Family had to use crowdfunding to look after funeral costs

Nikki Baldwin says she almost threw up when she saw how much funerals cost in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Baldwin's mother had Stage 4 cancer. She was diagnosed in March 2020 and died that September at the age of 61.

Two days before her mother's death, Baldwin checked on her parents' finances.

"My mom had always handled all the finances and paperwork in their marriage, so I knew that was my job now," Baldwin said.

After she saw the number, she googled how much funerals cost. Her parents had nowhere near the amount that was needed.

"I almost threw up right there because my mom was dying, and I didn't know how we were going to afford her funeral, if we could have a funeral with COVID," she said.

"How could we even waste any of the moments we had left worrying about that?"

TIGHTENED FINANCES

Baldwin's family always lived comfortably. Her mother retired from the Canada Revenue Agency on disability in 1990. Her father works a labour job.

They lived in a rental and always watched their spending. Still relatively young, her parents were just starting to save money.

"My parents lived comfortably enough, especially once their kids were raised and out of the house. Their household income was between $90,0000 and $110,000 annually," she said.

Unfortunately, the family's finances tightened when her mother got sick. Her mother's illness came with its own stack of bills and less income.

Her mother wasn't eligible for life insurance after her retirement. She only had some insurance coverage since she retired from a full-time unionized federal job.

At the same time, Baldwin's father started working less so he could care for and be with his wife.

"I knew my parents had some money, but much less than before my mom got sick," she said.

ROCK AND A HARD PLACE

Baldwin is usually the one who takes care of the paperwork and crises in the family, but she couldn't cover the cost of her mother's funeral by herself.

Her family couldn't cover it when combined, either.

"I work at a charity, which does not pay very well, and my partner had just changed jobs. We were buried in student loans and school debt. My sister is a hairstylist, and was still off work because of COVID," Baldwin said.

ALMOST NOWHERE TO TURN

That night, Baldwin had to talk to her dad about the situation. There was almost nowhere to turn that could bear the brunt of funeral costs.

"None of us could take on a loan that big quickly –– and you need the money quick –– and we didn't have credit cards with limits high enough," Baldwin said.

"My dad is a proud man who would give you anything he had that you needed and wouldn't want to take anything from anyone else if he didn't absolutely have to."

Their only solution was to crowdfund to pay for her mother's funeral.

“My dad agreed to let me set up a Gofundme page in lieu of donations/flowers and after I explained that I couldn’t see another way to give my mom the goodbye she deserved and our family some type of closure and comfort,” Baldwin said.

CROWDFUNDING SUCCESS

Baldwin and her family were able to crowdfund $11,000.

“I am extremely grateful and lucky to have so many friends and family who could help us and did. We even had a few friends of friends that didn’t even know my mom that donated after hearing about her and the fundraiser,” she said.

The donations helped cover a significant portion of the funeral.

“The funeral, burial, and headstone cost just over $18,500,” Baldwin said.

To alleviate more costs, they bought the most basic flower package, rented a casket for the wake and funeral, and then had her mother cremated.

Baldwin said that route is significantly less expensive, and they bought a lowerprice-range urn.

“We did not have any extras or anything fancy. You do get a death benefit from the government, but it takes a while to come after the funeral,” she said.

In Canada, the death benefit for all eligible contributors is a flat rate of $2,500.

The surviving spouse, common-law partner and next of kin may be eligible in that order.

BODIES IN FREEZERS

Baldwin doesn’t know what would have happened if crowdfunding didn’t work.

On Wednesday, March 6, CBC News reported that dozens of dead bodies are frozen in storage containers behind the Health Sciences Centre in St. John’s.

The bodies are unclaimed, and not always because there’s no next of kin. Some families can’t afford funerals. CBC cited cost-of-living and inflation as one reason.

Now Baldwin is extra grateful for their crowdfunding success.

“I certainly never thought about the horrific possibility of her ending up frozen in a parking lot,” said Baldwin.

FUNERAL COSTS

Oceanside Funeral Home is located in Port aux Basques. Their website said the average funeral costs are between $5,000 and $7,000, depending on the selected services. But inflation has likely forced this number to be higher.

A representative from the funeral home told Saltwire that between $6,000 and $8,000 would be a more accurate estimate today.

Regarding families struggling to meet funeral costs, Oceanside’s representative said that due to their funeral homes’ rural nature, unaffordability isn’t that big of an issue. The community tends to rally together.

“People get a lot of money in cards, which helps cover funeral costs,” the representative said.

FAMILIES STRUGGLING

In St. John’s, however, Caul’s Funeral Home told Saltwire that it is seeing more families, particularly those of seniors on fixed incomes, who struggle to pay the basic costs of living and have not been in a position to plan ahead for funeral expenses.

“As the cost of living has increased, we suspect there will be more and more families facing that same dilemma,” Caul’s said in a provided statement. Service costs also vary. At Caul’s, more families are choosing cremation because of personal preference and sometimes budget restraints.

WHY ARE FUNERALS SO EXPENSIVE?

Oceanside’s website explains why funerals are expensive. The funeral home said costs extend beyond the merchandise.

It includes the services of the funeral directors, their roles in making necessary arrangements, filling out forms, and dealing with all other figures involved after death, such as doctors, lawyers, and insurance companies.

“Funerals are labourintensive,” Oceanside Funeral Home states on its website.

“Funeral directors work an average of forty hours per funeral, and the cost of operating a funeral home is included as well. Funeral homes are a 24hour operation, with extensive facilities that need to be maintained and secured.”

Caul’s said the industry is not immune to price increases.

“Providing a trained professional staff and providing a service to the public 24 hours a day/7 days a week while maintaining facilities and vehicles have not gotten less expensive,” the statement reads.

Caul’s said the government needs to do more to help grieving families.

“Unfortunately, the government has long neglected to acknowledge social responsibility for these people with such limited resources. Though there are some basic provisions that families can apply for after the fact, it does little to assist the families at the time they need it the most.”