My best friend's daughter was transferred from another facility (see my review of Serenity) after dying in a sudden and tragic manner. The shock and the sadness of the situation is unfathomable to most people. It's difficult to describe the grief that comes from losing a child. It's even more difficult to put into words the sudden void that manifests from the trauma of losing them to a brutal incident. There's no preparation. There's no doctor to help you understand what's happening. There's just a sudden emptiness where they once were. And then you're left to plan a funeral for a teenager, to pack up her trinkets and favorite lip gloss, to box up her dreams and future into storage for moments of strange comfort. I don't think anyone really understands how to research these things. It's an emotionally charged and exhausting experience. People want to know that their loved one will be treated with dignity and respect. There are traditions and cultural issues to consider. There are details and notifications and sensitivity to the situation is tantamount. The ability to anticipate the needs and challenges of the situation is a unique skill that was incredibly appreciated. There's a plethora of details that go into planning a funeral service regardless of religion or culture. There are notifications to be made and accounts to be closed, property to be probated. Difficult decisions need to be made (sometimes on a deadline). Having a funeral director who will guide you through the process with a sensitivity to your grief and an understanding of your cultural identity is an incredible relief. They were called from the office of the previous facility. They dispatched a vehicle to retrieve my best friend's daughter within seconds. They arranged an immediate viewing upon her arrival for as many family members as necessary. They asked a long list of questions with incredible sensitivity and involved the entire family in the process. My best friend was able to focus on the issues that mattered most to her and allow the minutiae to be handled by her support system. This is the kind of attention to detail that makes the process less stressful. *This* is premium service. KC did some actual research about our loved one. She looked into her social media and got to know just a few things about her like her favorite colors and what sort of music she liked, who her friends were, the names of her siblings. She took the time to get to know her. She was genuinely curious about who she was. She helped make an overwhelming, horrific experience less so. *This* is compassion. The deep respect wasn't limited to the grieving parents. Every member of the family was treated with the same warmth and kindness. Children were addressed with just as much respect as elders. Traditions and customs were considered along with each individual person's grief. *This* is respect. Our celebration was beautiful. Special thanks to KC. Everyone was kind and supportive. But, KC was available for us as questions arose. She addressed issues as they came up immediately. We felt seen and we felt free to grieve without the constant pressure to "choose a package". The business was handled but it was handled with grace. read more

David was unprofessional, and just down right rude. Avoid this place at all costs! They revealed my family's personal information (violating our requested privacy). Everything was an absolute nightmare. VERY unprofessional. I will not ever do business with Forest Lawn Funeral Home again. read more

When my mother met with Forest Lawn she told me it was reminiscent of dealing with a used car dealership. At least used car dealerships have staff on the weekends. 17 weeks ago we were told my fathers internment engraving would be installed imminently. Today I went to visit him for his impending birthday and found this was not the case. I have called multiple times and have been told by their answering service someone is in the office being paged. After a half hour of waiting in the cold and rain I have left. While it took us time to figure out what to say on my fathers grave after an unexpected loss I often lost sleep over it being blank, after we were finally able to decide on what we wanted I found a sense of piece knowing he finally, truly had been put to rest. 17 weeks of my father's grave being unmarked is disrespectful and unacceptable. If you want your loved ones to have an unmarked grave for an unknown length of time then I would absolutely recommend Forest Lawn, otherwise I would look elsewhere. read more

About 5 years ago my family and I used Forest Lawn for a loved one. We had a very positive experience. However, after just using them again I am very disappointed in the service. The funeral director, Marcelle Baldwin, was very rude and lacked compassion. When we told her that we would be making our own slideshow for the service she explained that they would be able to play it with no problems on the day of the service. The day of the service came and when we asked for help setting up the slideshow she exclaimed that it was not possible and offered little to no help. There was no problem solving. Additionally, she was aggressive in the way she talked. Referring to our loved one as "the casket" showed how much she did not care. For her, it was just a job and had no compassion for her clients. read more

Great luncheon service was held here for my mother in law and it was amazing! KC did a great job working with me on the video issues I was experiencing. The food was awesome and the flower arrangements were so elegant, perfectly reflected her style.. and the mausoleum was indescribable.. so peaceful and serene.. filled with an amazing presence of love and tranquility. Thank you Forest Lawn and KC. You made a hard day so much easier.. read more

This is absolutely the WORST business I have ever had to deal with. They are separated into various departments and no department talks to any other department. The simple process of cremating a loved one and interring him is like a trip thru hell with this place. I urge you NOT to deal with these people. I also want to warn you about their upselling tactics. They try to wear you down with delays and questions and lots of other BS until you say "enough!!!!!!!!!!!" Just do it!!!!!!!!!!!!! You have lots of choices, use one!!!!!!!!!! read more

Adding insult to injury these lowlifes refused to confirm my mother's death to an insurance company.

