Tree of Life Funerals (South Coast NSW)
with Picaluna Beautiful Funerals
Servicing Batemans Bay to Narooma
Ph: Tree of Life Funerals on 0493-276-554 during business hours
or (02) 4412-9228 for Picaluna anytime.
You will always be able to speak to someone to help you.
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We can also arrange transfers to and from the Eurobodalla
and funerals in Canberra.

What do I do if someone dies at home?

If someone dies at home and it’s an unexpected event, or you’re unsure if they are dead or unconscious, call 000 immediately and explain the situation - Emergency Services will be able to help you.
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If the death is anticipated, and the person has been under the care of a doctor or has a regular GP, take your time, you don’t have to do anything straight away.

Your GP should have completed an Expected Home Death Form for you, where they agree to issue the Medical Cause of Death Form within 48 hours of the death (which will be provided to the Funeral Director). You can call an Ambulance to attend and the Paramedic will complete this form to confirm your person has died as anticipated.

If your person has been under the care of Palliative Care at home, your Palliative Care Registered Nurse can complete the form instead of an Ambulance Paramedic (during business hours).
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This form must be completed prior to a funeral director transferring the deceased from the home.

But it's a good idea to put the kettle on, settle yourself, and call people when you feel you need to. There is no rush.  More than likely, the deceased person will be in a bed, so keep the room as cool as possible, and cover the deceased person’s body with just a sheet.

When you are ready, during business hours you can call Tree of Life Funerals on 0493 276 554, or for after hours call Picaluna Funerals on (02) 4412-9228 and we can talk through what needs to be done next and arrange for a transfer of the deceased person.

If you decide on at-home after-death care, Tree of Life Funerals can assist you by providing an at-home body cooling option and keeping your loved one at home for up to 5 days, which is perfectly legal to do. You may choose to have your loved one at home for just a day, or part of a day, or up to 5 days, whichever you prefer.

We arrange the funeral in consultation with family, friends and community if that's your choice, all in the comfort of your own home.

If you decide on external mortuary care, or in combination with at-home mortuary care, Tree of Life Funerals can assist with arranging this on your behalf and then arrange and conduct the funeral services for you.

What do I do when a death occurs in a hospital, hospice, nursing home or similar?

When someone dies in a place other than their own home, such as a hospital, there are usually mortuary facilities on-site to care for the deceased, as well as having a doctor available to sign the Doctor’s Certificate of Cause of Death. You do have the right to ask that the deceased person not be moved from the room / bed until you are ready for this to happen (unless the person had an infectious condition such as Covid 19). Usually, there would be no requirement to whisk the person away. Nursing homes don't usually have a mortuary and therefore the deceased person will need to be collected and transported within a reasonable amount of time, but a few hours is reasonable, to give you time to collect your thoughts and to start your grieving.

Take your time, start your grieving. Call your family, friends, then call us and we can talk through what needs to happen next.

Later, the hospital may wish to move the deceased person to their mortuary area to allow them to be collected for transportation, or they may allow access to the room, depending on the individual facility. Tree of Life Funerals can then arrange to bring them home to you if you choose or arrange for external mortuary care. It's all about honouring your wishes.

Bring Your Loved One Home - with or without a Funeral Service

If your loved one died away from home such as in a hospital or nursing home, we can arrange for them to be bought back home and to be kept cool and cared for, for up to 5 days.

If they died at home, we can help you keep them at home while the funeral arrangements are made, then transferred to a Mortuary if needed. We can attend every day to refresh the body cooling system, to see how things are for you, and to provide any at-home mortuary care needed. This is precious time for family and friends to say their personal goodbyes in the comfort of your own home.

We make the time to meet with you to make the funeral arrangements as family and friends would like - we provide you with options on where to hold a service and help you to make it how how you want it to be.

Tree of Life Funerals provide a lined Bioboard (cardboard) coffin, or other coffin of your choice (prices vary), transfer the deceased into the coffin, and then take the coffin to the place of the funeral service, or in the case of a no-service direct cremation or burial, directly to Broulee Memorial Gardens or Cemetery of your choice within the Eurobodalla Region.

We take care of arranging the required paperwork for a cremation or burial, registering the death, and having the death certificate sent to you. Ashes are then returned to you in the standard urn provided by Broulee Memorial Gardens or we can transfer the ashes into an Urn of your choice (prices vary).

We can also help you hold a Memorial Service at a later time if you wish, as well as ceremonies for interment of ashes.

Can I arrange my own or someone else's funeral?

Yes, you can. It is an entirely personal choice but most people wouldn’t want to do it as there are so many unknowns and when you're grieving it's probably the last thing you want to do, which is where Tree of Life Funerals can assist you. 

Funerals can be easily and legally held at home. Tree of Life Funerals, with Picaluna, assists with providing mortuary care and transfers, as well as offering a range of affordable coffins, making arrangements and bookings with venues, cemeteries or crematoriums, as well as registering the death.

Family-led funerals are funerals which have a professional or experienced funeral director or celebrant present to help guide and support the family and/or friends and the rituals and ceremonies of the funeral are shaped by family and friends who are involved in the ceremonies as little or as much as they choose to be.

It can be very memorable, very personal, very rewarding and very special for all involved.

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