If I could give zero stars, I would…read more DO NOT bring your loved ones here, they couldn't be more uncaring. In fact, they do everything in their power to make your grieving process exponentially harder. My mother died in 2023 and I, being the only local child, had to handle the arrangements. Having never done this before, my uncle prepared a list of mortuaries for me to call. Lacking the faculties to spend the time to really vet a place - as my mom had JUST DIED - I called the first one on the list - Crippen Mortuary. Worst mistake I could've made. I don't see Clare on their list of staff anymore, which is good, because she was an absolute nightmare. First, my uncle's house doesn't have the best reception, so my call wasn't coming through very well. Clare said, "I can't hear you, you'll have to call back" and hung up. Should've left it there, but I wasn't thinking clearly so I went outside and called again. This time, she was friendly enough, but it wouldn't last. The coroner decided to do an investigation, since the cause of death was unclear, and seeing as LA county only has 1 coroner, they can get kinda backed up. Long story short, we waited about a month until they could do an autopsy, and my mother's body was transported back and forth a couple of times due to miscommunications between Crippen and the coroner. Ultimately, they began to pressure us to cremate, WHILE THE INVESTIGATION WAS STILL ONGOING. Ultimately, we decided to take our mother's death care elsewhere, as they were not sympathetic to our situation in the slightest. Clare even THREATENED TO HOLD MY MOM'S BODY HOSTAGE until we paid them - which is SUPER illegal. Long story short, it seems Clare is no longer there, but honestly, I got a similar vibe from the owner Robert when we spoke with him. Leave your loved one's death care to someone else, these guys have no sympathy for grieving families, which is a bit surprising considering their area of business.

The staff were heartless and clueless with me and my family. My ex husband and I lost our son and…read morethey were recommended because they are the only funeral home that I know of in the town I grew up in. We lost our son in a horrific accident and were in shock, but it didn't phase Crippen staff. They were insensitive, they didn't explain the ID process prior to cremation. Because of their lack of communication I was led to believe that he would be ID'd by just the tag he had entered their facility with. After hearing horror stories of mixing of remains and what not from other facilities I panicked. They ended up causing a delay in the cremation from the originally scheduled day. They took it upon themselves to cancel the cremation and they kept insisting that I was asking to watch the cremation being performed where I would need to pay $1000 to be present. I wrote a clear email that this was not what I was asking, that I did not authorize a delay in the process and that I simply wanted to make sure that I pick my babies remains up and not some mix up. This delay was so stressful because I had already mourned the initial date of cremation and having to relive that was heartbreaking. We had family with us the whole time so that we didn't miss anything knowing that our minds were going to be all over the place, but even with having reinforcements Crippen still managed to give us a horrible experience. The cost of cancellation ended up costing $1000. It seems like they just wanted to extra $1000. Also, we had initially asked for a viewing which now I guess only covered up to 3 people, we requested that service so that someone from the family could physically confirm it was him since he had been identified by the morgue by a photo I sent of what he was wearing last. The day of the "viewing" which we hadn't intended for the entire family to show up, but there were more people than we planned. I understood that we overlooked this detail, but the rude owner decided to bring it to my sons dads attention in a very confrontational way when he could have told someone else in the family when it was clear that the family member was handling the finances since we were too distraught. They also insisted that the delay in receiving the death certificate was because a cause of death hadn't been determined when I had a physical link from the health department stating his cause of death that was easily verifiable. At some point the lady scolded my son's dad claiming he had come in the night (which was just at their closing time around 5 or 6), but my son's dad was too exhausted to argue with her. On top of this being the worse single thing that can happen to any parent, Crippen found a way to make it worse. I'm sure I'm missing some details of how awful they were, but this is the gist.

