Useful Links
Here is a list of links you might find useful:
Business Practices and Consumer Protection Authority - This is the agency which governs the funeral industry. It administers legislation specific to the industry and is a very useful aid for resolving issues with the industry. The Memorial Society makes use of their services and strongly supports its work. Click here for more information.
Bereavement air fare: Air Canada offers bereavement air fares if you need to travel outside of Canada/US to attend the funeral of a relative. Click here for more information.
Hospice and Palliative Care:
- British Columbia Hospice Palliative Care Association. 1-877-422-4722.
- Lois Fish Palliatve Society. 604-899-2437, 1-877-247-1110,
Financial aid to help cover the costs of your funeral:
- Public Trustee and Guardian: 604-660-4444.
- Ministry of Employment and Income Assistance: 604-660-2421, 250-387-6121 or 1-800-663-7867.
- CPP Death Benefit: 1-800-277-9914.
- Funeral, Burial and Gravemarking Assistance - Veterans Affairs Canada: 1-866-522-2122.
Organ, Body Donations:
- B.C. Transplant Foundation: 1-800-663-6189
- Body Donation: U.B.C. Dept. of Cellular and Physical Sciences. 604-822-2578 anatomy@interchange.ubc.ca.
Green Burial Council - The Green Burial Council is a nonprofit organization founded to educate the public about opportunities for using the burial process to encourage sustainability among cemeteries and funeral providers, to facilitate legitimate landscape level conservation efforts, and to bring about practices that are transparent, fair, and honest.
Museum of Funeral Customs - and The Museum of Funeral History provide the public with a deeper understanding of the history of American funeral and mourning customs, funerary art and practice; fosters an appreciation of history within the funeral profession; and encourages further study on the subject.
Dying in America - [PBS] Prior to the 20th century, most Americans prepared their dead for burial with the help of family and friends, but today most funerals are part of a multimillion-dollar industry run by professionals. "A Family Undertaking" explores the growing home-funeral movement by following several families in their most intimate moments as they reclaim the end of life, forgoing a typical mortuary funeral to care for their loved ones at home.
"The home funeral movement challenges us to re-examine our attitudes toward death," says director and producer Elizabeth Westrate. "We will all face death sooner or later; it's one of life's most defining moments, yet it's the one we typically prepare for least. I wanted to explore this movement and its growing impact on our culture of denial." More...
Bereavement B.C. Helpline is a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to the healthy and wholesome recovery of individuals experiencing grief. They provide the public and particularly the bereaved with information on how to seek help for themselves or individuals known to them who are in need of assistance through their grief. Their services include: a helpline for referral and support; community network of support and information; a brochure of available support in BC; and a quarterly newsletter.
Funeral Consumers Alliance is a U.S. based federation of Nonprofit Consumer Information Societies protecting a consumer's right to choose a meaningful, dignified, affordable funeral since 1963.
The Natural Death Centre is a charitable project launched in Britain in 1991. It aims to support those dying at home and their care givers, and to help people arrange inexpensive, family-organised, and environmentally-friendly funerals. It has a more general aim of helping to improve the quality of dying
The Natural Burial Association’s vision is to provide an environmentally friendly alternative to conventional burials in Canada. Recently established, the non-profit Association promotes natural burials through advocacy, education and standards. We act as facilitators to get natural burial grounds set up; as supporters of natural burial initiatives; and as leaders in establishing principles and guidelines. Our members are individuals, corporations, non-profits, and all others dedicated to providing natural burials in Canada. We are a non-denominational organization and work with all faith groups.
MEMORIAL SOCIETIES OF CANADA
The Memorial Society of British Columbia enjoys reciprocal relationships with the following Canadian memorial societies.
ALBERTA
CALGARY
Calgary Cooperative Memorial Society Ltd.
