BAY AREA YOUTH VAISHNAV PARIVAR

Community Center
25 Corning Avenue, Milpitas CA 95035
(408) 586-0006
www.bayvp.org

Funeral and Cremation Services Guide

The death of a loved one is a one of the most traumatic experiences any of us will ever have.
Death is certain for everyone and most of us are least prepared for it.

BAYVP Community Center has developed this guide to assist you in making the difficult
decisions about funeral and cremation arrangements for yourself or someone close to you. By
asking the right questions, comparing prices and services, and making informed decisions, you
can make arrangements that are meaningful to your family and control the cost for yourself
and your survivors.

The guide contains following information

1. Proper Planning
2. What to do during prolonged illness?
3. What to do when death occurs?
4. Cremation Services
5. Funeral Service packages
6. List of funeral homes in Bay Area
7. List of priests in Bay Area that perform funeral services puja
8. Body/Organ Donation
9. How can Community Center help you?

Note: This guide is for information purposes only. BAVP, its Board of Directors or Executive
Committee members do not endorse any of the products or services offered in this guide.

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1. Proper Planning

While you are healthy, proper planning means discussing death among immediate
family members and your loved ones. While making such decisions is difficult at any
time, planning in advance for the death of a loved one can relieve you of that
responsibility at the time of death, when you may be emotionally vulnerable. Take time
now to discuss these matters and find out what your loved ones want. Planning in
advance for your own disposition after death can spare your loved ones the anguish of
making difficult decisions while in a state of grief.

Collect personal and family history information for each family member along with
necessary documents. The family history form to obtain a death certificate in event of
death. (See exhibit A for sample document from a funeral home)

Other documents to consider are

• WILL
• Revocable living trust
• Power of attorney for financial affairs
• Power of attorney for heath care, also referred to as Advanced Directives

2. What to do during prolonged illness?

When family cannot take care of a patient it may become necessary to admit patient in
a Nursing Home facility or a Hospice. These alternatives are very expensive and may not
be covered by patient’s health insurance companies. It is recommended to verify the
benefits with facility and/or insurance carrier.

3. What to do when death occurs?

Death can occur at home, hospital or any place. Following information will assist what to
do when death occurs.

3.1 Death at Home

Call 911 and notify death. Police with call Coroner office. Coroner will
decide if autopsy is needed. When a death occurs at home, it must be
pronounced by one of the following professionals

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 • Home Health Nurse
• Physician
• Police
• Fire Department
• Coroner
Coroner will issue the death certificate and arrange the body to be
transferred to your designated funeral home for cremation services.

3.2 Death at Hospital

When a death occurs at hospital or nursing home a physician will
pronounce death and certify death. Physician will notify the coroner if
needed.

Hospital will issue the death certificate and arrange the body to be
transferred to your designated funeral home for cremation services.

4. Cremation services

Today, more and more families are combining the best of both worlds, a meaningful
memorial service along with cremation. Many families plan a traditional gathering and
viewing, followed by cremation and a committal or scattering ceremony. Others prefer a
simple cremation and keeping the cremated remains in keepsake urn container.

Without proper planning, selecting a funeral home and a cremation package can be a
daunting task. Many of the mortuaries or funeral homes do not have a cremation
facility. In that case, the funeral home will transfer the body after the viewing services
are performed to a nearby crematory. Selecting a funeral home that offers viewing and
cremation service within same facility is convenient and will reduce funeral expenses.
There are few funeral homes in Bay Area that have on site crematory.

A written authorization must be signed before cremation can proceed. This must be
done by the person(s) who has the right to control the disposition of the body. In
addition, a cremation permit (Application and Permit for Disposition of Human Remains,
VS 9) must be issued by the county health department. The funeral establishment
usually arranges to obtain this permit as part of its services.

A casket is not required for cremation by California law, but a combustible cremation
container is. The container must be one that can be closed and is leak-resistant. A
cardboard box constructed for this purpose is acceptable. You do not have to buy the
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 container from the funeral establishment or crematory, but it does have to meet the
standards set by the crematory.

You should make a decision about removing all personal possessions of value, such as
jewelry or mementos, before the body is taken to the crematory. Pacemakers, most
prostheses, and mechanical or radioactive devices or implants must be removed by
funeral establishment or crematory staff prior to cremation.

