Rookwood Open Day

    Rookwood will be having it's open day again this year on the Sunday 14th of September.  The open day will run from 10am to 3pm and include a variety of events like historical talks, parades, crematorium tours, and more.  There will also be multiple stalls and exhibitions from funeral homes and historical groups. So there's certainly plenty to do!


When: 14th September, 10am to 3pm.
Where: Rookwood Cemetery, maps to each gate below.

Map to Rookwood East Gate.

Map to Rookwood West Gate.


For more information:

My post about exploring Rookwood, including how to get there, notable places, and maps.

Rookwood Map.

Rookwood 2014 Open Day Flyer (PDF).

Rookwood 2012 Open Day.

~

Joseph Medcalf Open Day

Click to enlarge.

    To celebrate 'Dying to Know Day' Joseph Medcalf will be having an open day on Saturday the 9th at 2pm.  This is a rare chance to see and explore the inside of a funeral home, so I think it's well worth going and will certainly be there.

    According to the banner the event will include a tour of the funeral home, discussions about planning funerals, and more.


Location:   447 Burwood Rd, Belmore NSW (google map).

Time:   2:00pm, 9th of August.


To RSVP and for additional information you can email director@josephmedcalf.com.au or call 0433 181 091.

Joseph Medcalf Site: http://josephmedcalf.com.au

Joseph Medcalf Contact Page & Address (with google maps) : http://josephmedcalf.com.au/contact-us

Groundswell Project (with other similar events): http://www.thegroundswellproject.com/find-an-event

~~

Bulls on King St

    Recently the funeral home where I use to work was very briefly featured on the news after two bulls ran down King St, Newtown. Here's the 7 news segment.

7News: Buffalo Roam Sydney

    Clearly, the journalists had fun squeezing in as many puns as possible.

~

Ask an Undertaker

     This is a reminder about the 'Ask an Undertaker' post, which allows people to anonymously and publicly ask and answer questions about the Australian funeral industry. Anyone can post a question, and I or another person with experience will try and answer it.

Ask an Undertaker link:

http://theothersideoffunerals.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/ask-undertaker.html?showComment=1393475233082#c2284015309962946785

    I also have two other sections of this blog which might be useful;

Advice for mourners: Tips and information to make attending a funeral easier
    This section gives advice for people attending a funeral, from how to design an order of service to funeral industry terminology - simply click here.

Working Funerals: Tips and information on how to be an undertaker
    This section discusses and explains the work of funeral staff, from how to conduct a transfer to why feet first - simply click here.

     You can also contact me privately through my email: theothersideoffunerals@gmail.com.

~

Balancing the Price

    One thing I have come across is the issue of pricing. This is a big issue for all involved in the funeral industry, from mourners to staff, and one I want to discuss in more detail. So today I'll be looking at the balancing act many funeral home have to perform when it comes to pricing.

    That is, the balance between getting paid enough to operate and not overcharging the deceased and/or mourners.

Honours Thesis - Abstract

Honours thesis cover page.

    I've recently been asked a few times where my honours thesis is available to read, or if I can give out copies. Unfortunately my thesis is not, and never will be, publicly available for three main reasons. Firstly, there are concerns for participants who gave their consent to be involved in the research, but not to be involved in the blog. And secondly, because UNSW also has some claim to the thesis and making it publicly available could raise concerns. The third reason is that simply put my thesis is not appropriate for a public audience. That is, it's boring for most people and bogged down in academic jargon.

    So instead every now and then I'll summarise and explain a few select aspects of the thesis which would interest people. For now I'll put up my abstract as it summarises my whole thesis. I might put up extracts from the thesis, but no quotes from participants and nothing more than a few lines. This is a summary and explanation of what it was about and why I employed certain methods.

Social Expressions of Public & Private: Australian Understandings of the Funeral Industry

Abstract

The notion of public and private is often presented as a dichotomous opposition. This is demonstrated with the Australian funeral industry as it is often argued that the funeral industry operates in a private sphere which is distinctly separate from public accessibility and understanding. This research critically unpacks the application of public and private to the funeral industry with the aim of analysing how notions of ‘public’ and ‘private’ are articulated through the social space of the Australian funeral industry. Surveys and interviews were conducted with funeral staff, celebrants, and members of the general public along with participant observation at two funeral homes, exploring the themes of public and private. Through this it will be argued that public and private does not operate in a clear dichotomy. The research found an overlap in public and private, and unclear boundaries between the notion of ‘public’ and ‘private’, particularly with the perceived reasons and responsibilities for this separation. As such I argue that the dichotomous presentation of public and private does not accurately represent the complex interrelationships and dynamics involved. This thesis provides a unique understanding of how the concept of public and private is articulated in social spaces.