One of the most compassionate and caring Funeral homes and cemeteries you'll work with when you experience the loss of a loved one. They serve with heart and love. The changes that have been made in the last year has made the Cemetery greener and the Mausoleum pristine. Well done read more

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I feel so grateful to David Vrtis and the Forest Lawn Funeral Home for providing quality service and above-and-beyond customer care. The attention to detail, kindness, compassion, and professionalism surpassed all expectations. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this business to others. It was a pleasure to work with David throughout a sad time of bereavement. read more

I have been hunting the burial site of a relative for some time. Recently, I ran across information that put his final resting place in Seattle, at this cemetery. However, no listing or photographs could be found. I contacted the office here first to verify that my ancestor was indeed there. Within minutes I received a polite and informative email. I replied, asking if it might be possible to get a photograph of the site - I live in Texas. I was not very confident that the funeral home would do this, but within a half-hour they had replied with a very nice and well-composed picture. I wish to thank Mr. Vy Ho for his wonderful service in this matter. read more

At first I was hesitant to take my aunt here due to the bad reviews, but the dead doesn't wait for anyone. I called at 2AM looking for a place to send my aunt. I called 3 different places and this was the only place that was friendly and gave me precise answers and costs. Other places said they would call back the next day. Not sure how these other places think I would just leave a dead family member and wait for their call. Andrew was the director. He was professional, understanding, patient, and friendly. He was open to the different customs that our family has. Ask for Andrew. He will take care of you. read more

I don't know where to start. I got lucky when I chose this place. I can't put to words how loving and sympathetic this place is. If it wasn't for KC I would have been lost. She went out of her way to take care of every little detail. Trust her she will take care of you. read more

The staff was great and treated my family with the utmost care. They were on top of all my requests when asked and I did not have to second guess them in any part of funeral planning process. I will recommend this business to other families in the future. Thanks Forest Lawn! read more

Death doesn't take days off and neither should your facility. Even if that means you rotate shifts. I couldn't believe how rude and condescending Leroy was to us in our time of need. We live across the state and needed to get back to our family. Nobody was available Saturday (a day they are open) to assist us. Sunday morning we had a simple request which was to drop off clothing for our loved one to be buried in and give some information that they requested. Yes this was on a Sunday and yes we understand people need days off. I'm not sure why they cannot provide a drop off spot at the least. As he continued to explain how this wasn't his problem and there was nothing he could do, Leroy says 'You get days off don't you, well today is my day off.' When we asked if Andrew was available he said he is off as well. He went on to tell us that his day off is more important. He made us feel that the death of our family member and our simple request was a huge burden. If our family member hadn't paid in to this place for her arrangement many years ago, we would never have used this place. Leroy did agree to meet us finally and thanked us for ruining his day. You are welcome Leroy. Thank you for showing us how heartless you are. By the way, your website and Yelp say you are open on Sunday so you should probably fix that. read more

I dealt with Forest Lawn and Funeral Home when my great aunt went to be with Jesus. They were so kind and compassionate. Every member of the staff I encountered from the secretary to manager were all so professional. Definitely deserved more than 5 stars! read more

KC was extremely friendly, helpful, knowledgeable and very compassionate!!! She made me feel comfortable while discussing a sensitive event. Many of my family are at Forrest Lawn. So to add my Aunt felt like home!! Well done KC read more

