The State Emergency Relief (SER) Program provides immediate help to individuals and
families facing conditions of extreme hardship or for emergencies that threaten health
and safety. The S.E.R. program is primarily designed to maintain low-income households who are normally able to meet their needs but occasionally need help when unexpected emergency situations arise.
&
When the descendant's estate, mandatory copayments, etc., are not sufficient, burial payment assistance may be available to pay for:
1. Burial
2. Cremation
3. Costs associated with donation of a body to a medical school
Apply for assistance and manage your account online using MI Bridges. An application
for burial assistance must be made no later than 10 business days after the burial, cre-mation or donation takes place. The decedent's remains must be in Michigan. Transpo-
rtation, or other charges to bring a decedent back to Michigan, is not covered.
Ask for details at your local DHS office and bring the deceased individuals financial information with you!
Social Security Death Benefit
The one-time death benefit is $255 and it can be paid to a surviving spouse (legally married) who lived in the same residence, though if the spouse lived elsewhere, he
or she may still be eligible for the money. If there is NO surviving eligible spouse, a
child may receive this if the child was eligible for benefits on the deceased person's
work record. If no spouse or child can legally claim the money, it won't be paid.
To file for the benefit, make an appointment with your local Social Security office OR
speak to your funeral director!
&
Social Security SURVIVORS Benefits
Phone: 800-772-1213 TTY 800-325-0778
Social Security will contribute $255 towards a cemetery headstone for a covered WORKER.
&
Social Security Survivors Benefits can be paid to:
1. A widow/widower--full benefits at full retirement age or reduce benefits as early
as age 60
2. A disabled widow or widower as early as age 50
3. A widow or widower at any age if he or she takes care of the deceased's child who
is under 16 or disabled/ and receiving S.S. benefit
4, Unmarried children under 8, or up to age 19 if they are attending high school full-time
5, Under certain circumstances, benefits can be paid to step-children, grandchildren or adopted children
6. Children at any age who were disabled before age 22 and remain disabled
7. Dependent parents aged 62 or older
Disaster Funeral Assistance / Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
FEMA Funeral Assistance is provided to help with the cost of unexpected & uninsured expenses associated with the death of an immediate family member when attributed to
an event that is declared to be a major disaster or emergency.
This program provides:
- Funeral and burial financial assistance
Eligible Funeral Expenses may include:
1. Cost of casket or urn
2. Mortuary Services
3. Transportation of the deceased and/or up to two family members into the area
to identify the decedent
4, Up to five Death Certificates
5. Burial plot or cremation niche
6. Interment or cremation
7. Marker or headstone in a public cemetery or private burial site
8. Cost of reinternment, if disinterment is a) caused by the declared disaster and b)
occurs in a family cemetery on private property
****Please visit the website to check if you are in an area declared for disaster assistance.
If you are in a presidentially declared area, submit your application online or contact for
more information.
Financial Assistance & Social Services (FASS)
U.S. Department of the Interior Indian Affairs - Division of Human Services
Phone: 602-379-6600
Financial Assistance and Social Services (FASS) provides assistance to American Indians and Alaska Natives for a variety of services. This program provides assistance to American Indians & Alaska Natives who have no access to Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), do not meet eligibility criteria for TANF, or have exceeded the lifetime limit for TANF services.
Burial Assistance:
This program provides funds to assist with the burial expenses of deceased indigent Indians whose estates do not have sufficient resources to meet funeral expenses.
Eligibility:
1. Must reside in a designated service area
2. Must be a member of a tribe served by the Western Region
3. Must be an American Indian who has no access to Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), and does not meet eligibility criteria for TANF or have exceeded the
lifetime limit for TANF services.
CONSUMER INFORMATION TO SAVE MONEY
Federal law allows for most anyone to purchase a casket online!
The company ships the casket directly to the funeral home—an arrangement that local businesses rarely balk at. Funeral homes are federally mandated to accept funeral pro-
ducts, including caskets, that their clients buy online. If a funeral home refuses to accept,
charges a fee for delivery, or otherwise burdens the client, they can lose their license.
