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Cole Funeral Chapel is a family-owned funeral home committed to caring for your family.   An independent funeral home in Chelsea, Michigan, our mission is to meet your needs whatever they may be. We provide a wide range of services, from sitting down with you to discuss future needs to grief counseling after the death of a loved one.
 
Our funeral home was founded in 1898, and was purchased by Donald Cole in 1977.  His son, Allen, bought the funeral home from his father in 1999, continuing the tradition of service to the Chelsea area.
 
We know that making funeral arrangements can be difficult, so let us help you every step of the way.  We have a professional staff equipped with many resources that can provide assistance 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Please feel free to call anytime, or e-mail us at staff @ ColeFuneralChapel.com

 

 

 

 

 

We offer choices in cremation service, including:

  • direct cremation with no services
  • cremation followed by a memorial service or visitation time
  • a complete viewing and funeral followed by cremation

We want to help your family choose services that fit your needs. We will walk you through your options without pressuring you, and we will help you to compare the costs of different options.  Regardless of your choice, we will treat your loved one with respect, we will help you write and place obituaries, we will obtain death certificates promptly, and help you chose the final resting place for your loved one's ashes.  We will not try to sell you services or merchandise you do not need.

 

Standard Cremation Package

Cremation with Public Viewing & Funeral

Cremation Packages - Price list

 

Read more: Cremation Services

We understand how difficult it is to plan funeral services, so our staff is available to help you in any way that we can.  Please call us and we will walk you through every step of planning, and we will offer choices to  make the services just right for your family.  To help you understand the process, here are some of the steps you can choose to do ahead of time:


Funeral Planning

    ☐ Fill out basic pre-arrangement information sheet.  15-20 minutes, no charge. This provides the basic information we need to write obituaries and fill out the death certificates.  It gives us some information about the type of services you want. Click here to download the Pre-Arrangement form

    ☐ Fill out funeral service information sheet.  10-15 minutes, no charge. This provides information about the funeral / memorial service you would like: who should lead it, type of music, readings, etc.  Click here to download the Funeral Service Information Sheet

    ☐ Itemize funeral goods and services.  30-60 minutes with funeral home staff, usually at the funeral home, no charge. You choose the goods and services you want, and we will create an itemized funeral bill so you can know the anticipated costs. This is an estimate only, but lets you make many of the decisions in advance, and guides us and your family as to your wishes.

    ☐ Pre-pay your funeral invoice.  15-30 minutes with funeral home staff. After itemizing the services you want (see previous choice), you may pay for the funeral in one lump sum, or in payments, and lock in the prices for your funeral bill.  This saves your family from worrying about paying for your funeral.


Memorial Planning

    ☐ Choose your cemetery marker.  30-60 minutes, cost vary greatly. You may choose the type of stone or gravemarker you want, and lay out the exact design for your stone.  You may wish to save the information until after the death, or have the stone cut and delivered.  

    ☐ Plan a memory slideshow.  30-60 minutes, $95. Choose 30-70 photos to be put into a slideshow that can be played at the visitation and/or funeral.  You may put sticky notes on back to indicated an order to the photos if you wish, or to label slides. You may choose to narrate the photos in your voice.   

    ☐ Write a letter to your loved ones.  No cost, time will vary greatly. You may write a letter to your spouse or children to be read and re-read after your death.  It could be read publicly, or just given to those you choose after your death.  We will be happy to file it with your pre-arrangement.  Please put in sealed envelope with the name of the recipient on the outside.

A cemetery marker is not just a way to mark the grave, but it can tell the story of that person's life.  We enjoy helping you design a special cemetery marker to remember your loved ones.   We also recommend families place a stone on their graves before it is needed, so you can plan your design together.  We work hard to create quality monuments for the families we serve, and offer many choices, and easy ways to personalize the marker.  Let us make a design and give you an estimate with no obligation.

Patten Monument web site

Recent Obituaries

Betty Marie Bust

of Chelsea, MI, age 96, died Monday, May 20, 2019 at Silver Maples of Chelsea. She was born June 13, 1922 in Chelsea, Michigan, the daughter of George M. & Freda (Hartman) Seitz.