Box 71069, Silver Springs Post Office
Calgary AB T3B 5K2
Tel: 403-248-2044 1-800-566-9959
www.funerals-nonprofit-ccms.com
EDMONTON
Memorial Society of Edmonton & District
1108 – 10235 – 124th Street NW
Edmonton AB T5N 1P9
Tel: 780-944-0196 Fax: 780-944-0791
Email:msed@moderndigital.net
www.angelfire.com/my/edmemsociety
RED DEER
Memorial Society of Red Deer & District
P.O. Box 817
Red Deer AB T4N 5H2
Tel: 403-340-1021 403-346-9617
jrussel@telusplanet.net
BRITISH COLUMBIA
PORT ALBERNI
Memorial Society of British Columbia
Tel: 250-720-2280
or
Toll Free: 1-888-816-5902 Fax: 1-888-816-5903
VANCOUVER
Memorial Society of British Columbia (Provincial Office)
205 - 640 West Broadway
Vancouver BC V5Z 1G4
Tel: 604-733-7705 Fax: 604-733-7730
Toll Free: 1-888-816-5902 Fax: 1-888-816-5903
Email: mail@memsoc.org
www.memsoc.org
MANITOBA
Funeral Planning and Memorial Society of Manitoba
C/O 613 St. Mary’s Road.
Winnipeg MB R2M 3L8
Tel: 204-452-7999
ONTARIO
Federation of Ontario Memorial Societies
Funeral Consumers’ Alliance
55 St. Phillips Road
Etobicoke ON M9P 2N8
http://www.myfuneralplan.org/
GUELPH
The Funeral Information & Memorial Society
of Guelph & Area , Membership Chair
Box 1784
Guelph ON N1H 7A1
Tel: 519-836-8775
E-mail: memorialsociety_guelph @hotmail.com
http://www.guelphmemorialsociety.com/
HAMILTON
Funeral Advisory Society of
Hamilton & District
Box 89026
991 King Street West
Hamilton ON L8S 4R5
Tel: 905-389-8240
www.hwcn.org/link/fashd/
KITCHENER-WATERLOO
Memorial Society of Kitchener-Waterloo Ann Stuyver
PO Box 43133 Keith Newport
120 Ottawa Street N.
Kitchener ON N2H 6S9
Tel: 519-579-3800
www.kwmemorialsociety.com
LONDON
Memorial Society of London
P.O. Box 1729 Stn. A
London ON N6A 5H9
519-649-1014
www.londonmemorialsociety.com
NIAGARA
Niagara Peninsula Funeral Advisory
3817 Main Street
Niagara Falls ON L2G 6B4
Tel: 905-732-7114
E-mail: npfas@yahoo.ca
www.myfuneralplan.org/niagara
NORTHERN ONTARIO
Memorial Society of Northern Ontario
PO Box 1355 Stn B
Sudbury ON P3E 5K4
Tel: 705-671-3753 (24 hrs. answering service)
www.memorialsociety.ca
OTTAWA
Funeral Information Society of Ottawa Executive Secretary Art Read
Box 32057
1386 Richmond Road
Ottawa ON K2B 1A1
Tel: 613-828-4926
PETERBOROUGH
Funeral Advisory & Memorial Society
Peterborough & District
Box 1795
Peterborough ON K9J 7X6
Tel: 705-742-0550
www.myfuneralplan.org/ptbo
THUNDER BAY
Memorial Society of Thunder Bay
316 Talbot Street
Thunder Bay ON P7A 1J7
Tel: 807-683-3051
TORONTO
Funeral Advisory and Memorial Society
(formerly Toronto Memorial Society)
55 St. Phillips Road
Etobicoke ON M9P 2N8
Tel: 416-241-6274
WINDSOR
Memorial Society of Windsor & District
Box 481
Windsor ON N9A 6M6
Tel: 519-969-6767
QUEBEC
MONTREAL
Memorial Association of Montreal
P.O. Box 812 Stn. H
Montreal QC H3G 2M8
Tel: 514-933-8444 Fax: 514-933-1999
www.funeralsmontreal.org
email: info@funeralsmontreal.org
SASKATCHEWAN
Memorial Society of Saskatchewan
P.O. Box 1846
Saskatoon SK S7K 3S2
Tel: 1-866-283-2677 (within the province only)
Tel: 306-374-5190
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