COVID 19 DEATHS
FEMA
P.O. Box 10055
Hyattsville, MD 20782-8055
Phone: 800-621-3362 (711 or Video Relay Service available)
TTY: 800-462-7585
Under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021
and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, FEMA will provide financial assistance for
COVID-19-related funeral expenses incurred after January 20, 2020.
To be eligible for funeral assistance, you must meet these conditions:
1. The death must have occurred in the United States, including the U.S. territories & the District of Columbia
2. The death certificate must indicate the death was attributed to COVID-19
3. The applicant must be a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or qualified alien who incurred funeral expenses after January 20th, 2020
4. There is no requirement for the deceased person to have been a U.S. citizen, non- citizen national or qualified alien
CRIME VICTIMS
If the individual’s death was a result of a crime, compensation might be available
through a victims’ compensation fund. Each state has it's own such fund. This can
be tapped into to pay funeral costs, but the victim’s family must comply with the rules
of their state's program, such as cooperating with law enforcement requests and sub-
mitting a timely application. Look further down on the page to find organizations that
help with burials for their own cultural group or other reasons! Look on this website
VETERANS & SPOUSES OF VETERANS
FOR THOSE WHO HAVE PASSED FROM SEPSIS, ACUTE RESPIRATORY
DISTRESS SYNDROME OR TOXIC SHOCK SYNDROME:
Begin Again Foundation
Phone: 855-824-7941
&
Angel Fund
Phone: 855-824-7941
In partnership with Patient Advocate Foundation, the Angel Fund offers one-time $1,000 grants to eligible bereaved families to assist with the expense of laying a loved one who
has passed from Sepsis, Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) or Toxic Shock
Syndrome (TSS) to rest. To be eligible, the patient’s income prior to passing will need to
meet programs financial guidelines, application will need to be submitted within 6 months
of the deceased date and the patient succumbed to the diagnosis of Sepsis, Acute Res- piratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) or Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS).
&
Qualifying diagnosis documentation include a death certificate with cause of death, doctor verification and/or medical notes. The application portal will close once exhausted & re-
open the first business day of the following month. All grants are provided on a first-come, first-served basis & distributed until funds are depleted. Applications for burial or cremation expenses may be completed by a caregiver & or family member by calling the number above.
NO COST & LOW COST CREMATION / ANATOMICAL
DONATION OPTION
Michigan Cremation & Burial Services
Jansen Family Funeral Home & Cremation Services
4705 Pine
PO Box 77
Columbiaville, MI 48421
Phone: 866-560-2525 Toll Free: 866-835-4911
Services with donation which include: transportation, cremation, 2 certified copies of
the death certificate and timely return of cremated remains to family (if requested).
Counties within our service area:
Lapeer, Genesee, Tuscola, Oakland, Saginaw, Shiawassee, Ingham, Wayne, Macomb,
St. Clair, Sanilac, Bay, Livingston & Washtenaw.
Michigan Eye Bank
4889 Venture Dr.
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
Phone: 800-247-7250 734-780-2100
Information on other types of organ and tissue donation may be obtained through:
Gift of Life Agency
3861 Research Park Dr.
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
Phone: 800-482-4881
Final Disposition of Remains:
After use in our teaching program, from one to three years or possibly longer, the bodies
are individually cremated & the cremated remains are buried in the University burial plot
in East Lawn Memory Gardens in Okemos, MI.
&
Each September the Division of Human Anatomy conducts an interment service for those individuals who have been cremated that year. Family members who choose to be notified
of this service are invited to attend. The family may request return of the ashes for private burial. However, the family is responsible for making private burial arrangements and for
the costs associated with the private burial. Although a common grave site is used each year, the cremated remains are buried in individual urns.
Michigan State University Division of Human Anatomy
East Fee Hall / Willed Body Program
965 Wilson Road A519
East Lansing, MI 48824
Phone: 517-353-5398
Cornea and Organ Donation:
The Willed Body Program only accepts whole bodies for medical education because
organ donation renders the body unsuitable for our teaching program. However, the
Willed Body Program will accept bodies following eye removal for the purpose of cornea transplant provided all other criteria are met. The Willed Body Pro- gram does not conduct eye re removals. Arrangements for eye removal should be made by the
family & the procedure performed prior to the body being transported to the University.
Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
When a body is donated to a school of medicine, students and researchers may need
to keep the remains for several years before cremation. At that point, the ashes may
be returned to family members, either for a private burial or for preservation in a vault.
But that cost can easily exceed $3,000. Ending that expense is a new partnership in suburban Detroit. It links the region's newest medical school with a city-run cemetery
and a funeral home, letting people donate their bodies to science and then preserving
their ashes inside a massive cemetery vault at no cost.
&
Those who pledge their bodies to the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine will have their ashes interred inside a half-century-old,12-by-17-foot granite
vault at Rochester’s historic city-owned cemetery, Rochester's Mount Avon Cemetery.
University of Michigan Anatomical Donations Program
3767 Medical Science Building II
1137 Catherine
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5608
Phone: 734-764-4359
Anatomical donations are essential to medical education and research. Anatomy courses rely on anatomical donations to give students first-hand knowledge of the anatomical structures of the human body. These courses are among the first and most important in
the education of physicians, dentists, nurses, physical therapists, and other health pro- fessionals.
Information on U of M Transplant Department:
Memorial Service will be held at the Rackham Auditorium in September. The memorial
service is a public event and anyone is invited to attend.
Wayne State School of Medicine
540 E. Canfield
Detroit, MI 48201
Phone: 313-577-2424
FOR ADULT ONLY RESOURCES, PLEASE GO TO THIS LINK!
MICHIGAN NONPROFIT AGENCIES THAT MAY HELP
(FOR BABIES & CHILDREN)
Angel Gowns of Michigan
123 N. Midland
Merrill, MI 48637
Donate clean wedding gowns to make Angel Gowns, which are baptismal and/or burial outfits for babies who have recently passed away.
Caels Angels
7628 Greenfield Ave.
Mounds View, MN 55112
Phone: 763-785-4173
Dedicated to helping bereaved families of stillbirths honor their babies with financial assistance and supportive programs.
Our program and service include:
1. Funeral Expenses – Qualifying families can request financial support for the costs associated with burial and / or funeral expenses as funds are available.
2. Autopsy Expenses – When insurance coverage does not include autopsy qualifying families can request financial support for the costs associated with the full evaluation
of a stillbirth as funds are available.
3. Bereavement Support – Grief work is difficult and may require professional assistance. Qualifying families can request assistance with funds to allow them the mental health guidance they need in these difficult times as funds are available.
ICNA Relief & Muslim Family Services
12500 Mitchell
Detroit, MI 48212
Phone: 313-366-6800
Janazah Funeral Assistance:
Every Muslim has a right to a Janaza, a proper Islamic burial. Unfortunately, many families cannot afford all of the services that accompany a burial or may not be aware their Muslim family requires this service. Other burial options such as cremation is a far cheaper option
but are haram in Islam. Because of this, there are those in our community for whom cre- mation is the only option. At ICNA Relief MI we can assist with the costs of Janaza. We want to make this service more accessible to the families of our deceased Muslim brothers and sisters, and with your help, we can avoid their cremation or any other un-Islamic burial.
Ike and Ella Fund
P.O. Box 62
Milan, MI 48160
Provides financial support to assist parents who have experienced the loss of a child to cover funeral, cremation, and burial expenses.
METRO DETROIT SHARE
Taylor, MI 48180
Phone: 313-492-1172
FUNERAL ASSISTANCE:
Metro Detroit Share provides funeral assistance for Michigan families that lose a baby
during pregnancy or during the 1st year of life. Services such as burial costs, funeral
service costs, urns, headstones, etc. will be considered. Assistance subject to avail-
ability of funds and the exhaustion of other available resources.
SUPPORT SERVICES:
Metro Detroit Share runs twice per month support meetings. One in Taylor and one in
West Bloomfield. In addition, Metro Detroit Share runs a closed Facebook group for on-
line support.
&
MEMORY BOXES:
Metro Detroit Share provides memory boxes to any Michigan hospital that requests them
for their patients, is a special keepsake box, special baby book for losses, support litera-
ture, keepsakes & much more.