The cremation process begins with the placement of the casket/container in the
cremation chamber where it's subjected to intense heat and flame reaching
temperatures between 1,400 and 1,800 degrees fahrenheit. All substances are
consumed except bone fragments (calcium compounds) and any non-combustible
materials, such as jewelry, dental gold, prosthesies, latches, hinges, etc., that were not
removed prior to cremation as the temperature is not sufficient to consume them.
During the cremation process, it may be necessary to open the cremation chamber and
reposition the deceased in order to facilitate a complete and thorough cremation. The
time for cremation to be completed varies with the size and weight of each human
remains, but usually takes between 1 1/2 and 3 hours.

After the cremation has been completed and the cremation chamber has cooled, the
remains are swept from the chamber, processed to a uniform size, and placed in a
sturdy plastic bag sealed with an identification disk, tab, or label. The bag is then placed
in a durable cremated remains container.

5. Funeral Services Cost

There are no fixed prices for funeral homes, mortuary charges and cremation services.
Cost varies from area to area and from one funeral home to another. Funeral services
cost range from $1,000 to upwards of $10,000 or even more in some cases.

Bay Area Youth Vaishnav Parivar Community Center has worked with Chapel of Chimes
Memorial Park and Funeral Home to create a simple to use, hassle free, all inclusive
funeral service packages for Indian community living in Bay Area. The all inclusive
funeral service package includes:

• Transfer of remains from home or hospital to funeral home

• Securing all necessary permits
• Basic service of funeral director & staff
• Embalming
• Use of facility – Wash room

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 • Cremation casket

• Guest register book

• Crematory fee
• Witness cremation fee
• Fees for Saturday, Sunday or holidays
• Plastic Urn
• Death Certificate
• Current sales tax
• California state fee

The negotiated price ranges from $890 to $3500 depending on type of services desired.
More detailed information about these funeral packages is included in Exhibit B. To get
the negotiated price, print Exhibit B and present it when you meet with the funeral
Director at Chapel of Chimes.

The negotiated price is offered at any of these following Lifemark Group locations.

• Chapel of the Chimes, Hayward (510) 471-3363

• Chapel of the Chimes, Oakland (510) 654-0123
• Sunset Lawn Chapel of Chimes, Sacramento (916) 922-5833
• Skylawn Memorial Park, San Mateo (650) 349-4411

Bay Area Youth Vaishnav Parivar Community Center has also negotiated packaged with
Fremont Chapel of Roses. Contact Mike Rose at Fremont Chapel of Roses for detail pricing
information.

6. Funeral Homes in Bay Area

Funeral homes in Bay Area.

Name & Address Telephone Viewing Cremation

Chapel of the Chimes Mortuary **Package Price (510) 471-3363

32292 Mission Blvd, X X
Hayward CA 94544
Oak Hill Funeral Home & Memorial Park (408) 295-6446
300 Curtner Avenue
San Jose, CA 95125
Fremont Chapel of the Roses (510) 797-1900
1940 Peralta Blvd X

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 Fremont, CA 94536
Irvington Memorial Cemetery (510) 656-5800
41001 Chapel Way X
Fremont, CA 94539
Lima Family Memorial Park & Mortuary (510) 656-5565
48800 Warm Springs Blvd X X
Fremont, CA 94539
Willow Glen Funeral Chapel (408) 295-6446
1039 Lincoln Avenue
San Jose, CA 95126
California Cremation Society (408) 998-4066
1276 Donohue Drive
San Jose, CA 95131
Chapel of the Hills (408) 354-8900
615 N Santa Cruz Avenue
Los Gatos, CA 95030

7. Priests in Bay Area that perform funeral services puja (last ritual)

Name Telephone
Pandit Krishna K. Pandey (408) 480-5477 Cell
990 Lakewood Drive (408) 400-0513 Home
Sunnyvale, CA 94089
www.hindupriestusa.com
[email protected]
Umesh Shukla (510) 818-0471
Ravishankar Shastri (510) 371-1978
Pandit Ravichandran (925) 449-0620
Narharibhai (408) 629-8092
Bharatbhai (510) 965-1434
Damodar Shastri (510) 490-7918
Mahesh Vyas (510) 792-8107

8. Body & Organ Donation

A body donation and an organ donation are two different things. You may donate your body
for medical research and education, or your organs to help one or more individuals. There is
no age limit for body donations.

