Is the 'drive-through' funeral service inappropriate?

Mourners view the body of the late Robert Sanders, 58, lying at the Robert L. Adams drive-through funeral parlor in Compton, Calif. (Lucy Nicholson/Reuters)


The world is ours to see for a time, but in the end we're all just passing through - so why not have a funeral service that emulates that fleeting experience?

It's one way you might think about the drive-through service offered by the Robert L. Adams Mortuary funeral home in Compton, Calif., which places the deceased behind a display window and invites visitors to roll by.

That's right - mourners can come in and visit, but they can also drive past the coffin of the deceased, sign the book of condolences, and pay their respects without having to leave their car.

"It's a unique feature that sets us aside from other funeral parlours," owner Peggy Scott Adams told the Los Angeles Times in a profile piece about the home.

But not everyone considers this unusual service an appropriate statement on the transitory nature of life.

Henrietta McDade, 63, of Pasadena views her late friend Robert Sanders, 58, at the Robert L. Adams drive-through funeral parlor in Compton. (Lucy Nicholson/Reuters)Some have likened it to a fast-food drive-through, and an example of convenience culture taken to the extreme.

Still, the specialty funeral home is marketed to mourners with mobility issues, the families of well-known people who attract large crowd, and those who want to a straightforward alternative to the formal indoor viewing.

Adams told the Times that a rash of cemetery shootouts in the 1980s made the service popular with gang members, who were protected during the viewing by bullet-proof glass or by the adjacent drive-through corridor.

The Adams parlour has been in business since 1974. A couple of other funeral homes in Chicago and Louisiana are known for offering the same service.

What do think of this alternative to sit-down viewings? Would you be interested in such a service?

(This survey is not scientific. Results are based on readers' responses.)

Related:

• Would you want to be buried in a 'crazy coffin'?
• Do funeral homes charge too much for their services?