Years ago, there was one factor that kept many families from considering cremation when they were planning a funeral: People used to believe that if they chose cremation they could not have a funeral service, or if they did, it wouldn’t be as meaningful as it might be with traditional burial. When you choose Sunset View Cemetery & Mortuary, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Being a part of the diverse community of El Cerrito, Oakland, Berkeley, and beyond, our ability to personalize a funeral service with the individual’s culture, values, and personality is critical to our ability to serve your family. When families come to Sunset View, they discover that cremation is, indeed, a dignified and meaningful form of memorialization.

As traditions change, we develop new and meaningful ways to honor and commemorate our loved ones. Our attitudes toward what is “appropriate” during a funeral become much broader, and that means we can offer families new choices and new forms of tribute and remembrance. However, families who have lost a loved one sometimes find the choices a bit bewildering. They might also need help sparking creative ideas. Our expert team can help.

In the past, some people also viewed cremation only as a way to save money on funeral costs. But now, families who do choose cremation are discovering that dignified and touching services are available to help them honor and commemorate their loved one. When you choose cremation, you may still have a visitation, memorial service, traditional funeral service, graveside observance in our beautiful, historic cemetery, and many other comforting and healing rituals. And you can personalize cremation services with vaults, caskets, and urns that bear emblems and engravings denoting religious affiliation, hobbies and special interests, and military or civic service.

You can trust that we accept nothing less than excellence at Sunset View. We own and operate our own crematory, so you can know that your loved one will never leave our professional, compassionate care. We always assure our families that when the cremation process takes place, our paramount concern is preserving the dignity of your loved one.

When you choose cremation, ask these important questions:

1.) What kind of memorial services are available?

2.) What are the choices for personalization and telling the story of the life that has been lived?

3.) Most importantly, what measures does the funeral home take to guard the dignity of the process? Do they own and operate their own crematory so they can promise you the cremated remains you received are definitely those of your loved one?

Sunset View Cemetery & Mortuary is, and will remain the most trusted funeral home and crematory servicing Bay Area families. And when it comes to cremation, that’s the best assurance of all.