What happens in the preparation room is the perfect intersection of science, artistry, ingenuity, and perseverance. Providing a last peaceful image is priceless to a family in mourning.
I’ve been to a funeral where the deceased was decapitated. If you didn’t know, you never would of known. They did a very good job detaching the head back together. He wore an ascot tie which hid the decapitation and it looked very nice with his suit.
You're on one of my favorite subjects with this one. I death with quite a few cases that involved decapitation and dismemberment! There are special methods utilized to deal with these types of cases. I was a class A restorative so it had to be done very well! It's very demanding but it comes with the trade! Great presentation! Keep up the good work!
I respect the work you do because I could never do it. I am a nurse so, I don't deal with the gruesome obviously fatal injuries (like decapitation) that go to the morgue. It would probably give me PTSD if I did. Keep up the good work, I REALLY respect what you do giving peoples loved ones as good of a final goodbye as possible.
I am a mortician here in Los Angeles I get these cases constantly...thank u for the videos. They are very rare nobody really talks about death here..this country makes it so TABOO still till this day...when I tell people what I do they almost get scared of me🤣🤣🤣
My Brother was a funeral director and he always answered my questions. Unfortunately he passed away after serving at Ground Zero. So glad I found your channel. I now have someone who can answer my questions. Thank you.
@@KaritheMortician he was part of DMORT identifying bodies etc. It changed him forever emotionally. Unfortunately his service there was the reason he developed a glioblastoma and passed away in 2014. He didn’t want a port inserted because he said he always removed them from people and that took away his hope. He finally agreed so it made it easier for blood draws etc. I am sad he is gone but proud of his service during that awful time.
What a difficult job he had! My absolute respect goes out to him! I worked with a Pathologist in Utah, whose Mother and Sister were on One of the planes that was hijacked and hit the towers. I can’t remember if it was the first, or second plane. Anyway, I remember him getting the phone call from his wife, and hurrying out of our office to leave. It was devastating! God bless your brother for his service. I’m so sorry for your loss.
Kari so full of grace and such a class act. Any funeral home would be lucky to have your services. You have such a gentle caring demeanor explaining how the most difficult things a loved one could hear and with such compassion, I admire you for that. And all the new things you teach me
Mom’s cousin was KIA in Korea 1950. His body was recovered in 2005, identified through DNA, and buried in 2012, 62 years later! The Army wraps the bones in an army blanket and places it in the coffin with a uniform on top.
The Military does use the services of a funeral home for the funeral service and transporting the body to the cemetery, as well as the burial. Not sure what they are called, but a military funeral detail go around the country helping families coordinate the details with the funeral home. They act as pall bearers, fold the flag draped over the casket to give to the family, and do a 21 gun salute. Arthur’s parents were long dead and they passed away not knowing for sure what happened to their son. His brother suffered from stage 4 cancer and died several weeks after the funeral. The brothers are buried side by side at his request. If veterans have no relatives, the funeral detail will attend. The military does not give up bringing them home. Just today, the three Barber brothers are being laid to rest in New London Wisconsin. All three served on the USS Oklahoma that was destroyed at Pearl Harbor Dec 7, 1941. They were in a mass grave and identified through DNA. Submit a sample. Your loved one may be in the Repository in Hawaii waiting to be identified and come home.
@@Cindy1956ful Wow, thank you for the information. If family don’t know or submit samples, will you kindly tell me where they are buried or what happens? This is important information & I had no idea this was possible. I’m very impressed. May the Barber brothers rest in peace.
@@Martha-km1of My understanding is that the body is kept in a repository on a military base until it is identified. The company commander kept records of the general areas where the troops were assigned. Through process of elimination, they will narrow it down to a few. DNA is taken from all bodies. In this case, it was 62 years. The parents were long dead. They asked close family members to submit a sample. This would be siblings, in my mom’s case, a cousin.
Hi Kari! I just wanted to say that it takes a special person to do what you do on a daily basis! 💯I have a best friend who is a mortician here where I live and she has done some amazing work on a few of my family members. So a BIG SHOUT OUT TO YOU!😊😊
When my mom passed away my brother transported bodies for a well known mortuary. This was the best connection. When the hospital unplugged her machine the mortuary were already enroute. I was able to view her after the makeup and hair dress. Although I was sad, they made the experience beautiful.
