(NAPSI)—As Benjamin Franklin famously wrote, “In this world, nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” If you, like most Americans, are beginning to work on your yearly taxes, why not start preparing for that other inevitability of life—your death.

Benefits of Preplanning

Planning for end of life is a subject many wish to avoid, but there are many advantages of planning your own funeral. When you take charge of your final arrangements, you remove the guesswork that family members will face regarding your last wishes. You personally decide whether you want a traditional burial or cremation instead of leaving these difficult decisions to loved ones.

Planning your end-of-life celebration in advance—known as prearranging—lifts the financial burden from your family’s shoulders. Also, most funeral homes and cemeteries allow you to lock in today’s prices when you prearrange so you get the added benefit of guarding against inflation.

Considerations When Choosing a Funeral Provider

Many people like the idea of prearranging but hesitate because they are not certain where they will live in the future. If this is a concern for you, look for a funeral provider that provides portability. Dignity Memorial^® has a network of more than 2,000 locations in the United States and Canada, and offers the National Transferability of Prearranged Services Program to its clients. This ensures that your prearranged funeral services are fully transferable and will be honored at any Dignity Memorial provider throughout North America if you move more than 75 miles from where your original arrangements were made.

You may also want a funeral provider that offers additional benefits to help your loved ones cope with their loss. As North America’s largest provider of funeral, cremation and cemetery services, Dignity Memorial^® offers grief management support tools, including access to a 24-hour Compassion Helpline^® staffed by professionals with advanced degrees and specialized training in grief counseling. Many locations also offer support groups.

As you research end-of-life options, you will see that more and more people are choosing to enhance traditional funeral services with highly personalized life celebrations. This can be as simple as requesting certain songs be played during the service or arranging a more elaborate, themed celebration that highlights a special interest, passion or hobby of the family’s loved one. Many families also hold catered receptions after the service. When you preplan, you personally decide how you want friends and family to remember you.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Begin Preplanning

To help you get started, pick up The Dignity Memorial^® Personal Planning Guide at a Dignity Memorial^® provider near you. The guide takes you step by step through the planning process. You can record your final wishes, personal affairs, family heritage, military history, estate information and other vital end-of-life information in a single document. You can also get started with a convenient tool—the Insider’s Guide—to help you plan these important decisions from the comfort of your own home.

Unlike paying taxes, you can procrastinate on prearranging funeral services. But why wait? Being proactive ensures that your personal wishes are documented, emotional and financial burdens are eased—and you will likely save money. There’s no better time than tax time to prepare for that other inevitable in life. To learn more, visit www.dignitymemorial.com.