Quote Originally Posted by Muirenn View Post
Agree with NY Biker and Shooting Star.

And let's remember the service is more for the living than the dead.
+1.

We had a similar situation in my family a few years ago, where everyone had conflicting feelings about the deceased, going all the way back to childhood.

There was no viewing -- just a family-only pizza dinner the night before, where some people who hadn't seen each other in decades got to reconnect after some divisiveness the deceased had sown. Some family members met each other for the first time.

The service was simple. Lots of pictures, like ny biker's example. Immediate family sat in front, priest took care of the rest. No one else got up to speak, it was enough to mingle and hug and heal and break bread afterwards, and update contact information. I like to think that even with everyone's complicated feelings, people were able to move forward.