If your mom passed away in Iowa and you live out of state, Celebrate Life Iowa can arrange her cremation remotely. You can review the pricing, sign the cremation authorization and provide the death certificate information online, and its removal team travels to all 99 Iowa counties. Celebrate Life Iowa provides cremation services across Iowa from offices in West Des Moines and North Liberty, and its team is available 24 hours a day when questions come up.
In Episode 11 of The Iowa Conversation, host Mike Downer asked licensed funeral director Rick Ramsey who provides statewide cremation services in Iowa, and how that works for families outside Des Moines. You can watch the full episode on YouTube.
Celebrate Life Iowa provides cremation services statewide. "Celebrate Life Iowa does cover all 99 counties in the state of Iowa," Rick said on the episode.
Its West Des Moines and North Liberty offices are not typical brick-and-mortar funeral homes, so families can meet staff there when they want to, without the overhead of a large facility. Rick says that lower overhead lets Celebrate Life Iowa charge less for direct cremation than many brick-and-mortar funeral homes.
Rick covered how to compare providers in Episode 10, summarized in what to look for in the best cremation provider in Iowa.
Yes. Celebrate Life Iowa lets families handle the key steps online, including reviewing pricing, completing the cremation authorization and providing the vital statistics for the death certificate. "You can actually set up funeral services, a cremation with a memorial service to follow, all online," Rick explained.
That matters for an adult child in another state, and for Iowa families in rural areas who would otherwise drive hours to a funeral home. Rick noted that not everyone is comfortable in a funeral home setting, and some find it easier to answer the questions at home, perhaps with a family member present.
The relative who signs needs the legal authority to do so. The Iowa Board of Mortuary Science rules describe the authorized person as the one a funeral director may reasonably rely on for arrangements, including cremation, under Iowa Code section 144C.5.
Cost depends on how far the place of death is from Celebrate Life Iowa, because the extra charge is mileage. Rick gave these figures on the episode:
The first two figures come from the episode and the top of the range comes from the published county pricing, so confirm the current rate for your county before making arrangements.
Under the Federal Trade Commission's Funeral Rule, you can ask a funeral provider for a general price list and choose only the goods and services you want, with some exceptions. Rick says Celebrate Life Iowa's prices are posted online and itemized, so "you're going to know exactly what you're paying for here."
Once a doctor or medical examiner has agreed to sign, Celebrate Life Iowa's removal team is on the road within 45 minutes to an hour, and Rick confirmed it can reach any part of Iowa within about five to six hours. For a death in Dubuque, about three and a half hours from Des Moines, that means the hour of preparation plus the drive.
The clock starts after the legal steps, not at the first phone call. The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services explains that a cremation permit is required before cremation, that the cause of death must be certified, and that the permit is signed and issued by a medical examiner.
On longer trips, the team checks in with the family at about the halfway point with an arrival estimate. Staff also ask practical questions, such as whether there are stairs at a residence and whether family members want to be present.
No. Distance adds travel time and mileage, but Rick says the cremation timeline stays the same: "As long as a doctor or medical examiner is willing to sign our cremation authorization, the timeline is going to be fairly similar, no matter which county the death occurred in."
Watch Episode 11 on YouTube to hear Rick Ramsey explain statewide transportation, county pricing and online arrangements in his own words. When you are ready, you can start online arrangements or contact Celebrate Life Iowa with any question.
Celebrate Life Iowa can. It serves all 99 Iowa counties, and families can review pricing, sign the cremation authorization and provide death certificate information online without visiting a funeral home.
Yes. Celebrate Life Iowa provides cremation services throughout all 99 Iowa counties, including rural communities outside Des Moines.
Yes. Families can review pricing and complete cremation arrangements online, provided they have the necessary legal authority.
Rick cited $1,295 for Polk County and $1,495 a couple of counties over, and Celebrate Life Iowa's published county prices run up to $1,895.
The removal team is on the road within 45 minutes to an hour once a doctor or medical examiner agrees to sign, and Rick says it can reach anywhere in Iowa within about five to six hours.
Not necessarily. Rick explained that cremation timelines are generally similar once the required medical certification and authorizations are completed.
No. Celebrate Life Iowa allows families to complete arrangements remotely, with funeral director assistance available when needed.
Mike Downer: Hello, everybody, and welcome to the Iowa Conversation, brought to you by Celebrate Life Iowa. I'm your host, Mike Downer, and I'm joined once again by Rick Ramsey, licensed funeral director at Celebrate Life Iowa. How are we doing today, Rick?
Rick Ramsey: I'm doing well, Mike. Thank you.
Mike Downer: Today, we're going to do a little bit of shameless self-promotion here.
Rick Ramsey: I always love shameless self-promotion.
Mike Downer: Absolutely. So, we're just going to be talking about who provides statewide cremation services in Iowa. I figure if I'm going to ask this question, why wouldn't I just talk to my buddy, Rick?
Most funeral homes and cremation services only serve their local area. So what we're going to be talking about is how a statewide cremation model actually works and what it means for families outside of Des Moines.
So, again, here's where kind of the shameless self-promotion comes in, Rick. Direct answer first, and obviously, it's you guys. Who actually serves the whole state for cremation, and how does that work logistically?
Rick Ramsey: Mike, I thought you'd never ask. Celebrate Life Iowa does cover all 99 counties in the state of Iowa.
Mike Downer: All 99 states?