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 For more information you may contact:

Stanford University Medical Center (650) 723-4000

Santa Rosa Community Hospital (707) 576-4000
UCSF (415) 476-1551
Central Exchange Information (800) 553-6667

9. How can BAYVP Community Center help you?

BAYVP Community Center is here to help you with any funeral services issues and/or
concerns. Please feel free to contact any member of the funeral services committee

Manish Patel
Anjan Parikh
Himanshu Majmudar
Mita Vora
Harshad Saparia

Many families prefer to have Bhajans/Prathna Sabha after the death of a family member.
For a nominal fee you can rent BAYVP Community Center facility for Bhajans/Prathna
Sabha. The following guidelines will be followed:

• Bhajans/Prathna Sabha within 16 days of death

Family can rent BAYVP Community center hall for $250 for 3 hour period. Kitchen
cooking facility will not be allowed to use. Family can arrange to bring food from
outside and use dining area to serve to their guests before or after Bhajans/Prathna
Sabha. All Community Center food guidelines will have to be followed.

• Bhajans/Prathna Sabha after 16 days of death

Family can rent the community center for $250 for 3 hour period. Family can
arrange to bring food from outside and use dining area to serve to their guests
before or after Bhajans/Prathna Sabha. Family can also contract with Community
Center kitchen services to prepare food and to serve to their guests. Cost for such
services will vary depending on food items. Community Center food guidelines will
have to be followed.

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 If you need help with a funeral issue, visit the California Department of Consumer
Affairs’ Cemetery and Funeral Bureau’s website at www.cfb.ca.gov or call (800) 952-
5210

Exhibit A – Family history and important information

L I F E M A RK G R O U P
Chapel Of The Chimes
32992 Mission Boulevard
Hayward, CA 94544
510.441.3363 / Fax 510.429.8365

Arrangement Information Form

Our commitment to you is to make all parts of the final arrangements easier – from gathering
required information and handling necessary details, to creating a meaningful ceremony or
memorial service.

The enclosed forms and information will greatly assist with this important task. Please review,
and if you wish, fill out the Vital Statistic Record and Obituary Worksheet, and bring them
with you, as well as any of the other information and items listed below, at the time of your
appointment.

Please remember that all of these decisions need not be made when you arrive for your
appointment. This is not a time to be rushed. Much of the below can be discussed with other
members of your family, a religious counselor, trusted friends and your Funeral Director.

• Vital Statistics Record. This information is required to complete the death certificate.

• If applicable, a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care or an Advanced Health

Care Directive. This document must specifically authorize an individual with the right to
control disposition.

• Insurance papers. Many insurance policies are assignable to the Chapel of the Chimes,
if verified.

• Social Security Card or confirmation of correct Social Security Number.

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• Veteran’s discharge papers (DD214)

• Clothing. All clothing, including undergarments. (Shoes are optional)

• Eyeglasses. (if applicable)

• Jewelry. All jewelry can be returned prior to burial or cremation.

• A recent and clear photo. This will assist in cosmetics and hair styling.
• Any Pre Arrangement documents you have for funeral services, cremation
arrangements or cemetery property.

• You may wish to select personal items to be displayed at the visitation or funeral.
Examples; A favorite hat or shoes, fishing gear, golf clubs, knitting, doll collection, etc.
These items are unique to each individual and help create a personalized tribute.

9 Copyright©2011 Bay Area Youth Vaishnav Parivar. All rights reserved

 VITAL STATISTICS RECORD

NAME: _________________________________________________________________
First Middle Last

DATE OF BIRTH: _______________ PLACE OF BIRTH: ____________________

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER: ________________ RACE: ___________________

HISPANIC/SPANISH/LATINO: NO YES (specify) ___________________________

MILITARY SERVICE: NO/YES BRANCH:_______ RANK: ____ YEARS_______

MARITAL STATUS (circle one) Married/ Widowed/ Divorced/ Never Married

YEARS OF EDUCATION: ______________ DEGREE (circle one) BA/BS MA PhD

OCCUPATION (prior to retirement) ________________________________________

TYPE OF INDUSTRY/BUSINESS______________YEARS IN OCCUPATION: ____

RESIDENCE: ___________________________________________________________
street address city
________________________________________________________________________
state zip code county

NUMBER OF YEARS RESIDING IN COUNTY: ______________________________

SURVIVING SPOUSE:
________________________________________________________________________
First name Middle Maiden/Last
FATHER: _______________________________________________________________ First
name Middle Last

FATHER’S PLACE OF BIRTH: __________________________________________

MOTHER: _______________________________________________________________
First name Middle Maiden

MOTHER’S PLACE OF BIRTH: ____________________________________________

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Newspaper Obituary Worksheet

