6 Charities That Help With Funeral Expenses

Catholic Charities is the leading faith-based organization offering direct financial assistance for funeral and burial expenses. While most local and independent churches do not possess massive budgets to cover the full cost of funeral services for the general public, many maintain small “benevolence funds” to assist their active members or neighbors in the community who are facing a severe crisis.

When seeking community-based and faith-based resources to help cover these unexpected expenses, you may turn to various structured programs:

Major Charities and Church-Affiliated Assistance Programs

Catholic Charities USA

Catholic Charities USA offers direct financial assistance for funeral and burial expenses; however, the national office does not process applications. Since the program is administered locally, funds are managed independently by regional dioceses.

Eligible low-income or uninsured families may receive up to $5,000 to ensure dignified funeral arrangements.

How the Assistance Program Works

Direct Payments to Providers: Catholic Charities does not provide cash or checks directly to families; instead, it pays the contracted funeral home or cemetery directly.

What the Program Covers: Grants typically cover essential expenses, including a standard casket, a private family viewing, graveside burial services, and administrative fees for processing official death certificates.

Comprehensive Support: Grieving families who have been assigned a case manager are automatically offered additional assistance, which includes professional grief counseling, access to local food pantries, and temporary rental or housing assistance.

Eligibility Criteria

To qualify for burial assistance through a local chapter, you must meet several strict financial requirements:

Demonstrated Crisis: You must demonstrate that you have completely exhausted all external resources, personal savings, and active insurance policies.

Locality Standards: The deceased individual must have resided—or be scheduled to be buried—within the exact geographic boundaries of the county served by that specific diocesan chapter.

Proof of Income: Families must provide proof of their low-income status through recent tax returns, pay stubs, or active enrollment in government programs such as Medicaid, SNAP, or SSI.

Action Steps to Apply

Do not pay the bill yet: Catholic Charities cannot provide retroactive reimbursement if you have already paid the full funeral expenses out of your own pocket.

Gather the required documentation: Obtain the official death certificate, a detailed price quote from the funeral home, your photo ID, and proof of household income.

Find your regional branch: Use the Official Catholic Charities Agency Locator to find the exact phone number and intake website corresponding to your specific local county.

Submit an application: Call the local office or complete their online intake form to request a meeting with a case manager. They will typically contact you within 48 hours to complete a brief application.

Jewish Family Services (JFS)

Jewish Family Services (JFS) administers structured burial programs for indigent individuals, designed to provide free or highly subsidized traditional burials to low-income persons. Like Catholic Charities, this national network operates through autonomous regional offices (e.g., JFS Dallas, JFS Los Angeles, Ruth & Norman Rales JFS).

Since the program guarantees a dignified burial regardless of financial status, it is built upon strong community partnerships with local Jewish federations, funeral homes, and cemeteries.

How the JFS Indigent Burial Program Works

Free or at-cost burials: Rather than issuing one-time cash grants, JFS coordinates a rotation system with participating local Jewish funeral homes and cemeteries to cover the costs.

Adherence to tradition: The program ensures that the deceased receives a proper burial in accordance with Jewish tradition (K’vod HaMet). This typically includes coordinating with a local Chevra Kadisha (sacred burial society) to perform traditional washing and preparation, the use of a simple, kosher wooden casket, and the holding of a graveside service with a minyan (a quorum of ten Jewish adults).

Direct Payments Only: All financial assistance is managed through direct agreements with participating providers. JFS cannot reimburse families for expenses they have already paid to a funeral home that is not part of its network of partners.

Eligibility Rules

JFS funeral service programs are designed strictly as a “last resort” safety net. To qualify, applicants must undergo a comprehensive assessment process:

Extended Family Assessment: JFS will conduct a thorough financial analysis—not only of the deceased but of all first-degree relatives, including the surviving spouse, adult children, and parents. If any immediate family member possesses the necessary means or savings to cover the cost of the funeral, the application may be denied.

Income Criteria: Generally, families must demonstrate that their income falls at or below federal poverty guidelines (criteria that often align with local eligibility levels for Medicaid or SSI).

Geographic Restrictions: Typically, the deceased must have been a resident of the metropolitan area or the specific county served by that particular JFS branch at the time of death.

Steps to Apply for Assistance

Contact JFS Immediately: Do not sign any contract with a conventional funeral home before doing so. Call your local JFS office the moment the death occurs, or when a patient enters an end-of-life hospice care program.

Request an Initial Funeral Services Assessment: Ask to speak with a social worker or case manager from the Senior Services Department or the Emergency Financial Assistance Department.