One of my earliest memories (maybe just a glimpse of a memory) was when my grandpa was buried here…read morein 1982. I remember the hole in the ground and the coffin but not much else. Since then I have been back to visit many times, and more of my relatives (including my grandma) were buried here. My dad passed away less than three months ago so this was the only place we really considered. After some confusion with some pre-sales people (who seem to operate independently of this office), we've been really happy with our experience with Forest Lawn, from our initial multi-hour intake meeting with Maricar. She was professional, comforting (we came in a few short days after it happened), and very clear in her communication. She showed us a lot of options for various things (urns, cards, flowers, etc.), didn't pressure us to make any decisions we weren't ready for, and made sure we had water and snacks. We ended up doing separate days for cremation and a memorial service. Throughout the time I would send her long emails with lots of questions, and she (or someone from her team) would respond to me promptly. The rest of the staff were also excellent. I received multiple updates as my dad was being transferred from the hospital to Forest Lawn. On the day of the cremation my son noticed that a basket of snacks had disappeared between when we arrived and when he left; when he asked about them they brought them back out for him (maybe grieving burns lots of calories). We had multiple rounds of back-and-forth on things like the urn inscription as well as the printout for the memorial service (including some Chinese characters). Everything was handled exceptionally well. For cremation viewing there are a couple of options - a smaller room right near the cremation furnace and a larger area; we opted for the smaller one. We had about 20 minutes with my mom, wife and kids, and a few family friends. We all said our goodbyes and placed a few things into the coffin - calligraphy from my mom and a bookmark that was a party favor for their 50th wedding anniversary, an origami fighter jet from my son, origami stegosauruses from my daughter and me (my dad got me two on his travels when I was a kid), and an origami crane from my wife. For the service were were in the Little Church of the Flowers. It seats up to 100 but feels cozier since 16 of the seats are in a small area off to the side. Two people from Forest Lawn were present throughout the service, helping with guiding people, getting a light to light up sheet music for a piano duet by my sister and brother-in-law, helping other relatives set up the parting gift/snack station (my mom insisted we couldn't send people away hungry and empty-handed). No photos of the whole church but there's a video walkthrough on the website. Random details: Memorial service slideshow can have up to 80 photos (you have to pay extra for more); later they sent printed copies of all the photos. We got the portrait ($350) and were very happy with it (it is now my dad's study). We also paid for the livestream since we were short on space and had some people who were not able to travel. It has several different camera angles and the audio quality is good, and I'm happy that we have a video. We tried to get people to not send flowers but a few did anyways and they looked nice next to the urn. Very relieved to have the service behind us. It's been a very difficult few months, but we were always in good hands at Forest Lawn. Thanks again to Maricar and the whole team here. The service truly felt like a celebration of my dad's life. Would definitely recommend highly.

Recently had a cremation service and celebration of life service at this venue for my dearly…read morebeloved grandfather. For guests and immediate family members, you can pull up to the information station at the entrance and the staff there will advise you where to park or where you need to go. I want to thank Forest Lawn for their kindness and empathy as we said our final words to my grandfather before he was to be cremated. They gave us an adequate amount of time and offered condolences. The next day, for his celebration of life, we were able to host and hold a day of respect, prayers, and love thanks to this venue. The interior was beautiful and the flower package my mom and her siblings got for their dad was gorgeous to look at. Special shoutout to Diana and Sonia for their communication and information as they helped ease concerns in the whole planning process. The staff during set-up time was also very friendly and assisted in anything we needed. I want to thank Forest Lawn deeply from the bottom of my heart for my family.

True meaning of professionalism! In these hard days, Pierre…read moreand Vahik was there for the entire family every day, their on point interactions and recommendations made our service such a unique and smooth experience Thank you for everything

My family and I are so happy to have picked this professional, caring, trustworthy funeral service…read morefor my grandpas unexpected death in December. We visited him the day my grandpa passed (which was near holiday season) and he set everything up within 1 hour. We did not have to worry about anything during this emotional and stressful time in our lives. Vahik (the owner) is a very nice and caring man himself and we will refer this service to whoever might need it.

Alpha Society was terrific. They handled everything with dignity, respect and empathy. No matter…read morehow many times I called with questions. I cannot recommend them enough. They made the process seamlessly.

