What is the difference between a mortuary and a funeral home?
Mortuaries and funeral homes provide the same basic services: caring for and preparing the deceased, arranging for the necessary paperwork and permits, and hosting and directing memorial and funeral services. The word choice is primarily one of emphasis and specialty. Funeral Homes employ Funeral Directors to manage and conduct services. Mortuaries emphasis their specialty in the mortuary sciences of restoration and presentation of the deceased. Also, technically, only mortuaries have onsite crematories. However, in present day California, “mortuary” and “funeral home” are used interchangeably or in combination. For instance, our funeral home can also be considered a mortuary because we have onsite preparation and onsite cremation.