Over the years we have had the opportunity to complete thousands of repatriations. The following brief stories are a few typical international shipping situations faced by our clients and how Bergen Funeral Service was able to help them.

1. Client: Funeral Home
After a local funeral home carried out the cremation requirements of their client, the family wanted to take the ashes to their home country of Italy. The funeral director told the family to carry the ashes in their luggage without bothering to obtain the necessary documentation. When the family arrived at the cemetery in Italy, the local cemetery administrator called the police after discovering the family did not have the proper documentation. The funeral director called upon Bergen Funeral Service, and we were able to quickly obtain all necessary paperwork so the funeral director's clients could complete the entombment.

2. Client: Family
A French father living in Manhattan insisted the remains of his recently deceased son be shipped to Paris the same day the son had died. BFS was able to clear all paper work, supply the proper casket, gain consulate approval and proper stamps, and ship his son out of JF Kennedy Airport on a flight to Paris within 12 hours of his son's death. Upon the body's arrival in Paris there were absolutely no complications.

3. Client: Funeral Home
A funeral home in Pennsylvania called Bergen Funeral Service to ship remains to Honduras. The wife of the deceased wanted to return with her husband's remains on the flight. Visiting was to be on Monday and Tuesday with the Mass on Wednesday. BFS instructed the funeral home what documents were needed. The funeral home overnighted the documents. BFS cleared all paper work expediently. BFS expressed the documents back to the funeral home immediately. At the same time BFS made flight arrangements and clarified the airline's requirements for shipping (i.e. type of shipping container, etc.). On Thursday morning the local funeral home transferred the remains to their local jetport.

4. Client: Funeral Home
A priest in the US desired to be returned to Liberia, Africa when he died. The funeral director had made the international shipment arrangements and completed all necessary documentation except for customs clearance for a connecting flight in Freetown. When the remains arrived in Freetown, the remains could not be switched to the final plane because customs did not have the appropriate documentation. By the time the funeral director called Bergen Funeral Service for assistance, the remains had been on the tarmac for almost 3 days. We were able to clear all documentation quickly and arrange for the body to be delivered to Liberia.

5. Client: Funeral Home
A funeral director had flawlessly served a family during their grieving, including making all necessary arrangements for shipping and burial of the remains in Italy. When the family arrived at the cemetery, they were informed that the US casket was too large for the local crypt. The family had to then spend several thousand dollars to purchase a smaller casket that would fit into the crypt as well as pay for local services performed.

6. Client: Insurance Company
A visitor from Argentina had an untimely death in Connecticut. The victim's insurance company called Bergen Funeral Service to make all arrangements for shipment back to Argentina. Bergen Funeral was able to quickly make all necessary arrangements, including shipping the body by the most economical means. The family was able to have a traditional funeral in Argentina in a timely manner.

7. Client: Consulate
A very popular musician from the Republic of Czech was residing in New York State when he died. The Republic of Czech consulate asked Bergen Funeral Service to take charge of sending the body back home. The Republic of Czech consulate worked collaboratively with BFS to gain complex approval for shipping and clearance into one of the Republic's most prestigious cemeteries.