The Alpha Society was so wonderful to work with. My main contact was Geovanny, and he was so kind,…read morerespectful, helpful and efficient. He coordinated everything from cremation services to death certificates, kept me apprised every step of the way, and was so easy to work with during a very difficult time. I would highly recommend The Alpha Society to anyone going through the death of a loved one.

AMAZING experience during one of the most difficult times of my life. Shari, the owner of Natural…read moreGrace, was incredibly compassionate, helpful and respectful through the entire process. I was comforted mentally and emotionally from the moment I contacted Shari regarding my mother's cremation. They patiently were on hand to respectfully transport my mother from her apartment and were on hand to help with all the final arrangements. Shari was even gracious enough to deliver my mother's ashes to me in person in a beautiful wooden urn in time for us to place her into her niche at the cemetery. No one wants to think about the time when we have to figure out what to do when a loved one passes. But in one of your most difficult and challenging moments, Shari and her accommodating and helpful team were itruly heaven sent! Thank you so much Shari, Tawny and Gabe for everything. You are so incredibly appreciated.

I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for the tender care and compassion NATURAL GRACE showed my…read moremom and our family during such a difficult time. A special thank you to Ron and Yvette for their gentle presence when they came to our private home -- their kindness and willingness to share their own story of loss brought comfort and connection when it was most needed. I am also deeply grateful to Shari, who went above and beyond by keeping our family updated throughout the process. Her thoughtful communication and the photos she provided for verification gave us reassurance and peace of mind during an emotional time. The Level of Care, Integrity, and Attention to Detail from your entire team at NATURAL GRACE reflects a standard of service that is truly Exceptional and Increasingly Rare. You not only handled everything with professionalism, but with genuine heart -- something that cannot be taught or measured. Please know how much NATURAL GRACE's dedication meant to us and how grateful we are for the way you honored my mom with such respect and grace.

Very prompt response and super knowledgeable and kind. Very friendly and helpful which helps in…read morethis type of situation.

The family cannot express enough gratitude and appreciation for the cremation services by Cal…read moreDirect, handles every step of the way by Josh Gonzalez. My husband's daughter died very suddenly & tragically last month. Josh's enormous help, compassion and attention to detail is what got us through this ordeal. He is on top of everything, an excellent communicator and true care and concern cannot be expressed adequately. He is quick to respond ALWAYS, answers all calls & texts quickly and accommodated some last minute requests in the best possible way. I've personally not arranged a cremation before, and he walked me through every step of the way, from interacting with the coroner, all the way to obtaining the death certificate. Josh, from the Martinez family, thank for your superb work and we wish many blessings upon you and your family.

They were very good. Reasonable. Good communication…read more I received copies of the death certificates and ashes in a timely manner. Would recommend.

I needed direct cremation when my dad passed away recently because he wanted to be laid to rest in…read moreanother state. It was really easy to make arrangements with them. I initially talked to Lawrence, who was super easy to work with. Later on I had correspondence with Argyle who kept me updated with what was going on. They did not take very long to get everything done. It was about a month from my dad's death to receiving his ashes and the death certificate. They worked with hospice to handle his paperwork filing and there were no issues. The people who came to pick my dad up were very professional and respectful as well. It's hard to see a loved one leave their home for the final time but they were polite and patient. The cost is very fair especially for the area. I would highly recommend especially if you're cost conscious.

Helpful, responsive, timely at a time of crisis and need the cost was reasonable, too.read more

The family cannot express enough gratitude and appreciation for the cremation services by Cal…read moreDirect, handles every step of the way by Josh Gonzalez. My husband's daughter died very suddenly & tragically last month. Josh's enormous help, compassion and attention to detail is what got us through this ordeal. He is on top of everything, an excellent communicator and true care and concern cannot be expressed adequately. He is quick to respond ALWAYS, answers all calls & texts quickly and accommodated some last minute requests in the best possible way. I've personally not arranged a cremation before, and he walked me through every step of the way, from interacting with the coroner, all the way to obtaining the death certificate. Josh, from the Martinez family, thank for your superb work and we wish many blessings upon you and your family.