Very nicely explained with sensitivity and care. A family member died in a plane crash: it was explained to his widow and sons that an open casket was out of the question, due to the fact his remains were recovered deep in the ground and placed in a container. He was buried in a closed casket, at the funeral a nice photo of him was placed on it.
I have a question for you and you can answer it on your next Q&A video. Have you ever embalmed or know anybody who embalmed any famous celebrities before? If so, what was it like?
In high school we had someone who got into a bad car accident and was decapitated. At the viewing they had a high collared shirt on him and you couldn’t tell at all. I didn’t even know he was decapitated until after the funeral. Funeral directors/embalmers can do amazing things 👍🏼
I have worked with numerous morticians. I have been touched several times when they were able to do wonders to give the family and other loved ones closure and comfort.
Good informative esp for the viewers who ask the questions and would like to know the answers or for those who would like to make a career out of embalming .
Kari, I just found your channel and I am glad that I did. I subscribed. I have always been fascinated with the funeral business and, I always wanted to become a mortician. I started school for it but, I had to give it up because, I had a family to support and, I had to make other choices. You do an amazing job with your presentations. You are a joy to watch and listen to. I can't wait to watch everything you have posted. Keep Up The Amazing Work.👍
My brother died by suicide. He was found after 3 weeks of heatwave so decomposition was advanced, and his head detached. Mortician did a wonderful job for us. His body was stitched into a padded satin covering and placed in the coffin. We were able to see & feel the outline of his head, arms and hands, as if he was just resting within. It brought great comfort at such a raw time. The lower top of the coffin lid was kept closed. During his funeral, my image of him was intact, as if in a photograph. He was laid to rest with such dignity.
Thank you for sharing your story. My deepest condolences for your loss. Never even thought there could be a mortician doing that for the family (Not in my country at least).
Thanks Kari. This is incredibly interesting and I would have never thought you could work that out with a decapitation..but it makes sense now. My Dad was killed in a double fatal accident a few months ago..not his fault but he was on his motorcycle and it killed him instantly from a snapped neck and then his head was smashed into blacktop(the back of his head)..and the guy driving the van, whom was at fault, got out of his van and saw my father had died and the guy freaked out, had a heart attack, laid down on the ground and passed away as well all before any medical professionals even arrived.. Tragic to say the very least. Anyhow, I've been dealing with very intense grief and for some reason very interested in learning about your business and line of work..what you do and how and why etc etc ever since Dad's passing..and I honestly believe that the more I learn is helping me to grieve as well. To put icing on the tragedy cake, my husband's Father passed away yesterday morning(he was not well and it wasnt as unexpected or shocking as my Dad, yet still incredibly difficult) and he has nobody besides us at all to handle his affairs.. and we live in FL he lived in IL..so we leave in the a.m. to head to IL to handle yet another parents death😢 he is getting cremated and didnt want a viewing or funeral at all and had previously told us that, so not many decisions on that front this time so to speak, which may be a blessing for us since we are all already grieving rt now everyone is raw it seems including my poor kiddos(we live 5 mins from my mom and Dad and they saw my dad every day😞)its been soooo much I'm not gonna lie..but I just wanted to share a bit of my situation and say that I really have learned alot from yours and other's channels about so many things and I appreciate all that y'all do, I really do. Thank you for unknowingly helping me thru raw grief while teaching me along the way! Take care💕
I meant to say this..the reason I shared the detail of my Dad's head injuries was not to be grotesque or anything..I shared that because he looked very good in our viewing of him. It was impressive and made me wonder alot of things. It really meant alot to me. I was so worried about what he would look like and hadnt learned yet what I have learned since then about all this stuff. The funeral home really did an amazing job hiding a multitude of injuries and he just looked like himself no joke. I was very pleased and suprised and grateful. That's probably what led me to this interest in learning and your channel! Thank you
So sorry for your losses. My family has lost quite a few members also. Just a question. The man that hit your father, are they sure it was a heart attack that killed him ? I can imagine being so devastated that it could happen.
