Non-religious funerals and celebrations of life in Utah
A gathering about the person: their music, their people, and the stories you actually want told. Nothing is added from a faith you do not hold.
The day follows the person
Some families do not want a religious funeral, and they should not have to sit through one because it is what a funeral home usually does. Larkin will hold a memorial, a graveside, or a celebration of life with no prayers, no clergy, and no hymns unless you ask for them.
The shape is yours. A friend can speak. A child can read something. The music can be the music they played in the car. Photographs can be on a table. The gathering can be an hour or an afternoon. We arrange the care, the place, and the time, and we leave the meaning to you.
Ways families mark the day
None of these is required. They are the pieces people most often want, without a liturgy wrapped around them.
A celebration of life
Stories, music, and a room set for the living. It can be at one of our chapels, at home, outdoors, at Le Jardin in Sandy, or at the Celebration of Life Event Center in Salt Lake City. The person does not have to be present. A later date is often easier on the family.
A simple memorial after cremation
Direct cremation can come first, at our crematory, and the gathering can wait until people can travel. Ashes can be present, kept for the family, or buried. We do not suggest scattering unless you have asked for it.
A graveside without a script
Burial can be quiet. A few words, a song, a moment of standing together. There is no requirement that someone read a religious text. If you want a printed order, we will print the one you wrote.
Room for people who do not share a faith
Families are often mixed. A sibling may want a prayer and another may not. We can give each part of the day its own place, so no one is asked to perform a belief they do not hold, and no one is shut out of the room.
What we take off the family's list
- A plan that starts from the person, not from a chapel script.
- Cremation at our own crematory, or burial, including a graveside with no clergy.
- A date that can wait until the people who should be there can get here.
- Help with music, photographs, and a printed program that says only what you wrote.
Where the service can be held
Hold it at our chapels, at Le Jardin, at the Celebration of Life Event Center, at home, or outdoors. A viewing is available if you want one, and it is easy to leave out.
- Downtown Salt Lake City — 260 E South Temple, Salt Lake City, UT 84111. (801) 363-5781.
- Larkin Sunset Lawn — 2350 E 1300 S, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, with our crematory. (801) 582-1582.
- Larkin Sunset Gardens, Sandy — 1950 E Dimple Dell Rd, Sandy, UT 84092. (801) 571-2771.
- Riverton — 3688 W 12600 S, Riverton, UT 84065. (801) 254-4850.
Questions families ask
Can Larkin hold a funeral with no religion?
Yes. We regularly help families with memorials and celebrations of life that include no clergy and no religious readings unless the family asks.
Do we have to have a service right away?
No. Cremation or burial can happen first, and the gathering can be scheduled when family can travel. Call (801) 363-5781 and we will separate those two dates.
Can it be somewhere other than a chapel?
Yes. Besides our chapels, families use Le Jardin in Sandy, the Celebration of Life Event Center in Salt Lake City, a home, or an outdoor place.
What if some relatives want a prayer and others do not?
Tell us. We can plan the public gathering without a religious service and still leave a private moment for the people who want one.
Other traditions we serve
Tell us how you want them remembered.
Call any hour. There is no scripture to get through and no package to defend. We will ask what the gathering should feel like, and we will build that.