Our mother passed away on September 9, 2020. We subsequently met and went over our mother's "pre-paid" plan from many years prior. Our mother was laid to rest on September 21.  At that time we were extremely grateful and appreciative for all that was done to accommodate our family due to the unexpected weather situation on the day of the service. It was clear when I followed up in early Feb that her headstone was not ordered until we raised the question as to why there still was no marker. On March 19th we called again to find out the status only to find out that the marker again had not yet been ordered.   Considering that everything was prepaid, those details should have been discussed at the time of planning the funeral or VERY soon after, not waiting until we raised this issue in March, six months later.  When I followed up in early May it was indicated that the delay was again due to COVID and that we would not have the marker in time for Mother's day.     We followed up again on June 2nd, with a respond received on June 3rd. Imagine our shock with their response requesting clarification of the size of the headstone. Typo or not, if that is what our Mom's contract says, and that is what she had paid for, then that is what should have been ordered submitted. We CANNOT believe the lack of attention given to our family in completing the burial process. If there were any questions related to the order for the marker, those should have been asked early on and we would have answered promptly. It would have been nice to have the marker in place for Mother's Day, but to not have it there for her birthday (9 months later!)........is unacceptable and devastating to us.    On June 10 I requested proof of the actual order submitted AND a response from the Bronze marker company showing their receipt of the order and the estimated completion date.  We did receive an immediate phone call noting they would get back to us within the week. It's now been 3 weeks. We are utterly devastated. read more

I recently stopped by this establishment to purchase some arrangements for family. The staff was very courteous and attentive to our needs. The funeral home was lovely and the cemetery was beautiful. I would recommend this establishment for all your funeral needs. read more

My father recently passed away, unexpectedly. When he passed, we had no idea where to begin with handling all the necessary details. Forest Lawn was the first place I called, and their amount of support and concern could not have been any better. They handled all the important details, so we could grieve, and be with family. I would definitely recommend them to any family having to deal with this type of unfortunate event. read more

I do not recommend this business to anyone unless you do not mind not getting your phone calls returned and having no peace of mind. This funeral home is all about making sales. My current advisor, Gabe, admitted that to me when I voiced how frustrated I was when Heather, the first advisor that I was assigned to, did not submit my order for my loved one's marker that I had paid outright in August 2014. Gabe said "they have a quota to meet or they are out." I paid for the marker right away because I wanted it finished and placed prior to the birthday and one year anniversary of my loved one's death, which was in June. I guess I should have followed up sooner with her because she rarely returned my phone calls in a timely manner. When the final proofs came in October 2014 I had approved it and Heather told me the order would be placed right away. It was supposed to be sent to the company the funeral home contracts with in October 2014 and I was told it could take 5 - 6 months before the marker would be ready. I called in late January 2015 to follow up just in case the marker would be finished early. I left several messages for Heather with no response so I called the main office's phone number. Well it so happened that Heather left the company in October and the proofs were never submitted and not followed up on by one of their other advisors. You would think that someone would take over her clients cases, but not the case. So if I hadn't called then not a thing would not have been done. I was assigned to Melanie next and she apologized and said "they do not have a very good system for tracking all their clients." So I had to reapprove the proofs to submit again and I asked them to rush it for me since nobody followed up. Melanie told me she would give me a call in a week to let me know how the plans were going. I didn't hear back after 8 days so I called and found out that Melanie left the company as well. So naturally I panicked and was furious that no one called to advise me about her leaving and asked for the manager but was told that he was out of the office. My new advisor, Gabe let me know that the order had been placed that day I reapproved the proofs and that they placed a rush for me. I asked if they can at least have the vase placed that I had purchased as well since they told me it would only take two weeks. He said he could do that and would give me a call once they get it. Two and a half weeks went by and no call from Gabe. So I called and spoke to the receptionist to ask if they received the vase and it did arrive and I was told that it would be in place that week. It was placed about two weeks later. I live a few minutes of a drive from here so I come here often to visit after work and the weekends. So I call my advisor, Gabe, to follow up on the marker in April and no response to my voicemail. I called again the following day and left a voicemail for Gabe and no response. Since I was not getting a response to my messages I personally went to the funeral home on a Saturday morning so I could speak to the manager and Gabe shows up. No apology for not returning my phone calls. His response was they are still working on it and a rush was placed on it. It is now 3 months later. So now he has the nerve to ask if my funeral services had been planned with them. Are you serious? After all the frustration I've been put through you are asking me this? Hell no, not here. It was a good thing I had made arrangements with a different funeral home to do the services for my loved one. Well the marker didn't arrive on time for my loved one's birthday and barely made it for his first year anniversary. I was so upset that they didn't have the marker ordered when I first approved the order in October 2014. I went everyday to visit and I had no vase for the flowers and had to look at a small plastic sign for nearly a year. I needed closure and having the marker and vase in place by March 2015 like it should have would have given me some peace and healing a lot sooner. read more