Name____________________________________________

Date of birth- Date of death___________________________________________

Resident of________________________________________________________

Age__________________________

Survived by:
Spouse, __________________________________________________________

Children, __________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

Number of Grandchildren ____________________________________________

Number of Great-Grandchildren________________________________________

Other family members:

Parents, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews,
others_____________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

Preceded in death by ________________________________________________

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Exhibit B – Chapel of Chimes, Funeral Service Package & Price List

Chapel of the Chimes Memorial Park & Funeral Home

32992 Mission Boulevard
Hayward, California 94544
(510) 471-3363
FD# 1240

Package and price list for members of

Community Center
25 Corning Avenue
Milpitas, CA 95035

Effective Date November 16, 2010

A Message from Management of Chapel of Chimes:

This precise and inclusive package has been made possible by guidance from religious and spiritual
leaders with a vision to help Indo American Community to deal with end of the life issues like dignified
funeral rites and cremation of loved one at a reasonable cost. Intent of this package is to ease the
handling of all your arrangements at a time of stress, sadness and great duress.

You may choose goods or services other than the one detailed in this negotiated packages or choose
only the items you desire. However, any funeral arrangements you select will include a charge for our
basic services and overhead. The price will vary from our negotiated packages and we will explain the
reason in writing on the statement we provide describing the funeral goods and services you selected.

In case, if you discover an error, please contact us and we would be more than happy to correct it. Our
funeral directors will be happy to consult with you to answer any questions you might have.

This package will be honored by the Lifemark Group of Cemeteries, Crematories and Funeral Homes
services at Hayward, Oakland, Sacramento, and San Mateo

It is the policy of this firm that professional fees are paid in full twenty-four hours prior to services being
rendered. For your convenience, we accept checks, cash, or major credit cards. Additionally, we will
accept an assignable insurance policy upon verification.

Prior to drafting any contract for goods or services, the responsible party or the decedent’s survivor who is
handling the funeral arrangements is entitled to receive a copy of any pre-need agreement in the possession of
the funeral establishment that has been signed and paid for, in full or in part, by or on behalf of the decedent.

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 PACKAGE SELECTIONS 
Our package selections are designed to simplify the arrangement process to assure the family that
all desired services will be provided without additional cost and to offer a significant monetary
savings compared to the itemized General Price List (available in our offices). Please know that
intent of this simplified cremation package is to alleviate some of the burden and any confusion
regarding the final rites of the loved ones.
The following packages include only the items listed in that package. Additional merchandise, cash
advance items, are additional unless designated. The non use of goods and services contained within
any of the alternative package selections will not result in a reduction in the price of the alternative
package selected.
This package consists of the following services to suite your situation.
Note: For members of the Community Center, no additional mileage will be charged for the
transfer of the remains within Alameda, Santa Clara, San Mateo and San Francisco counties.

Packages at a Glance: (See following pages for pricing and details)

Description Package-A
PREMIUM
Package-B
PREMIUM
Package-C
DIRECT
Package-D
PRE-NEED
(Embalming) (Un-Embalming) CREMATION PREMIUM
Transfer of Remains to Funeral Home
● ● ● ●
Securing Necessary permits
● ● ● ●
Basic Service of Funeral Director & Staff
● ● ● ●
Embalming
● N/A N/A
●
Use of Facility – Wash Room
● ● Note-1
●
Cremation Casket
● ● Note-2
●
Dressing & Casketing of Remains
● ● N/A
●
Cosmetology & Hairdressing
● ● N/A
●
Guest Register Book, Folder & Acknowledgement Cards
● ● N/A
●
Crematory Fee
● ● ● ●
Use of Facility & Staff for Funeral Ceremony in Funeral Home
Chapel ● ● Note-3
●
Witness Cremation Fee
● ● N/A
●
Fees for Saturday or Sunday
● ● ● ●
Plastic Urn
● ● ● ●
Death Certificates (additional DC’s will be charged at the current 5 5 1 5
Fee)
Current Sales Tax on Merchandise
● ● ● ●
California State Fee
● ● ● ●
Total Package Price $3500 $2595 $890 $3500
13 Copyright©2011 Bay Area Youth Vaishnav Parivar. All rights reserved
● Included items in the package
Note 1: Other preparation and care of body, refrigeration
Note 2: A container made of materials like fiberboard or composition materials such as cardboard
(with or without an outside covering), including a rental casket
Note 3: Short simple rites or ceremonies for family members to do final rituals as per their faith

Package –A: Premium At-Need Cremation Package (Embalming)

