEWS "I found My Funeral, My Way to be a wonderful resource for families dealing with loss. How many times have I heard, "What would Mom have wanted?" or "What would Dad have wanted?" By keeping this journal, family members won't have to answer those questions, the questions are answered for them." -Carl Goldstein Goldsteins' Rosenberg Raphael-Sacks Inc. Funeral Home Southampton, PA "This book is a useful tool for aging individuals as well as en- tire families. As a nurse, I am often witness to uncertain med- ical outcomes among my patients. This book allows some sense of control at a time when many feel helpless. It is an ex- cellent resource for patients and a concept long overdue. I would recommend this book without hesitation." -Kathleen Bickings, RN "My Funeral, My Way is an amazing, easy-to-follow guide for people approaching later life or end of life, to record their gen- eral wishes succeeding death. It is extremely user friendly, and is written with a warm, welcoming tone which creates comfort. This could serve as a great initial conversation piece among mourning family members." -Amy Keiper-Shaw LCSW, QCSW, GC-C Manager of Family Services Chandler Hall Health Services 99 Barclay St. Newtown, PA About the Author Angela "Angel" Hope De Simone was born and raised in the far Northeast section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, into a family of fifteen. She's the youngest child in a baker's dozen-which includes five brothers and seven sisters, all of whom assisted in her upbringing. Ms. De Simone attended Pierce Junior College, located in Philadelphia, where she received her associ- ate's degree in business, and met her husband. After working in the business industry for over eight years, she decided to pursue her dream of helping others by becom- ing a licensed massage therapist. She has been practicing massage therapy for eighteen years. She currently resides in Newtown, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Chicky, and two children, Alyssa and Domenic. Angel is a journal junkie-been keeping one since she was seven. In her free time she loves antiquing, and arts & crafts. Her specialty is carving inspirational words Angela Hope De Simone and sayings into chairs, mirrors, etc. She has an ETSY page where you can see and purchase her original art- work! Her favorite beach destination is "Cape May." And she is known in her circle of friends for her punctuality. Angel is a very spiritual person. She owns a sixteen-year- old cat, Belle, and Denise-a retired race dog, a grey- hound, that she personally rescued. Angel is also a big fan of 80's tunes. And, yes, you will find most of this trivia, that is unique to Angel, decorating the pages of her very own Funeral Journal. This is Angel De Simone's first book.




A Funny Thing Happened to Me on the Way to My Funeral


Book Description

Full of wit and stories, some well-known. Plus, a recap of memories of famous comedians he's known and places where he's been the entertainer.




Saying Goodbye Your Way


Book Description

Funerary arrangements are detailed in this sensitive yet realistic guide to making the important, difficult decisions necessary when a loved one dies, or when preparing for one's own departure. The logistics of planning memorial services and other ceremonies are discussed, and frank explanations are provided regarding cremation and interment. Special emphasis is placed on helping individuals understand the options available and become informed consumers, even while making what are often difficult, highly emotional choices. Prearrangement options for individuals planning for the future are discussed in detail, including where to buy caskets and monuments and whom to notify when death occurs.




A Funeral for My Fat


Book Description

I wear black when I work out; it’s a funeral for my fat. Why a funeral? Because death is permanent; when something dies, it’s not coming back. Sharee Samuels was seventeen and 256 pounds when she hit her rock bottom. But with incredible determination and an unflaggingly positive attitude, she went on to lose more than one hundred pounds over the course of five years. When she began documenting her journey on Tumblr, she never expected to become such a powerful voice for health, fitness, and self-love, but her blog, called Funeral for My Fat, soon morphed into an inspirational guide for hundreds of thousands of individuals looking for support and advice on their own fitness journeys. Here Sharee tells her story. Integral to her success has been her burgeoning passion for teaching group fitness classes, including Zumba, as well as her commitment to eating vegan. However, she firmly believes that it is important for everybody to follow their own paths and find what works for them while treating themselves and their bodies with care and respect. If you have a journey ahead of you, Sharee has a story worth reading.




