万花筒 2009-03-23&03-24 经济不景气，葬礼贵到付不

We are all looking for ways to save a buck¹, whether it is at a grocery store, restaurants, or even on vacation. Our Fox Five’s Nadine Toren shows us another important money saver.

 

Losing a loved one is bad enough, so how do you emotionally and financially survive when funeral expenses start adding up?

 

"You do have families, yes, that are not able to afford as much as they used to." Keith Baumgardener works for Greenwood Memorial Park & Mortuary, a mountain view funeral home that’s been around for more than a hundred years. He says dealing² with death in a down economy is tough, especially when the average funeral costs 5000 dollars and can reach up to 15,000 dollars.

 

"More and more the families that we serve are looking at ways that they can get a saving of some sort which might be changing the selection of flowers that they purchase, gaining an old … own an urn³ that’s a little less expensive , a casket, that type of thing."

 

Consider this, plan your loved one's funeral on a weekday. Baumgardener says it’ll save you at least a thousand dollars. Here's another thought when making arrangements. Hold a gravesite service rather than a traditional chapel⁴ service. He says that too can save you a thousand bucks⁵.

 

"You will probably pay between four to five thousand dollars depending on what, depending on your options, what would you include or take out."

 

When it comes to cremation⁶, "It's typically less expensive than a traditional casket type burial."

 

And Baumgardener says you have options when choosing your loved one's headstone. "Flat is gonna run you probably about six hundred dollars and upright marker could be anywhere from fifteen hundred to you know four or five thousand."

 

To get the best overall price, Baumgardener says do your research. "You can give stuff that is on the lower end, but it's not always gonna be what you think it is." Because anything that will help make coping a little easier is well worth it.

 

In Mountain View, Nadine Toren, Fox Five news.
 

1 buck   

n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃

参考例句：

• The boy bent curiously to the skeleton of the buck.这个男孩好奇地弯下身去看鹿的骸骨。
• The female deer attracts the buck with high-pitched sounds.雌鹿以尖声吸引雄鹿。

2 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

3 urn   

n.（有座脚的）瓮；坟墓；骨灰瓮

参考例句：

• The urn was unearthed entire.这只瓮出土完整无缺。
• She put the big hot coffee urn on the table and plugged it in.她将大咖啡壶放在桌子上,接上电源。

4 chapel   

n.小教堂，殡仪馆

参考例句：

• The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
• She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午，她在小教堂的演出，可以说是登峰造极。

5 bucks   

n.雄鹿( buck的名词复数 )；钱；（英国十九世纪初的）花花公子；（用于某些表达方式）责任v.（马等）猛然弓背跃起( buck的第三人称单数 )；抵制；猛然震荡；马等尥起后蹄跳跃

参考例句：

• They cost ten bucks. 这些值十元钱。
• They are hunting for bucks. 他们正在猎雄兔。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 cremation   

n.火葬，火化

参考例句：

• Cremation is more common than burial in some countries. 在一些国家，火葬比土葬普遍。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Garbage cremation can greatly reduce the occupancy of land. 垃圾焚烧可以大大减少占用土地。 来自互联网