LePine opens $5.5 million Kew funeral home, which is also a functions centre
A historic funeral home in Kew has been redeveloped – and its operators want it to be more than just a place where people celebrate lives and say final goodbyes.
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Owners of a redeveloped historic Kew funeral home want it to make it a community hub where people can also host other celebrations and events.
The LePine and White Lady funeral home on High St has undergone a $5.5 million facelift and opened earlier this month following 12 months of construction.
The original home, built in 1967, was knocked down for the new building, which has additional rooms to cater for various functions.
LePine’s funeral services manager James Malachi said the home hosted its first service on July 10, days after construction finished.
But in the future, he wants the community to use the venue for birthday parties, weddings, conferences and other special events.
“The site has been a funeral home for more than 50 years, but the original building was very different to what we have created today,” he said.
“I believe we have moved to the point where people are comfortable with the thought of holding meetings, conferences and even birthday and engagement parties in a function room attached to a funeral home,” he said.
The revamped funeral home has traditional features including a 120-seat chapel with live streaming facilities, a viewing room and rooms for staff to meet with families.
But Mr Malachi said it also had a “reflections lounge” for mourners which had catering facilities ideal for hosting other types of functions.
He felt the funeral home could become a versatile venue once the coronavirus outbreak subsides.
“During COVID-19, with social distancing rules in place, we have had to be innovative in how we conduct services, so people are looking at our facilities in a different light and I believe that will continue once the world settles down again,” Mr Malchi said.
“We have created a serene, comfortable and welcoming facility that is also very functional and we hope Kew will adopt it as almost a focal point for the community to use and share all the time, not only for funerals.”
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