~

How to Complain About a Funeral

    Over time various people have contacted me through this blog to complain about something related to the funeral industry. These complaints are quite rare and often varied, yet one thing remains common between them. That the majority of people don't know who to complain to or how to complain.

    Many are not really much asking for my advice so much as who to contact. As such here is a post on how to complain. Remember, I am based in Sydney so this information is aimed for the Sydney funeral industry.

Recommended Funeral Homes

    Several people have asked me what funeral homes I would recommend and why. I find this a tough question to answer as personally I feel it is hard to find a 'bad' funeral home because the vast majority are to a respectable standard.

The Walker Group

    The Walker Group, as I call them, is a growing funeral company in Sydney, and it's about time I discussed them. So this is a post describing what I know of this growing company.

The 2013 Events

    This is a collections of past events from this year.  It has been a great year and I look forward to 2014!

Rookwood Picnic -- 18th Jan, 11:00

    A small and casual picnic in Rookwood Cemetery for those interested in the funeral industry.

    Post about the 2013 Rookwood Picnic.

    My blog post with more information.




UNSW Museum of Human Disease -- 18th Feb, 12:30

    This is the only museum of its kind that is open to the public in Sydney, and the staff were very nice, offering to do a presentation and will have someone there to chat with us as part of our visit.

When  -  18th February, 12:30 (lunchtime).
Cost  -  $11 per person (free for UNSW staff and students).
Where  -  Samuels Building, UNSW Kensington campus.

    Post about the 2013 MoHD visit.

    My blog post with more information.

Museum of Human Disease Website:
http://medicalsciences.med.unsw.edu.au/community/museum-human-disease/home


Rookwood By Night -- 19th March, 19:00
    A visit to Rookwood cemetery at night, to take advantage of the late open hours and to experience it in another light.  This was a great event, fun and different, yet impossible to take any decent photos due to the darkness.


Woronora Open Day -- 13th April, 10:00

    A strangely unknown yet anual event as part of Heritage Week, very few from the funeral industry (that I spoke with) knew anything about it.  But it looks like fun and I will certainly be there.

    My blog post about the 2013 Woronora open day.

Pinegrove Memorial Park Open Night -- 30th April, 18:00

    I don't have much information about this just yet, so check back closer to the date.  This is the only InvoCare only open evening that I know of, so could be fun!

    The Pinegrove Events page.

    My blog post about the 2013 Pinegrove open day.




Rookwood Picnic -- 18th August, 12:00pm

    Time for another picnic at Rookwood. This is a casual event open to anyone who might be interested.

When  -  18th August, 12:00 (lunchtime).
Where  -  The Elephant House just off Haslem Drive, in Rookwood Cemetery.

My blog post with more information.

Hidden Art Exhibition at Rookwood -- 21st Sept - 31st Oct

    Every year there is an art exhibition in Rookwood Cemetery, it is free and quite fun, seeing the different exhibits on display among the graves.  I particularly like how some incorporate that specific place of the cemetery within their artwork.

   On the last day they hold a little closing ceremony with videos and food, which was very fun and informative last year.

    Hidden homepage with more information.


ESMP Open Day -- 26th Oct

    The 2013 ESMP open day was great fun, well worth the trip.  It's also the only funeral home open day I know of, making it a rare opportunity.

    My post about the ESMP 2013 open day.

    My past post about the ESMP 2012 open day.




Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) -- 2nd November

    This is a new event, or at least one I have not heard of in Sydney before. It's a celebration of things related to death and the way life and death are so entangled. There will be a skull painting competition and more.

When  -  2nd November, 9am to 5pm.
Where  -  Gore Hill Oval/Park, Corner of Pacific Hwy and Reserve Rd, St Leonards.

Day of the dead event page.


Living with Our Dead -- 10th November

    Living with our dead is an event organised by a Sydney celebrant to remember and honour the deceased and bring the idea of death into an acceptable and public setting. I don't have any other information at this stage, so if you're interested follow the link below.