(Recommended Package)
This Package Includes:
Basic Service of Funeral Director & Staff Transfer of Remains to Funeral Home
Embalming Cosmetology & Hairdressing
Dressing & Casketing of Remains Use of Facility – Wash Room
Crematory Fee Use of Facility & Staff for Funeral Ceremony in Funeral
Guest Register Book, Folder & Acknowledgement Cards Home Chapel.
Fees for Saturday or Sunday waived Cremation Casket or The Norwood Rental Casket
Current Sales Tax on Merchandise Witness Cremation Fee
Five (5) Death Certificates (additional DC’s will be charged at the
current Fee)
Plastic Urn
California State Fee

Premium Package Price $3500.00

Package –B: Standard At-Need Cremation Package (Un-embalming)

This Package Includes:

Basic Service of Funeral Director & Staff Transfer of Remains to Funeral Home
Sanitary Care of un-embalmed Remains for ID View Cosmetology & Hairdressing
Dressing & Casketing of Remains Use of Facility – Wash Room
Crematory Fee Use of Equipment & Staff for
Guest Register Book, Folder & Acknowledgement Cards Visitation. Repose room will be used for 1 hour.
Fees for Saturday or Sunday waived Cremation Casket or The Norwood Rental Casket
Current Sales Tax on Merchandise Witness Cremation Fee
Five (5) Death Certificates (additional DC’s will be charged at the
current Fee)
Plastic Urn
California State Fee

Standard Package Price $2595.00

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Package –C : DIRECT CREMATION
Direct Cremation: means that the decedent is cremated without a viewing or funeral ceremony. In most
cases, the body is not embalmed and this saves you a significant amount of money. The package
includes the basic services of the funeral director and staff. Typically, it also includes removal of remains;
transfer to the crematory, necessary authorizations, and cremation. Instead of purchasing a casket, you
may choose to have the body cremated in an alternative container, which can be made of cardboard or
other similar materials.

This Package includes:

basic services of staff
local transfer of the remains to funeral home,
securing necessary permits
One (1) Death Certificate
Plastic Urn
California State fee and sales tax
Other preparation and care of body, refrigeration, and
Crematory fee
A container made of materials like fiberboard or composition materials such as cardboard (with or without
an outside covering).*
This charge does not include visitation, except for short simple rites limited to 4-6 people to do final rituals
as per their faith, prior to cremation of the body

Note:*
The alternate containers we provide for cremation are listed on our casket price list and are available at
an additional cost.

Package Price with cardboard cremation container…………………………………………………..

$890.00

Package –D Pre-Need Premium Cremation Package

Pre-Pay My Funeral Services: recommends families make all arrangements in advance, thereby relieving
their family of urgent decisions and unnecessary spending of excess dollars at the time one is grieving
the most. In addition to giving families an opportunity to plan ahead Only Premium package is available
for pre-pay.

This Package Includes:

Basic Service of Funeral Director & Staff Transfer of Remains to Funeral Home
Embalming Cosmetology & Hairdressing
Dressing & Casketing of Remains Use of Facility – Wash Room
Crematory Fee Use of Facility & Staff for Funeral Ceremony
Guest Register Book, Folder & Acknowledgement Cards in Funeral Home Chapel.
Fees for Saturday or Sunday waived Simplicity Cremation Casket or The
Current Sales Tax on Merchandise Norwood Rental Casket
Five (5) Death Certificates (additional DC’s will be Witness Cremation Fee
charged at the current Fee)
Plastic Urn
California State Fee

Premium Package Price $3500.00

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FOR MORE INFORMATION ON FUNERAL, CEMETERY AND CREMATION MATTERS, CONTACT:
DEPARTMENT OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, CEMETERY & FUNERAL BUREAU
1625 NORTH MARKET BOULEVARD, SUITE S-208
SACRAMENTO, CA 95834.
TELEPHONE NUMBER: (916) 574-7870

*Please visit our website for Information regarding pre-Planning at: www.lifemarkgroup.com

Hayward:
32992 Mission Boulevard, Hayward, CA 94544
Phone: 510.471.3363 (24 hours)
Oakland:
4499 Piedmont Avenue, Oakland, CA 94611
Phone: 510.654.0123

Sacramento:
4701 Marysville Boulevard, Sacramento, CA 95838
Phone: 916.922.5833 (24 hours)

San Mateo:
Highway 92 at Skyline Boulevard, P.O. Box 5070, San Mateo, CA 94402
Phone: 650.349.4411

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