Funeral Preplanning doesn’t have to be sad or difficult. Leave your loving legacy by having your affairs and estate in order while you can. Give you and your loves ones peace of mind.
Why preplan with Kat?
Katherine Downey is the #1 Funeral Preplanning Professional in Canada for the fourth time. She is a professional educator, author, licensed funeral director and insurance advisor. To set an appointment or have your questions answered, please contact Kat directly.
Services
Do you need assistance with:
- Application for Death Benefit?
- CPP Survivor’s Pension?
- CPP Children’s Benefits?
- Life Insurance Claims Package?
- Survivor’s Pension Claims Package?
I am a Licensed Funeral Director in Ontario, Canada and can assist you and your family with every aspect of funeral pre-planning. From memorial services, monuments, and cemetery needs, to insurance claims, obituaries, and catering services.
I have also recently completed the Certified Executor Advisor course with the Canadian Institute of Certified Executor Advisors and am the first licensed Funeral Director in Ontario to receive this designation. This designation allows me to help guide executors through the process of handling the estate.
Safe Return Assistance Plan
If you’re a traveler or even a commuter, think about the safe return assistance plan.
This one time insurance purchase covers all costs associated with bringing home a loved one who dies 100 km (60 miles) or more from their legal residence in North America. A fabulous product.
Taking Care of Business – Executor’s Workbook
This comprehensive workbook was designed to help you through the process of funeral preplanning, choosing an Executor, and preparing the information about your estate for your Executor. It’s what I call “Taking Care of Business” for your family and friends. But perhaps you’ll recognize it as a way of answering the question that people know they need to deal with but they avoid as long as possible… you know the one… “Are your affairs in order?”
Testimonials
I can attest to the value of pre-planning. My Mom died a few weeks ago at home and thankfully we pre-planned everything with Kat just a week before. After she passed, one simple phone call was all that was needed. We were mentally and physically exhausted at that point. What a sense of peace for my Dad and our family.
We have everything pre-arranged for my Dad’s passing now too.
Thank you Kat for the important work you do.
Must say, my friend, how kind you were when I lost Jim….. you made a difference in my journey….. thanks for reaching out when I truly needed it! Thank you for organizing my funeral arrangements. I am now glad this is completed and now paid for, and my children know my wishes. It makes less worry for all of us…. Thank you for gently advising me, when life was dark and made no sense!
Kat is a delight. She has a good sense of humour and is informative. She provided good reading materials, is always available, approachable and was sensitive to our needs.
After going through what I went through with my Mom I am so glad that I have this all taken care of. Not that it was a disaster but just as a family member to sit and have to go through all that is horrible. I have mine done and I am telling you the best thing ever.
After attending Kat’s seminar, I came away with a much clearer picture of the importance of being properly prepared and capable of dealing with all of the legal issues surrounding the death of a loved one. I plan to share what I learned with my parents and siblings.
I wanted to take a moment to thank you for the time spent going over the documents that are necessary for me to complete upon my husband’s death. Everything went smoothly and I am almost done. Your work made my life much easier at this stressful time.
Again, thank you.
On behalf of Debbie and myself, I want to thank you for our appointment this morning. As usual, we got the changes made to my plan and finally got Debbie to provide her wishes for her funeral. It always feels like a big burden has been lifted off our back by making our own arrangements. We just feel better knowing our funerals are arranged and paid for.
Our Blog
Life is Short – Be Grateful for the Moments
Last week I had the privilege of spending a week with my Mom in Curacao. What a beautiful place and the weather was absolutely fantastic. As Thanksgiving is approaching, I wanted to take the time to share my appreciation of this experience that I am very thankful to have shared with my mom.
Can I Transfer my Prepaid Funeral Plan?
In a previous blog I wrote about Eligible Funeral Arrangements (EFA). The rules of an EFA mandate that the money set aside in a prepaid funeral plan is always the purchaser’s money. As such the assigned funeral home does not have access to these funds until the funeral is actually provided. The purchaser’s money is held by a third party that must insure these funds to $100,000.00. Further, these funds must earn tax exempt interest, which is paid into the prepaid funeral certificate. As your money is held in an escrow account, it is very easy to transfer the funds.
Neurological Determination of Death for Organ Donation
I want to be an organ donor, but how are they sure I am really brain dead? While it might seem a strange question, it is a more common one than you would think. Especially in regards to wishing to be an organ donor. The answer to which is what is called a neurological determination of death, which I will go more into detail below.