Living with our dead site.

Living with our dead FaceBook page.


Macquarie Park Open Day -- Not held in 2013
    I have been asked about this, and the Macquarie Park Cemetery & Crematorium (MPC) open day will not be held in 2013.  The open day is only held every two years according to the website. Macquarie Park Cemetery & Crematorium website.


Rookwood Open Day -- Not held in 2013

    Rookwood is a huge place with a few different organisations working out of it.  As such they have a wonderful open day, from parades to displays and tours.

    Unfortunately this event is only held every second year, so the next one will be in 2014.

    My post about the Rookwood 2012 open day.


~~

ESMP Open Day

    I finally have time to write for the blog again, so I'll start with the 2013 Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park (ESMP) open day.  As expected it was a great day and included a variety of things from free food to an Aboriginal dance, needless to say I had a blast.

Thank You For Participating

     It's been a while since I had the time to write a post, as many know I've been tied up in my honours thesis. However, the thesis will be submitted in just a few days, so yay! It's been a long and difficult road, but it has also been incredibly rewarding and worth every step.

    I would like to thank the wonderful organisations and individuals who participated. This includes Lady Anne Funerals, Mannings Funerals, and the Funeral Celebrants Association of Australia. These organisations were amazingly helpful and supportive of this project. Furthermore, I also want to thank the numerous unnamed individuals who participated in the study.

    These organisations and individuals didn't just provide valuable information, they made the project mean something and turned it into something truly special. I will always be grateful to those who participated. You have been a big part of making a long and difficult path worth it.


    Several people have asked where this thesis will be available, so I'll answer this quickly:

- No, the thesis will not be posted on the blog, this blog is not the right audience so there is no point putting it here. However, a short summary will most likely be posted in the future.

- The thesis will be archived in the honours room at UNSW, this is not exactly something to boast. Those that have seen the honours room or know how universities operate will understand.

- I will submit the thesis to various conferences and other places.

- Those that participated in the study 'may' receive a copy if they ask, simply email me at theothersideoffunerals@gmail.com to receive a PDF.


    I will write some more posts before the end of the year, but generally there will not be much content until next year. This is because I will be relaxing, but mainly because I will also be organising some fun things for next year. There will be more on this later if it works out.

~

Hidden at Rookwood (2013)

   I went to Hidden at Rookwood Cemetery this year but haven't had time to put together a post about it, and won't be able to for a while at least. So in the mean time I've uploaded some photos to my Facebook page. So head over to my Facebook page for the photos and other fun stuff!

    Hidden really is an amazing art exhibition, so check it out if you can! The closing ceremony will be on the 31st of October, check my Facebook page and the Hidden website for the details.

The Other Side Of Funerals Facebook.

Hidden photo album.

~

Guest Post - Girl Problems in the Mortuary

    A female mortician and I were talking about mortuary work and the topic of fingernails came up. How she managed to wear glove and perform mortuary duties despite having relatively long and elaborate fingernails. So she has decided to write a post about being a woman in the mortuary. Here it is:

Don't get me wrong it's not all bad, but being a female certainly does have its disadvantages. Allow me to elaborate.

Forest Lawn Open Day

    Apparently Forest Lawn Memorial Park will be having an open day this Saturday (26th of Oct), it's a shame this is the same day as the Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park open day and I won't be able to go.

    I'd recommend going to the Forest Lawn open day as InvoCare, who manage Forest Lawn, organise decent events. The Pinegrove Memorial Park open evening was fun and informative so I expect the Forest Lawn one would be fun to.

    InvoCare are doing a good job of slowly opening their side of the funeral industry to the general public, they tend to be honest with any questions asked. Making the Forest Lawn open day a great chance to get a get some decent information and answer any questions.

    Unfortunately I won't be going due to the ESMP open day and being busy with thesis work. So if anyone goes let me know how it was!

More information: Forest Lawn Memorial Park open day link.

~~

Event - ESMP Open Day

    The Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park (ESMP) open day will be held on the 26th of October. The 2012 open day was great fun, so I'm looking forward to it this year.

When  -  26th October (Saturday), 11am to 2pm.
Where  -  Military Rd, Matraville. 
Cost  -  Free.