Submit Financial Documentation: You will be asked to complete a financial assistance application package. Be prepared to provide bank statements, tax returns, and a statement of assets and property for all primary family members.

Cooperate with the Assigned Funeral Home: Once your application is approved, JFS will assign you to the specific partner funeral home that is currently on rotation for that month to initiate the necessary arrangements.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints manages funeral assistance locally through a system known as “fast offering” funds. There is no national program or centralized application portal. Instead, local congregation leaders—called bishops—evaluate requests on a case-by-case basis to assist active members, less-active members, and community neighbors facing severe financial hardship.

Because the Church values ​​family self-reliance and community support, its funeral assistance is governed by a specific spiritual and structural framework.

How the Church’s Funeral Assistance Works

Bishop’s Discretion: The local bishop oversees the fast offering funds for his specific geographic area (known as a ward). He has the authority to pay funeral homes or cemeteries directly using these funds.

The Law of the Fast: These funds do not constitute corporate assets; rather, they come from local members who fast once a month and donate the money they would have spent on meals to a specific account designated exclusively for the poor and needy.

Focus on Essential Needs: The Church’s assistance focuses strictly on providing a modest, dignified, and respectful service. It is designed to cover standard and essential costs, rather than extravagant arrangements or costly upgrades.

Basic Eligibility Criteria and Expectations

Before a bishop approves the use of fast offering funds for a funeral, the Church considers a specific hierarchy of resources:

Immediate Family First: The family is expected, as a primary measure, to pool their personal savings, life insurance proceeds, and contributions from extended family members.

Government and Community Aid: The family must determine whether the deceased qualifies for state or county funds designated for indigent burials, or for Social Security death benefits. The Church’s Safety Net: If a deficit still remains, the bishop will intervene to cover the outstanding balance by paying the funeral home directly.

Church Membership: While these funds are primarily used for active or less-active members of the congregation, a bishop may utilize them to assist individuals who are not members of the Church but reside within the ward boundaries, in cases of extreme crisis.

Free Use of Church Buildings and Services

Even if a Bishop cannot provide a large cash payout for external burial costs, the Church drastically reduces overall funeral expenses by offering these resources completely free of charge:

Free Venue: The local LDS meetinghouse (chapel) can be used for the funeral or memorial service at no cost to the family.

Voluntary Clergy: The Bishop conducts the service as a volunteer. Church policy strictly forbids LDS leaders or musicians from accepting payment or tips for funeral services.

Free Reception Food: The ward’s women’s organization (the Relief Society) will typically organize, prepare, and serve a free luncheon or reception meal for the family and attendees following the service.

Action Steps to Request Aid

Find Your Local Bishop: Go to the official LDS Meetinghouse Locator website. Enter the home address where the deceased lived to find the exact congregation (ward) assigned to that neighborhood.

Contact the Leadership: The tool will provide the name of the Bishop, the chapel address, and service times. Reach out to the Bishop or his executive secretary immediately.

Explain the Financial Gap: Be transparent about your total funeral costs, what the family has managed to gather, and the exact dollar amount you are short.

Coordinate with the Mortuary: If the Bishop approves the aid, provide him with the itemized invoice from the funeral home so payment can be issued directly to the vendor.

Local Church Benevolence Funds

If you plan to contact local churches in your neighborhood (such as Baptist, Methodist, or non-denominational congregations), keep these practices in mind:

Ask for the Benevolence Committee: Request to speak with the pastor or the administrator handling “benevolence” or “community missions”.

Prioritize Personal Connections: Churches naturally prioritize their active churchgoers and immediate neighbors. If the deceased was a member, the church may waive clergy fees or hosting costs entirely.

Hosting Services: Even if a local church cannot hand out cash for a casket, they will often host the memorial service for free, provide the officiant, and have volunteers coordinate a reception meal, saving you thousands in venue fees.

Community Crowdfunding: Many churches will readily share an online memorial link (like a GoFundMe) in their weekly bulletins, email newsletters, or social media pages to rally community donations on your behalf.

Reliable Non-Profit Alternatives

If church resources are limited, several specialized charities focus exclusively on funeral aid:

The TEARS Foundation: Offers up to $500 in direct financial assistance paid straight to the funeral home for families who have tragically lost an infant or young child.

Final Farewell: A dedicated national organization that provides immediate financial guidance and funding to families struggling to afford a funeral for a child under the age of 18.

United Way (Dial 2-1-1): Calling 2-1-1 connects you with a local operator who tracks neighborhood-specific disaster funds, county indigent burial programs, and religious grants that do not advertise online.