Thanks guys. Back the Blue, thats what we were told, but it turns out he was very very sick and dying from being full of cancer so he was very ill and on alot of meds and shouldnt have been driving on top of the fact that he was reported to have previous heart issues as well..and the accident was his fault so he was probably shocked or scared to death..literally..when he saw that his actions killed my father. Just horrible and sad all around! Thanks for the thoughts and condolences and same to you as well. It's never easy.
@Kari the Mortician, I just wanted to say I really enjoy your videos! When I was a little boy I wanted to become a mortician, so thank you for your explanation on alot of things related to preparing a deceased person for burial or cremation 🙂
Embalmers must become masters of illusion which makes this industry so fascinating. I didn't know how to sew a stitch until I worked at a FH. Surgical stitching was yet another skill I was forced to be good at. I can sew buttons on clothing now!! Embalmers use many rudimentary tools as tricks of the trade. I believe plastic surgeons have learned to use trocars for liposuction-something embalmers only used back in the day. Great job!
I don’t know if you read or heard about Downard funeral home in Pocatello Idaho or not. What happened there was horrifying. How could he have a dozen bodies decaying along with dozens of fetuses. WHY? Just mortified and sorry for those families of the deceased. Coroner removed all, and it was shut down for now. Thank you Kari. You’re amazing, knowing there are people like you in this world with such a beautiful heart. And props to all the hospices nurses.
Back when I first started dating in HS, I learned a turtle neck worked wonders in covering stuff up. One drawback was you couldn’t wear the same shirt an entire week.
Thank you for explaining in a compassionate way, I know these situations are a challenge for you but I can tell you are a caring person and the families appreciate that. God bless you and what you do!
Sutering or some kind of medical cement I was thinking...the pole into the skull nope missed that one.Reminds me of when you said about finding all the body parts,on a much smaller scale, I fell of my bike as a child,scraped skin off my leg...went looking for it but no couldn't find it! ... wanted to slap it back on so it would be ok, 😀
I had a good friend end his life tragically, neck issues, open casket, they did a real good job, but if you looked closely, you could tell that's where his injury was.
I am in several grief groups for parents who have lost a child. I see so many parents post that they were denied seeing their child because their child's body was in terrible condition. Some even say they weren't given another option other than to cremate their child. This breaks my heart. Does the funeral home have the authority to keep someone from seeing their loved one? I get making a suggestion but the final decision should be the *customer's*, not the funeral home's. Is it legal for the funeral home to deny access? Also what are your thoughts about this from an ethical standpoint? Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
Good morning & thanks for the early morning video! If a funeral home doesn’t have a restorative professional can one be hired from outside to do the necessary work? Have you ever went somewhere else to do it? Have a wonderful weekend! 👍🏼😎😷 Stay Safe!
That was so interesting. Several kids were killed in an accident when I was in high school. One was decapitated. I didn’t go to the viewing but heard they sewed the head back on. It was very traumatic. I came from a small high school less than 100 kids per grade. Wow the anniversary is coming up November 1. (1974). Crazy the things you carry in your memories.
I wound up living on the same street in 1963 that back in 1949, while visiting with my parents their friends Cecil and Lucille McLellan in a house just four east of me and still live here. My father was a Buick dealer and I remember Lucille showing me Cecil's almost new '48 Buick Roadmaster sedanette with Dynaflow. I recognized all the names on the car. In July, '49, Cecil (1900-1949) was up in Dallas when he drove the Buick under an 18 wheeler, decapitating both the car and Cecil. It was my first experience as a five year old of hearing of someone who died. My parents tried to explain it to me, but of course they didn't mention the decapitation, I learned of it as a young adult and also that Cecil had been drunk. Lucille bought a new Buick from my father and she and Enid Wilie came out to our house to take me on a demonstration ride. The ride was to the cemetery and I remember Lucille talking to Enid about how she was upset because they placed Cecil on his side in the coffin because he had a birthmark on one side of his face. I didn't say anything, but it scared me and I couldn't stop thinking of Cecil down under ground all those years on his side. Would placing him on his side have had something to do with the decapitation?