Rick Ramsey: Excuse me. All 99 counties in the state of Iowa.
The biggest difference you're going to see as far as whether or not the death occurs in Polk County, as opposed to, let's say, Appanoose County, is going to be the additional drive time and the additional transportation. That's going to have an effect on the total cost of the cremation.
If the death were to occur here in Polk County, the entire cremation funeral bill is going to be a total of $1,295. But if you're a couple of counties over, that charge is going to be $1,495. That additional $200 is attributed to the additional mileage.
Mike Downer: That makes perfect sense. There are costs involved with that.
What made Celebrate Life Iowa decide to build the company around statewide cremation access instead of just serving the metro and surrounding areas right here?
Rick Ramsey: We wanted to focus on giving families different options as far as their funeral service.
A lot of brick-and-mortar funeral homes have a direct cremation charge that is going to be a little bit higher than ours simply because their overhead is going to be a lot higher than what Celebrate Life Iowa’s is.
We have locations in North Liberty and West Des Moines, but they're not typical brick-and-mortar funeral homes. We're able to meet with you at those locations, depending on what side of the state you're on, but we don't have that high overhead. As a result, we're able to offer our services at a fraction of the price that some of the other funeral homes offer.
Mike Downer: That's awesome. So if a family lives, let's say, three or four hours from Des Moines, what does the process look like for them?
Rick Ramsey: They're going to call Celebrate Life Iowa. The first thing we're going to go over with them is how long it's going to take us to get to the hospital or their residence.
We'll go over what the pricing is going to look like. Again, we're going to circle back around and make sure that they're ready for us to come to the location and transport their loved one back to Polk County.
Mike Downer: Very good. Does distance affect the cost or turnaround time for these families? I know you said there's a little additional cost, but overall, kind of give us some timelines and cost differences.
Rick Ramsey: The cost difference is going to be attributed to how far away that county is as far as mileage.
As far as the time difference, we're not going to see any additional time added to the cremation itself. As long as a doctor or medical examiner is willing to sign our cremation authorization, the timeline is going to be fairly similar, no matter which county the death occurred in.
Mike Downer: Very good. And as far as the travel timeline, let's say a family is three hours away. How long does Celebrate Life Iowa need to prepare for that?
So if they live in Dubuque, which is about three and a half hours from here, what kind of timeline could they expect for you guys to be able to pick up the deceased?
Rick Ramsey: We're going to have our removal team here. If they're not here at the funeral home, they're going to be here within an hour. We will be on the road within 45 minutes to an hour for the transport. Then we'll add that on to the three-and-a-half-hour travel time to the place of death.
Mike Downer: Gotcha. I'm thinking the furthest places in Iowa, because I've actually had jobs where I've driven, are a little over four hours away anywhere in Iowa. So you're saying that basically, no matter where you live in Iowa, you'll be there within five hours.
Rick Ramsey: We are. We certainly are.
Now, we want to make sure that the family wants us there that quickly, and we also want to make sure that a medical examiner or physician has been contacted and is going to be willing to sign the death certificate so we have approval to make that removal.
Mike Downer: Right. So that is not necessarily five hours from the phone call, but five hours after you have someone who has signed off on it, made sure all the I’s are dotted, T’s are crossed, the legal stuff has been done, and so forth.
Rick Ramsey: Correct.
Mike Downer: I just like to give everybody realistic expectations. You're really good about that. You're very upfront and honest with your answers.
So once everything is prepared and done correctly, you're talking anywhere from one hour in the Des Moines area to, at the maximum, five or six hours.
Rick Ramsey: Correct.
If someone is three to four hours away, it's not uncommon for us to check in at that halfway point, just to let them know, “Hey, we're on our way. Here's the time you can expect us.”
We're going to ask, if they're at a residence, “Are there stairs? Do you folks want to be present while we're there?” We’ll let them know our estimated time of arrival.
Mike Downer: Very good. What would you say to a family in a rural area who assumes their only options are local?
Rick Ramsey: You've always got an option with Celebrate Life Iowa.
One thing that we're a little bit unique with is that not every family is comfortable coming into the funeral home. You can actually set up funeral services, a cremation with a memorial service to follow, all online.
You'll see our pricing, cremation authorization, and vital statistic information for the death certificate all online, without ever really speaking with the funeral director.
Mike Downer: Very good. So that's another nice piece of mind, knowing that if you live quite a ways out in a rural area, you're not going to be required to drive into Des Moines. That is a time commitment and a financial commitment. You have gas, food, and everything else. That's a great option that you allow those families to have.
Rick Ramsey: It really is. Not everybody is comfortable in a funeral home setting. For some, it's a lot easier to fill those questions out by yourself in the comfort of your own home, or maybe with a family member present.
Again, unlike some funeral homes, our prices are right there. They're itemized out. You're going to know exactly what you're paying for here. If you have any questions, we're here to answer them.
Mike Downer: Perfect. So no matter where you live, if you live in one of the 99 states, as Rick likes to call them, or counties in Iowa—you have to throw a little humor in there—make sure to give the guys at Celebrate Life Iowa a call. They'll be more than happy to answer your questions, accommodate your needs, and give you all the answers you're looking for.
Rick, as always, it's a pleasure talking to you, and I look forward to our next episode.
Rick Ramsey: Thanks, Mike.
Mike Downer: All right. Take care and have a great afternoon.
Rick Ramsey: You too.
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