Confessions of a Funeral Director


Book Description

“Wise, vulnerable, and surprisingly relatable . . . funny in all the right places and enormously helpful throughout. It will change how you think about death.” —Rachel Held Evans, New York Times–bestselling author of Searching for Sunday We are a people who deeply fear death. While humans are biologically wired to evade death for as long as possible, we have become too adept at hiding from it, vilifying it, and—when it can be avoided no longer—letting the professionals take over. Sixth-generation funeral director Caleb Wilde understands this reticence and fear. He had planned to get as far away from the family business as possible. He wanted to make a difference in the world, and how could he do that if all the people he worked with were . . . dead? Slowly, he discovered that caring for the deceased and their loved ones was making a difference—in other people’s lives to be sure, but it also seemed to be saving his own. A spirituality of death began to emerge as he observed the family who lovingly dressed their deceased father for his burial; the nursing home that honored a woman’s life by standing in procession as her body was taken away; the funeral that united a conflicted community. Through stories like these, told with equal parts humor and poignancy, Wilde’s candid memoir offers an intimate look into the business of death and a new perspective on living and dying. “Open[s] up conversations about life’s ultimate concerns.” —The Washington Post “As a look behind the closed doors of the death industry, as well as a candid exploration of Wilde’s own faith journey, this book is fascinating and compelling.” —National Catholic Reporter “[A] stunner of a debut.” —Rachel Held Evans, author of Inspired




The American Way of Death Revisited


Book Description

Only the scathing wit and searching intelligence of Jessica Mitford could turn an exposé of the American funeral industry into a book that is at once deadly serious and side-splittingly funny. When first published in 1963, this landmark of investigative journalism became a runaway bestseller and resulted in legislation to protect grieving families from the unscrupulous sales practices of those in "the dismal trade." Just before her death in 1996, Mitford thoroughly revised and updated her classic study. The American Way of Death Revisited confronts new trends, including the success of the profession's lobbyists in Washington, inflated cremation costs, the telemarketing of pay-in-advance graves, and the effects of monopolies in a death-care industry now dominated by multinational corporations. With its hard-nosed consumer activism and a satiric vision out of Evelyn Waugh's novel The Loved One, The American Way of Death Revisited will not fail to inform, delight, and disturb. "Brilliant--hilarious. . . . A must-read for anyone planning to throw a funeral in their lifetime."--New York Post "Witty and penetrating--it speaks the truth."--The Washington Post




Say Farewell Your Way


Book Description

There are three situations in which you may find yourself planning a funeral and hence reading this book: OCoA loved one has passed away suddenly; OCoA loved one has been diagnosed as terminally ill; OCoYou wish to pre-plan your own funeral. Despite the fact that human beings have a 100% mortality rate, most people in Ireland act as if even talking about end-of-life planning causes people to die A funeral is both a beginning and an ending, where the end symbolises that the journey from birth to death has been completed and the beginning symbolises the recovery and renewal process for the loved ones still living. The main purpose of this book is to encourage conversation about death, dying, funerals and loss in Ireland today and, hopefully, to open your minds to the endless possibilities there are when it comes to funerals. It aims to inspire independent individuals to celebrate and take control of the last memory they will leave loved ones. "