Hi hun, strange question I know but what are bodies like that have fallen from high rise buildings, my nephew ended his life this way and as it was a closed coffin I always wondered why we were never able to view him much love Arlene from Scotland xoxoxo
Please accept my condolences on your nephew's death. Idk how many more preventable deaths will happen before quality, affordable mental health care is available to everyone. And more importantly, we address the stigma. We all know that asking for help is often incompatible with employment.
So sorry for your loss. I can’t imagine any kind of restoration would be able to make it an open casket. I know of a story that a child was beaten and murdered and the mother had the casket open to make a statement about racism. It was a horrifying sight. But she stood strong.
My grandmother was decapitated in a horrific accident in the 80's and was too young to know the details. I have always wondered about if they wanted a viewing how it worked. Thanks for answering
Hey Kari I have a question please ma’am. What is done in the case of a person who has had ALS for 6 years and their body has already become tight because they were not able to move it for 5 years. At the visitation, they felt like a tin man.... no movement at all anywhere... I want to thank you for all you do because if it had been a year ago before I found your channel...I would never have been able to touch anyone in a casket. Now it’s nothing. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER‼️ Thank you for everything and I hope you and your children are doing well‼️
God bless you for all you do, takes a special person. I used to think how could you do this work. However I think I know, it makes you love your family and friends and celebrate life.
I am always amazed at what a mortician can do with the deceased. I have have been to a viewing where it has been suicide by gunshot and you could not tell. Keep up the good work stay safe.
My BIL died that way and it did not look like him at all. It was a stranger in that box. My cousin also shot himself. He looked like himself, but if you looked closely you could see how his head had to be rearranged. So much tragedy in my family and then my 21 yr old passed soon after.
Kari, thank you for your thoughtful, caring treatment of difficult situations… What is done when a person has been unrecognizably burned, died & was inside a car that caught fire…a mortician friend shared some details with me after my husbands fatal car accident in 2002… This is a very hard subject to broach, but
My Uncle was robbed and killed by a sawed off shotgun. He was a Cashier at a gas station. I was little and I thought he was sleeping. I couldn’t see the injury to his head. The funeral home staff did so well.
They had to do an autopsy on my mom cuz she passed in her sleep unexpectedly I'm glad I found you after the fact idk if I'll be able to handle it the way you explain things
I have a question maybe it’s something you’ve covered in previous videos. So if it is can you link the video for me. But my question is: what do you do with severely burned people? And what if the family wants a viewing?
Some members of my X-laws Family were decapitated in a freak Car vs Tractor Trailer accident on the Interstate back in the 80s. The Old Lady was upset at the Funeral. "You have him in a blue pinstripe suit and I wanted him in a gray suit." She complained. The well seasoned Mortician retorts.." We'll take care of that Ma'am!! and then he yells towards the Prep Room, "Tucker, switch the heads on 2 and 4!! "
I've been curious since that horrific collapse in surfside, in situations like that what kind of condition would the remains be in and how would it be handled?
My son was a first responder who worked the collapse in Florida (he was there for 16 days). It was a heartbreaking job. Kari is right about the condition of the victims. Thankfully, they were all found and returned to their families.
My friend died of what the family called "a broken neck" after a motorcycle accident. He was dressed in a turtle neck and jeans for his viewing. I always wondered if it was because of what his neck looked like, or just because he was too young for a suit and tie (he was 17)
My father in law had cancer, he passed away July 18th and his wife did just a viewing the 21st, he was getting cremated, he looked gery or Luke he had dust on him, I wanted to ask her is she had him embalmed but didn't want to, thought you lol, his color when he passed was normal
My Uncle had this too, it looked like newspaper print. Looking back now I think it was discolouration and make up. Sorry to hear about your father in law x
My buddy Gary's mom was viewed but her skin had an odd color. Sort of a light bluish purple. She looked like she had a light coat of powder or talc on her. The family is LDS. They wanted very minimal preparation. I had never seen that. It was odd.
