money, a basket of food?

[Ju]

In the western culture, as much as I know, while one' family has a member passed away. Friends will send he/she a basket of food, card of condolence and money donated from friends.

1. What do we call that particular kind of money, a basket of food?
2. Any mistakes in the above sentences?

Ju

[tedtmc]

In the western culture, as much as I know, while one' family has a member passed away. Friends will send he/she a basket of food, card of condolence and money donated from friends.

1. What do we call that particular kind of money, a basket of food?
2. Any mistakes in the above sentences?

Ju

I think it is just called funeral gifts, though flowers are called wreaths.

not a teacher

[emsr2d2]

In the Western culture, as much far as I know, while one' family has a member passed away when someone dies, friends will send he/she the family a basket of food, a card of condolence and money donated from friends.

1. What do we call that particular kind of money, a basket of food?
2. Are there any mistakes in the above sentences?

Ju

That may be the case in other Western countries, but in the UK, we really only send condolence cards to the family. I don't know anyone who would send food and I've certainly never heard of anyone sending money!

Some people will send flowers to the family but it's more usual to send flowers to the funeral, especially if you can't attend the funeral in person.

[riquecohen]

"Western culture" encompasses many different cultures. In the US, a person may also send a mass card to a bereaved Catholic family, advising that a mass will be said for the deceased. Flowers are never sent to a Jewish family, but food is often brought to the house during the mourning period following the funeral. Regarding money, I seem to remember that when I worked with low-income families many years ago, co-workers often took up a collection to help with funeral expenses or to defray the cost of transportation to a distant city to attend the funeral.

[tedtmc]

That may be the case in other Western countries, but in the UK, we really only send condolence cards to the family. I don't know anyone who would send food and I've certainly never heard of anyone sending money!

Some people will send flowers to the family but it's more usual to send flowers to the funeral, especially if you can't attend the funeral in person.

It is a custom for Chinese to send gifts of money to the family of the deceased. Some families donate the money collected to charity while others use it to defray the cost of funeral expenses. The name in Chinese for such gift of money literally means 'white gold' .

[Barb_D]

It seems to be more and more common to send send money to a charity that the deceased supported, especially in lieu of flowers. Some obits will even print that. "In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to..."

I find this quite nice.

I've never sent money to the family members for their own personal use.

I also question "baskets of food." That implies some sort of pre-made, ordered-from-a-store item. A lot of people will leave baked good or casseroles, or maybe a deli platter of cold meats, but not not a food basket like you get from Harry and David.