Day 1 (Tuesday): My father passed away while I was living abroad.
Day 5 (Saturday): I was denied access to see my father at the hospital the previous day, so I contacted Hankook Mortuary to find out more information. Ray insisted that I set up a meeting at his office to talk about how the process works and fees for their services. All my non-negotiables were brought up. First, I had to be allowed to see my father one last time before I sent him off to his final resting place, ASAP. Second, I wished to clip his nails and shave him before his long journey. Third, I wanted to have his funeral arrangements planned and done in a timely manner; the 35 days I was allotted in the country by my situation. Fourth, I had to coordinate with my uncle that lived far up in Northern California. He is a doctor and needed a minimum of a week's notice to cancel all his appointments with his clients. Lastly, I asked to have a cost-efficient, quiet cremation. After an overflowing amount of information about the funeral proceedings, Ray encourages me that collecting my father's remains is of the utmost priority and needs to be done NOW and asks for payment up front. After payment, Ray initiates the relocation of my father.
Day 9 (Wednesday): Ray starts the paperwork on Monday but I finally hear from him about the first step: which is to get my father's reason of death. It is forwarded to the state, however, it is rejected. I was told that my father's ROD was too vague.
Day 10 (Thursday): The doctor that needed to sign the ROD did not get back to Ray until the late afternoon. Once the ROD is received that evening, my father's deceased body is relocated.
Day 11 (Friday): I get a call around 10AM notifying me that I can arrange to see my father because the ROD should be accepted by the state in the next 30 minutes. I get a call in 15 minutes saying that I can come to see him NOW. However, confused that their mortuary is in LA, I asked how I can see my father so soon? I find out my father's remains have been in a chapel in Norwalk overnight. I am furious that my father's corpse remained there overnight and I was not notified or allowed a chance to see him until "paperwork was done". My family gathered and had a briefing about the viewing. Ray was persistent about not being allowed to groom my father one last time. I hate to admit I could not get myself to groom my father one last time before his long journey against Ray's rules. After a short viewing(10 minutes), my father is sent to the crematory.
Day 14 (Monday): After no communication over the weekend, I spoke to Ray about scheduling the scattering of my father's remains so that my uncle can attend. I was denied due to lack of crematory documentation. I was told that he would reach back out when all the paperwork is collected to schedule scattering services.
Day 16: Anxiously, I contacted Ray about my father's death certificate and the location of scattering his ashes. We looked to schedule a date for the scattering of the ashes and he notified me that there is an opening in 3 days, which is not enough time for my uncle. Ray seemed confused and reminded me that I wished that the proceedings were done in a timely manner. I refused and scheduled for the following week to give my uncle sufficient time.
Day 22: The death certificate is dated and issued by the state, but I did not receive any communication.
Day 30: I finally get a text that my father's death certificate has been received after I contacted him the previous day. I gave Ray a written statement informing him that my brother will collect it immediately.
My experience with this business was not at all pleasant. I was informed about more cost-efficient services after my father's remains were collected. I will not disclose the amount, but coming to Hankook Mortuary, I spent 2.5 times more than other alternatives that were recommended. I am making peace with the situation by making known my experiences as factually as possible. I feel defeated by a service that capitalized on my vulnerability. I did not know the process and felt like they exploited a rotting corpse to make a rushed decision. I hope that my timeline depicts the process of a funeral to those looking to send off their loved ones. The ball has been dropped on many occasions in my case and I spent the remainder four business days contacting and running around all of Los Angeles county informing all establishments about my father's death; receiving his death certificate as late as I did, I spent 14 hour days before moving back halfway around the world. read more
