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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

 

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

Kay Marie Gleason

of Chelsea, Michigan, formerly of Shelby Township, age 77, died Friday, August 9, 2019 at the Chelsea Retirement Community. She was born May 3, 1942 in Ishpeming, Michigan, the daughter of Ero & Ellen (Strom) Luostari.
   Kay graduated from Ishpeming High School, and then earned her Bachelor's degree from Oakland University.  She was primarily a homemaker who enjoyed reading and spending time with her grandchildren.  She was active in Flight 255 Memorial Activities after her husband's death.

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Orville M. Harris

of Chelsea, Michigan,  age 86, died Wednesday, September 4, 2019 at his home in Chelsea. He was born September 9, 1932, the son of Delbert and Sudie (Huff) Harris.   Orville graduated from Loyall High School. He served in the U.S. Army in the Pacific Far East during the Korea era. He worked at Associated Builders, then Central Fiber and Blaess Elevators. Orville retired from Chelsea Milling. He and Joyce enjoyed square dancing. He was a former Mason and a former member of the Church of Christ.

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Norman Charles Olmsted

2/20/1925 - 8/31/2019, Jackson, Michigan - Chelsea, Michigan

Norman died as he lived - with dignity and grace.  Driven by “a fierce commitment to education” and his exceptional curiosity about the world around him, Norman experienced a full life.  He was a lifelong learner and a constant reader, which made him an exceptional educator throughout his life.  Norman had a long career that included the positions of Superintendent of Southfield Public Schools, Coldwater Public Schools, and Iosco County Intermediate Schools.  He was the first Dean of General Studies at Washtenaw Community College and was a primary influence on the development of the broad curriculum offered and the selection of the talented faculty.  He also served as Deputy Superintendent for Ann Arbor Public Schools.

After his retirement from public education, Norman served as Napoleon Township Supervisor.  He could talk with anyone and spent many happy hours in conversation at Vic’s Market in Napoleon.  When he and his wife Nancy moved to North Carolina, Norm became a substitute teacher for Hendersonville Public Schools.

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Tracy Lynn Schlaff

of Dexter, MI, age 46, passed away unexpectedly due to natural causes with her family by her side on Tuesday, August 27, 2019 at the University of Michigan Hospital. She was born September 19, 1972 in Dexter, Michigan, the daughter of Gorden F. Mosher and Rhonda Olmsted.
  Tracy graduated from Dexter High School in 1991. She was a long-time Girl Scout, into high school. She was a Perry Drugs cosmetics coordinator, and was a wiz with a cash register, training many people on their use. Her most recent job was working at Subway in Dexter for the last three years. Tracy loved her family and her home town, Nascar racing and the Detroit Tigers. She enjoyed music, especially country and classic rock. Tracy was an avid dog lover, especially her dog, Winnie.

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Kathy H. Sherwin

of Kalamazoo, MI, formerly of Brighton, age 59, died Saturday, July 13, 2019 at Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo. She was born July 11, 1960 in Mentor, Ohio, the daughter of Leon & Zella (May) Pfeifer.  Kathy graduated from Cleary University. She worked as a medical billing supervisor at Botsford Hospital.   Kathy is survived by her husband, Robert Sherwin of Kalamazoo; her daughter, Amy Hilton; 2 granddaughters, Sydney and Alicia.  She was “GG” to the light of her life, Dominic.  Kathy was preceded in death by her parents.

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