    This is the last open day for the industry that I know of, and It's a fun day. Based on last year there should be free sausages, tours (of the funeral home, crematorium, cemetery), face painting, cars and hearses on display, stalls, and more! It's well worth a say out, I'll certainly be there and look forward to seeing some of you.


    My post about the ESMP 2012 open day.

    A post about ESMP including contact information & how to get there - although this needs updating.

    My guide to some interesting places in ESMP.

~

Honours Writing

    If you'd like to help in my honours thesis you can do so by completing a survey (it should take 5 minutes). You can find information about the surveys, and links to the surveys here. It will be appreciated!

    As some might have noticed my posts have dropped off recently, and I'm taking a while to reply to emails. This is due to a combination of not having time and simply being tired.

    My honours thesis is at an important writing stage, I'm analysing data and putting everything together. Basically I'm writing a few thousand words a day and reading a lot. This isn't actually as big a task as it sounds. Or maybe I've simply become use to it. However, by the time I'm done writing for the thesis I am tired of writing, and so I don't feel like writing even more for the blog.

    So between being busy and being drained I'm simply not generating content for the blog for a while. The thesis is due in November, so everything should be back to normal by December.

    As for where the thesis will be available; any individual or organisation who has participated will be eligible to get a copy, simply email me. I will also look to get it published and submit it to conferences next year, when I finally have time for that. A summary will also be put on the blog, however this will only be short and essentially a long(ish) abstract. Other than that I have no idea at this stage, but I know the full thesis will not be put on the blog. This is simply not the right audience or place for it, a 20,000 word academic article is never going to many (if any) people reading it here.

    Thank you again to those who have participated. This project would not have been possible for a large number of people and a few organisations.

~~

LifeArt - Making Coffins

    This is an interesting video about how LifeArt make their cardboard coffins. Unfortunately it's only 240p and a low quality video. But it is definitely worth a watch, especially for those not familiar with LifeArt.

LifeArt Clean Coffin Technology

     You can read more about LifeArt coffins via their website. Essentially they're cardboard coffins, which are environmentally friendly. Personally I like them for their customisation abilities and how light and practical they are. You can get any image or design printed on them, or simply get a plain one and decorate it in person as I have seen some people do.

    LifeArt recently released an online design tool, allowing people to design coffins themselves. It's a fun tool to play with, LifeArt Online Design.

    However, a huge drawback is that they are not available directly to the public. To me this is a bit of a shame as LifeArt would make a wonderful art medium. I've seen families paint, write poems, and stick collages on the coffins. Opening this up to a wider community could be good.

    My personal belief is that LifeArt could be a great product and used in a great way, but often gets dismissed or ignored too soon. The environmental benefits, the costs, and the quality are not as important as the customisation. The very option and notion of being able to completely customise a coffin like this is great and should be given more credit. So I think it's wonderful to see LifeArt running with this through things like the online design tool. The ability to interact so directly with the coffin, and to change it so dramatically, is a very powerful thing. I've had the pleasure of seeing some amazing things mourners have done with LifeArt coffins.

~~

Guest Post - Pros & Cons of Cremation vs. Burial

    Here's a short guest post about the positives and negatives of both cremation and burial. It is an interesting debate, to go with cremation or burial.

Death is an aspect of life that most people fail to understand. Even though everyone is going to experience it eventually, it’s often a topic of discussion that doesn’t come up. But, regardless of how far and fast you run away from it, there is always the stunning realization that at some point in the future you will cease to be.

One way to cope with this is of course to be prepared for when it comes to fruition. This may be a thought you’d like to keep out of your head, but as you ease into your inevitable demise, you can start with simple questions such as: should I be buried or cremated?

If you’ve never taken the time to ponder this thought, here are a few pros and cons to consider as you draw nearer to the infinite beyond.

Event - Hidden Sculpture Walk at Rookwood

    Every year Rookwood Cemetery is host to a sculpture walk called 'Hidden'. Sculptures are scattered throughout the Anglican section of the cemetery, using their surroundings as part of the sculpture itself in many cases.

Where: All Saints Chapel, on Hawthorne Ave, Rookwood Cemetery. Near the Anglican office.
When: 11:00am Saturday, on the 21st of September.

    The event is completely free and good fun, the path to follow is no always perfectly clear and sculptures can be hard to find (hidden in a sense). Which creates a fun feeling of exploration and adventure, and because of this every time you go you'll have a very different experience.

    Below I have photos from Hidden last year.