Olivia Raine Foundation
PO Box 182
Atlas, MI 48411-0182
Phone: 434-392-7000 888-743-0950
It is our mission at the Olivia Raine Foundation is to compassionately offer financial support for expenses relating to the funeral arrangements to any family who has had
an infant pass away for any reason. At the ORF, we understand the emotional stress
that a family is under during these difficult times & although we cannot lessen the
emotional grief, our hope is that we can in some way assist your family during these
difficult times by helping to lessen the financial stress & by helping to provide a beau-
tiful final resting place for your beloved infant.
&
The Olivia Raine Foundation will help with up to $500 of the funeral costs. Funds for
infant funerals will be sent directly to the funeral home, cemetery, or monument com-
pany.
Eligibility: Your request for assistance must be within a year of your infant's death.
Rebecca's Reason
192 W. Vienna
Clio, MI 48420
Phone: 810-449-3324
Rebecca's Reason was created to honor the brief but remarkable life of Rebecca Anne.
We are a nonprofit, public charity whose mission is to provide parents of loss with fin-
ancial support for medical and end-of-life expenses.
Six Feet Over (for assistance with SUICIDE ONLY)
PO Box 32394
Detroit, MI 48232
Phone: 313-288-2207
Do you need assistance paying for costs associated with the loss of your loved one?
We may be able to help with costs associated with:
- Funerals and memorial services
The Catholic Funeral & Cemetery Services
25775 W. 10 Mile Suite C
Southfield, MI 48033
Phone: 248-204-0082
As a ministry of the Catholic Church, we are committed as a charity to offer innovative programs that provide financial assistance, FREE options, and unique programs that
meet the needs of our faith community.
All Souls Remembrance Program:
Catholic Funeral & Cemetery Services (CFCS) offers at no charge, to anyone, of any faith, who has cremated remains at home or is considering scattering the dignified committal
of the remains at any of our cemeteries. The committal will occur at the All Souls Remem- brance Crypt and then the remains will be permanently interred within the consecrated grounds of the Catholic Cemetery.
&
Mother Teresa Program:
Mother Teresa firmly believed that love begins at home and that we should reach out to
those in need in our family first, then our community, our country and our world. It is in
this spirit that CFCS created the Mother Teresa Program that allows the poor and desti-
tute in our community to receive sacred and dignified cemetery services.
&
Precious Lives Program:
This program provides caring cemetery financial support for those who have suffered
the loss of a child. The program also provides sacred interment services in the Order of Christian Funerals, for hospitals within the community, for the death of an unborn child
at any of our Catholic Cemeteries.
The Riley Katheryn Foundation
PO Box 538
South Lyon, MI 48178
The Riley Katheryn Foundation is dedicated to increasing awareness of stillbirth and
infant death as well as providing financial support relating to funeral and burial expen-
ses to families whose baby has died.
- To qualify for financial support:
- You must be a resident of Michigan
- Your baby must be less than one year old
- Your request must be within a year of your infant's death
Funds will be sent directly from the foundation to the funeral home, cemetery or monument company of your family's choice.
The Salvation Army--Adrian Corps.
217 W. Church
Adrian, MI 49221
Phone: 517-265-2038
We assist families and individuals who face the loss of loved ones with burial costs and other various needs.
Wayne Metropolitan CAA
7310 Woodward Suite 800
Detroit, MI 48202
&
Out-County Service Hub
2121 Biddle Ave.
Wyandotte, MI 48192
Phone: 313-388-9799
Providing financial assistance towards burial and cremation services.
Yatoomas Foundation For The Kids
1615 S. Telegraph Suite 300
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302
Phone: 888-987-KIDS (5437)
Provides personalized assistance to families who have lost a parent and/or spouse. We believe that preventative counseling and support, along with appropriate aftercare, will prevent grieving kids and adults from making poor decisions. The emotional well-being
of an individual or family after the death of a loved one is a critical factor in determining
future behaviors and actions. The Foundation understands the need for individuals and
to remain financially stable after the death of a parent / spouse. Taxes, probate, and the application for benefits are some of the realities that a grieving family member must face fafter their loved one’s death. These realities require clarity and an understanding of the issues involved. Yatooma’s Foundation For The Kids is dedicated to protecting the legal
and financial integrity of the surviving family.