Funeral Diva


Book Description

Funeral Diva is the Winner of the Lambda Award for Lesbian Poetry! A poetic memoir about coming-of-age in the AIDS era, and its effects on life and art. "Sneed is an acclaimed reader of her own poetry, and the book has the feeling of live performance. . . . Its strength is in its abundance, its desire for language to stir body as well as mind."—Parul Sehgal, The New York Times Book Review "She is a writer for the future, in that she defies genre."—Hilton Als "This notable achievement, traveling from youth to adulthood, is a harrowing account of how Sneed transforms violence and pain into an artist's life."—Claudia Rankine, author of Citizen: An American Lyric "There's an eerie sense of timeliness to this book, which features prose and poetry by the writer and teacher Pamela Sneed and is largely — though not entirely — about mourning Black gay men killed too soon by a deadly virus."—Tomi Obaro, Buzzfeed "OH MY GOODNESS, it was amazing. I was in tears by the end. What starts off as beautiful memoir evolves into incredibly moving poetry, painful and sweet and lovely."—Marie Cloutier, Greenlight Bookstore, Brooklyn, NY "Balancing and mixing, with rhyme and reason, love and anger, good and bad, memory and the created present, all to tell the story of a life, a memoir unrestrained, devoid of artificial forms. Honest. Free."—Anjanette Delgado, New York Journal of Books In this collection of personal essays and poetry, acclaimed poet and performer Pamela Sneed details her coming of age in New York City during the late 1980s. Funeral Diva captures the impact of AIDS on Black Queer life, and highlights the enduring bonds between the living, the dying, and the dead. Sneed’s poems not only converse with lovers past and present, but also with her literary forebears—like James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Audre Lorde—whose aesthetic and thematic investments she renews for a contemporary American landscape. Offering critical focus on matters from police brutality to LGBTQ+ rights, Funeral Diva confronts today's most pressing issues with acerbic wit and audacity. The collection closes with Sneed's reflections on the two pandemics of her time, AIDS and COVID-19, and the disproportionate impact of each on African American communities. "Riveting, personal, open-hearted, risky and wise."—Sarah Schulman, author of Conflict Is Not Abuse " . . . a tour de force about the collision between a coalescing 1980s 'Black lesbian and gay literary and poetic movement' in New York and the onslaught of AIDS."—Donna Seaman, Booklist "Pamela Sneed's Funeral Diva is deft, defiant, and devastating."—Tommy Pico, author of Feed "Funeral Diva is urgent and necessary reading to live by. This is writing at its finest. Keep this book close to your heart and soul."—Karen Finley, author of Shock Treatment "Reminiscent of Audre Lorde’s Zami, Pamela Sneed’s memoir is, in itself, a healing balm, affirming in its truths and honesty. I cannot remember ever reading a book that illustrates the impact of the AIDS epidemic on our community more poignantly than Funeral Diva."—Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of Patsy "Pamela Sneed takes enormous risks in this book. She tells the truth with fierce concentration and an abiding sense of purpose.”—Dorothy Allison, author of Bastard Out of Carolina




A Funeral in the Bathroom


Book Description

2012 IRA-CBC Children's Choices 2012 Children's Choice Book Award Finalist My teacher's pretty slick, Has a hundred teaching tricks. Even in the bathroom stalls, She hangs poetry on the walls, And while I'm there all alone I can't help but read a poem. From "Gross" and "Flushophobic" to "There's a Sock in the Toilet," these poems will have kids laughing all the way to "The Bathroom Dance!"




My Way


Book Description

Moana Hope is one of fourteen children. No fan of dolls or dresses, footy has always been her passion, and she would spend hours playing kick-to-kick with her dad and brothers at the local park. When her father was diagnosed with terminal cancer, Moana cared for him until his death four years later. Footy and cricket provided an escape from the demands of domestic life, and she made state and national teams for both sports. She also began to explore her Maori heritage, getting tattoos that represented the dearest people in her life. But as women’s football became more popular, being good at the game wasn’t enough—players started being pressured about the way they looked. Moana refused to grow her hair or cover her tatts, and for the first time in her life felt sidelined by the game. But later, inspired by a women's exhibition game, she realised what she was missing and returned with gusto to the game she loved. As a powerful full-forward who can thrill crowds by taking big marks and kicking spectacular goals, Moana was signed by Collingwood as one of its two marquee players for the inaugural AFL Women's competition in 2017. A high-flying athlete who is grounded by remarkable selflessness, Moana Hope is an inspiration for women and girls everywhere. My Way is her story.