  Betty was a graduate of the University of Michigan, a member of the AEO Sorority, a volunteer at the Chelsea Methodist Home, where she was known as “the cream puff lady”, and a member of the St. Paul United Church of Christ, where she was a choir member for 60 years. She was an avid sports fan, especially college sports and the Tigers. Baking was her passion, and she gave away Danish pastry Christmas tree coffee cakes.

   On May 10, 1947, she married Thomas Bust in Chelsea and he preceded her in death on July 17, 2010. Together they owned and operated the Chelsea Hardware for close to 30 years.  Survivors include two sons, David C. (Jean) Bust of Chelsea, and Jeffry D. (Mary) Bust of Frankfort, IL;  3 grandchildren, Grayson, Lauren, and Alex Bust; and several nieces and nephews.  She was preceded in death by her parents; brother, Raymond Seitz; and sister, Oleta M. Mayer.

Read more ...

Brenda Williams

of Dexter, MI, age 47, died unexpectedly Sunday, May 19, 2019 in Chelsea, Michigan. She was born April 5, 1972 in Ypsilanti, Michigan, the daughter of Maurice Ray & Helen (Adams) Hall.  Brenda was the manager at Arby’s in Dexter for many years. She loved animals, especially her dog. Brenda loved to spend quality time with her kids and grandkids. She was a wonderful mother. 

She is survived by four children, Briana (Ryan Kuhns) Pullen of Ann Arbor, Justin (Sarah Rhoads) Williams of Ann Arbor, Carleto (Caitlin Kahrl) Collazo of Dexter, Aja Collazo of Dexter; a brother, Phillip (Bethany) Hall of Belleville; two sisters, Lisa (John Tobias) Abbott of Dexter, and her twin, Michelle (Eric Dillion) Hall of Ann Arbor; two grandchildren, Savannah Williams and Kayden Collazo. She was preceded in death by her parents, Maurice and Helen Hall, her sister, Karen Hall, her brother, Beauford Sullivan, and her nephew, Joey Abbott.

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Evelyn G. Posegay

of Chelsea, age 88, died Monday, May 20, 2019 at Legacy Assisted Living. She was born April 29, 1931 in Wayne, Michigan, the daughter of Alfred “Boots” David & Gertrude Evelyn (Meixner) Berger. Evelyn graduated from Wayne Memorial High School in 1949, where she was a member of Troupe No. 670 of the National Thespian Society. She then attended tailoring school. Evelyn enjoyed sewing, quilting, knitting, and crafting. She was active in the 4H Service Club in Belleville, where she met her future husband, John.  She attended the Chelsea Nazarene Church, Faith Lutheran in Saline, and Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Wayne.  She was very active in the Greater Ann Arbor Quilt Guild.  Evelyn made and donated many lap quilts as well as knitting and donating many hats and mittens to Safe House & Faith in Action. Read more ...

Paul Van Allen Forringer

of Ann Arbor, MI, age 84, died Thursday, May 16, 2019 at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Chelsea. He was born April 21, 1935 in Porter Township, Pennsylvania, the son of Russell R. & Margaret A. (Van Allen) Forringer. Paul lived in Clarion, PA and Westport, CT before moving to Ann Arbor, MI.  Paul was a member of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Ann Arbor.  He volunteered for the Alzheimer’s Association.  Paul was an avid gardener.    

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Carol Jean Powell

of Roscommon, MI, age 72, died Wednesday, May 15, 2019 at the University of Michigan Hospital. She was born September 15, 1946 in Highland Park, Michigan, the daughter of Francis Eugene & Phyllis Jean (Trost) Warren.  Carol graduated from Troy High School, and then attended Eastern Michigan University. She worked at Boss Engineering, then GM Proving Grounds, Entech, Man Power, and RDS. Carol and Brian owned and operated the Cinnamon Stick Farm Bed & Breakfast in Clio, MI for over 20 years. She received the “Hospitality Award” for the best establishment in Genesee County five times. She loved hospitality and had guests from all over the world. Carol belonged to quilt groups in Genesee County and Houghton Lake. She was a member of Good Shepherd United Methodist Church of the North. Carol loved people. She liked traveling, gardening, walking and taking hikes.

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