One of my best friends in high school was killed in a car accident the summer before our senior year. She was severed at the waist and the funeral home must have jostled her when they took her upstairs because none of us would have known but the pillow at the waist was displaced and you could see her body separated. Is there no way they could’ve tried to make this less likely to occur by trying to “reconnect” her per say?
@@KaritheMortician the pillow at her waist was displaced and there was a good couple of inches between her lower half and her torso that was visible. Also, I asked a classmate who was working an internship with a dr who received the body (in the morgue) and she confirmed.
A friend of mine who is a mortician, the transmission went out on his hearse! He had me to to his house and get the suburban that he uses to use to go get a person once they passed away. Has that happened to you ever?
Thank you Kari for this informative video. When I was working there weren't many cases we had that were not viewable. I've found that using embalming skills and restorative arts, most cases can be viewable. Do you agree?
Reminds me of the scene of Nicole Brown Simpson in her casket wearing the turtle neck. With her neck injury totally made sense. I know you did an episode of Travis Alexander who also had a horrific neck injury, since his body wasn't found until days later, could his family have had an open casket or was it too late at that point due to decomposition?
If someone’s legs or legs and arms were not found initially… then we’re found after buried… can they be buried in a 2nd casket in a different location? And could the family decline to receive the remaining remains from the ME office. And what happens then the state just cremated it and disposed like if someone had to have an amputation?
@@KaritheMortician oh whoa. The things ya don’t know if ya don’t know. A friend of mine got a little urn with ash from ground zero more symbolic for those not found
If I went to a viewing where a person had been decapitated, or nearly decapitated, and I had no idea; I don't think I'd wanna know. It would be too upsetting for me, to know that's how the deceased lost his/her life 😔
Can a funeral director/embalmer refuse to prepare a decapitated body for viewing? Or are there situations where you wouldn't recommend a family view the body?
I went to a funeral of a decapitated young man ...and they had placed almost a veil like piece of material that hung and sorta was from the chest up....
KARI. YOU NEED TO LOOK UP THE LATEST STORY OUT OF AUSTIN TEXAS. APPARENTLY THE CITY NEVER KNEW THAT EMBALMERS WERE LETTING BLOOD FROM CORPSES GO DOWN THE DRAIN. WEIRD
I also wanted to add that many of our bodies that are decapitations are usually decomposed bodies (murder victims) and are morgue cases so they have no family claiming them...or if they do they want direct cremation in most cases...I had a decent about 6 months ago head chopped off with a machete...coroners gave him to us and he was drenched in about blood in the body bag ...u couldn't even tell he was human anymore his face was hardly identifiable...here in L.A. these cases are extremely common but they wont go on the news because theres too many and they dont wana scare the "wealthy" out of gentrifying the shit out of my city
@@KaritheMortician ya it’s pretty crazy here unfortunately so many sick and mentally disturbed and it just this world is so evil they would never think about putting it out there. I was talking to my oldest daughter not long ago and I was telling her that isn’t it strange how back in the 80s and 90s serial killers were always revealed and now you never hear anything about serial killers when they do still exist? Like literally around the beginning of the 2000s it became almost a nonexistent topic. Usually the cases here in LA when it comes to things like this involve violence against women or cartel related because we are in the epicenter of the drugs and weapons trades. Here in Los Angeles there’s hundreds of funeral homes I only work in one and I am only one mortician and just myself alone on average on a busy day I get 10 or 11 bodies that I have to fix up that’s not including my coworkers who are also morticians imagine how many a day we get in Los Angeles? Thank you again for your videos I’m told I should also make a channel but maybe I will think about it in the near future. The only thing is I’m the type of person I don’t have a filter and To be honest I feel like RU-vid would probably delete my channel pretty fast
What about artificial body parts? If someone passes do they remove hips, knees or breasts? Also if someone passes and has and artificial hand or arm, are they used in the viewing?
If too severe we may never bring them into the building they would remain in the garage or go straight from the medical examiner to the burial or crematory
@@KaritheMortician so what do you do? Is that covered in a video already? I saw an Australian mortician talk about it. Is that unique to country customs?
If you have to float a hand or finger in embalming fluid, how long do you do it and does it get the prune look like being in the bath too long? This was a most interesting video! Thank you! 💚
