Press-Citizen Obituaries (2024)

FAQs

Why do some people not post obituaries? ›

Publishing an obituary can be expensive , and the funds may be unavailable. The deceased has few family members or friends , so there might have, unfortunately, been no need for an obituary. Obituaries are also written for the living so that they may learn of an individual's passing.

The FamilySearch Library has two large alphabetical collections of Iowa obituaries. The original collections are at the Iowa Genealogical Society, where most of the obituaries were collected. These obituaries date from about 1850 to 1991.

There are reasons why acknowledging a death in print, whether in a newspaper or online, is a good idea: Paying tribute to the person who has died. Everyone has a unique life story. In nearly every case, it's a story that should be told and preserved.

In some cases, the deceased person may have explicitly requested not to have an obituary written, or the family may feel they would not have wanted one. Additionally, some families may be concerned about privacy or wish to keep the details of their loved one's passing private.

You are under no legal obligation to take out a death notice or obituary. Think of the latter as a final gift to your loved one—a celebration of who they were and the legacy they created. The former is more of a courtesy to give people information so they too can honor and memorialize the dearly departed.

It is not a formal condition or diagnosis and does not necessarily indicate a specific medical condition. Sudden death syndrome (SDS) is an umbrella term for many biological scenarios leading to quick-onset and unforeseen mortality. The person involved often has little to no warning signs of illness.

The reasons behind a person's death - might be too painful for the family concerned to put into writing. Additionally it's not really of interest to anyone outside the family as to how the person actually died.

Iowa law requires that birth and marriage vital statistics in the custody of the State Archives be 75 years or older and death vital statistics be 50 years or older to be made available to the public.

How much does it cost to put an obituary in the Des Moines Register? ›

Placing an obituary in The Des Moines Register starts at $95.00.

Why does it cost so much to post an obituary? Publishing an obituary in the newspaper is expensive because of the limited space papers have. Newspapers value every inch of each page, so they must charge to use that limited space for an obituary.

An obituary is written to tell the story of your loved one. These will often be in the funeral program. There will even be a part of the funeral where the obituary will be silently read by everyone in attendance at the funeral. It is something you and your family should be patient with when you are writing it.

Reasons a Family Might Not Want to Write an Obituary

While there are many benefits to writing an obituary, there are also reasons why a family might not want to. Some may feel that it is too personal or private to share with the public, while others may not have the financial means to pay for its publication.

Additionally, some families may prefer to keep the details of their loved one's passing private and not share them with the public. Another reason a family might choose not to write an obituary is that it can be expensive.

There could be several reasons why you're having difficulty finding an obituary. The person you're looking for may not have had an obituary, the newspaper that published it could have gone out of business, or it could have never been saved or digitized.

If you are not an immediate family member of the loved one, ask yourself if you are close to their family. Never post about a loved one before their family has acknowledged the death themselves or given you permission to do so.

Newspapers still publish obituaries, but today many families choose to make death announcements on social media. While some people may find this to be poor etiquette, a social media post actually isn't that different than an obituary.