WHO WE ARE
FCA Coastal Carolina, which serves southeastern North Carolina and northeastern South
Carolina, is a non-profit, volunteer educational organization advocating advance planing of simple affordable death arrangements. We are loosely affiliated with Funeral Consumers Alliance http://www.funerals.org, of which there are nearly 100 chapters in the U.S. We are not connected with any funeral provider or religion; our aim is to help our members learn about choices for end-of-life decisions.
We are non-sectarian and respect that not everyone has the same philosophy. Our mantra is "Plan ahead. Let your loved ones know your wishes and have meaningful discussions with them." We believe end-of-life planning eases the burden on your family. They won't be forced to guess what was wanted and then have to make the arrangements while they are grieving or with time pressures. Decisions in advance, before a crisis arises, can head off arguments that can occur among your loved ones. Advance planning can aso save money, although we do not advocate pre-paying of funeral expenses as your situation may change over time. The sooner you do early planning, the better.
Membership is open to all persons. There is a one-time only membership fee:
- $25.00 for families
- $15.00 for individuals
- $ 5.00 for persons transferring from another chapter
This registration fee helps cover education, research, and printing and mailing costs of our new member packet of useful information and our semi-annual newsletter which contains trends in funeral planning. To join, call 910-399-6033 and ask for a membership application to be sent to you. It will ask for you to mail your check to
FCA Coastal Carolina
Post Office Box 4262
Wilmington,NC 28406
For an additional $12 we can offer new and existing members a new handbook containing additional information useful for end-of-life planning, FCA news, help available, important forms, and legal matters.
Additional donations are always welcome.
Members receive valuable information to aid in preplanning funeral and memorial service alternatives, price comparisons of local funeral providers and semi-annual newsletters which contain appropriate updates and experiences. We also host an Annual Meeting each May which usually features a speaker on an area of interest to our members.
Funeral Consumers Alliance began in the 1930's as a result of the depression and the increasing cost of funerals due to embalming and more elaborate caskets. Currently there is a movement for simple green burials and home services which are perfectly legal. We inform our members of current trends in end-of-life issues and donations of organ or whole body.