Provides:
- Family Budget Development
- Household Maintenance and Repair Services
Zaman International Plots for Tots - Infant Burial Program
26091 Trowbridge
Inkster, MI 48141
Phone: 313-551-3994
Developed the Plots for Tots Infant Burial Program to assist indigent families who can-
not afford proper burials for their fetus, infant or toddler. In 2005, Zaman purchased 230 burial plots for the Plots for Tots Cemetery, located in Westland, MI to provide a final rest-
ing place for these infants. Since 2005, Plots for Tots has supported 37 grieving families
by giving their child a dignified burial ceremony. This program is open to all indigent populations regardless of ethnicity or religious affiliation.
NATIONAL RESOURCES THAT MAY HELP
Children's Burial Assistance, (CBA) Inc.
5686 Fulton Industrial Blvd. #44372
Atlanta, GA 30336
Phone: 404-507-6310
Program Guidelines and Criteria:
Children’s Burial Assistance Inc. (CBA) provides help to families who are in of need of
assistance for the proper burial of a deceased minor child, (1 to 17 years of age). Fam-
ilies in need of this assistance should apply right away. Please be advised that CBA
does not provide financial assistance for funeral service fees or grave markers.
What Help is Available?
Gifts In-Kind. Donated Burial Plots, in our inventory, are provided to families to help
off-set the cost of a burial. Urns are provided to families, based upon availability, for
a child that has been cremated.
Resource Database. CBA’s resource data base includes funeral homes, crematories, cemeteries, grave marker and headstone companies, casket companies, florists &
other service providers. Many of these funeral homes provide CBA families with low-
cost and often, at-cost services. When funding is limited, these resources are used
to assist families. Often resources are combined to provide additional savings for
families.
Kids Wish Network / A Child Forever Funeral Assistance
4060 Louis Ave.
Holiday, FL 34691
Email: info@kidswishnetwork.org
We started with the single purpose of granting wishes to children suffering with life-threatening conditions but have since created additional programs to benefit kids nationwide, including A Child Forever Funeral Assistance.
Securing End-of-Life Expenses (SEOLE) / Angel Names Association
PO Box 423
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
Phone: 518-654-2411
The Securing End-of-Life Expenses (SEOLE):
The Securing End-of-Life Expenses (SEOLE), pronounced “soul,” program provides assistance with autopsy, funeral, burial and cremation expenses. Funding is sent to
the service provider (i.e. funeral home).
&
GRASP:
The Grief Recovery Assistance Program (GRASP), provides funding for uninsured and
under-insured families
Eligibility:
Family must be current residents of the United States. Baby was at least 20 gestational weeks old, with no respirations, heartbeats or signs of life.
The TEARS Foundation
11102 Sunrise Blvd. E. Suite 112
Puyallup, WA 98374
Phone: 734-7645-7430 Buddy & Shelby Shuh, Michigan Chapter Leaders
If you have found this site because you have just lost a baby, our
hearts go out to you. The TEARS Foundation may be able to pro-
vide financial funeral assistance to families who meet the following guidelines:
The qualifications to receive funeral assistance from The TEARS Foundation are:
1. The family resides in Alaska, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Washington State
2. The baby who died was between 20 weeks gestation up to one year old
3. Fund availability
4. Funds are provided based on the family having a financial need
&
Infant Funeral Services (20 weeks gestation to one year):
The TEARS Foundation pays for current infant funeral expenses & unexpected child funeral expenses. We are not able to help with expenses over 30 days old. You may
select the funeral home of your choosing & we will work with them to become an
Approved Provider.
&
Charlie & Braden Project (1 year - 12 years)
Funeral assistance for sudden loss of a child. The family resides in or child died in
Alaska, Idaho, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, South Carolina, Washington State
or Wyoming.
&
Jesse's Grant Marker Program (20 weeks gestation - 1 year)
We are accepting applications in the following states: Alaska, Indiana, Massachusetts,
Michigan, South Carolina, Washington, or Wyoming and it has been over 6 months since baby's passing.
