Dear FRONTLINE,

You have given a very sympathetic picture of a funeral director. Thank you for showing a little of the embalming process as well as a glimpse of cremation. People need this information. Your tasteful production completely avoided the cost of a funeral. Was that a deliberate decision? As one who has plans to leave this earth in as simple a way as possible, I believe you owe equal time to those of us who desire home funerals, green burial and a death free of the elaborate ritual that 'The Undertaking' represents.

joyce Homan
Syracuse, NY

Dear FRONTLINE,

Thank you for daring to air such a fascinating show on such a sensitive topic. It was beautifully done and with great empathy. I realize that the subject is not for everyone, in fact I had to watch the show in secret, away from the rest of my family as the very thought of death makes some of them terribly squeamish. I, on the other hand, am more realistic and appreciated what I saw, especially as I have just gone through helping to organize a family funeral.

The show certainly gave me a lot of food for thought. Until now, I have been rather cynical about undertakers, funeral homes and the roles they play. I have always considered the funeral business -- especially all those the ads exhorting us to make "pre-arrangements" -- to be more about making money than performing a service the public wants. That is because funerals have become so expensive, even simple ones. Ours ran about $12,000. "Final arrangements" are not cheap.

This show presents the funeral business from a perspective I had never considered. I listened with interest, sometimes blinking back tears, to what each person said, and I think I may have to re-examine my feelings about undertakers in general, death and the importance of the customs we surround ourselves with when someone dies. Thank you again for airing The Undertaking.

Bridgehampton, NY

Dear FRONTLINE,

After viewing this program I felt the need to join the discussion. My Mother passed away 3 years ago. The funeral personnel were as kind and considerate as the Lynchs'. The last memory I had of my mother was when they took her from her home in a body bag to the Black Tahoe Truck. I found this quite disturbing. I thought it should of been a bit more sacred. She was only 66 years old and succumbed after a short time suffering from cancer. Hospice was exceptional even for the two days we had with them. She was cremated and I wish we could of been a part of that. But in our community this was not an option. Instead we had a church service with her urn and pictures. I saw her die but never felt the closure. This program helped me with my grief as I shared the feeling they felt in the program. I feel the Lynch Funeral Home was very exceptional. I loved Mr. Lynch's poetry. It was very profound. I finally felt closure.

Constance Comstock
North Syracuse, New York

Dear FRONTLINE,

I don't think this program was a fair representation of people's feelings on the memorialization of the deceased. It looked more like a commercial for expensive funerals. As a funeral director for 20 years the traditional funeral is changing. Cremation and especially immediate cremation is on the rise, and to make it sound like our culture is declining because we do not have a viewing is not accurate. The fact is the future will change the funeral business and the $7000.00 funeral is disappearing and the Lynches, like many other old time "traditional funeral homes" are trying to prevent that by making it seem like an immediate cremation means you don't care.

Albert Guerra
Jupiter, FL

Dear FRONTLINE,

The program was very special to us. Our daughter was 2yrs, 7 mo, & 19 days old when she died in my arms at home. She had many serious challenges in her short life also and even though almost 20 years have passed, we still miss her ever so much. 3 children were born to us after our daughter. They never knew her and yet they speak of her as if they do, as we have always spoken about her to them. She is, and always will be, a missing part of our family and we look forward to the day when we will see her again. 'Absent from the body, present with the Lord Jesus Christ'. This is His promise for little ones and to those who put their trust in Him. Our deepest sympathy to the Verrino family as they too will always miss their Anthony. Always loved... never forgotten...

Hanover, Ontario

Dear FRONTLINE,

I watched this program with interest and association, for I have lived through many, including my own 16 year old daughter, entering that eternal and final end. I found the program respectful and thoughtful.I think that the hard part of death is not only dealing with the loss of a loved one but the inability to imagine yourself in that casket and delivered to a hole in the ground forever. I, myself, must deal with the prospect as I suffer from the same disease as Robert Goulet (ie, Pulmonary Fibrosis), and although the disease was described as rare, forty thousand people die from this disease every year. When I looked at my daughter in the casket, I knew that she was, in reality, gone. So, I can only pray that wherever she went, I will follow.

Robert MacDonald
Windham, NH

Dear FRONTLINE,

Being a funeral director, I thought this documentary portrayed our profession in a positive manner, and also showed the value of the funeral service to those who survive as a way to honor the life of their loved one, and also serve as closure to those who are left. I thought this program was tastefully done, and Mr. Lynch and his staff should be commended for a job well done in promoting the positive side of funeral service to the public . THANKS AGAIN

jeffrey stock
Hazleton, Pa

Dear FRONTLINE,

I have just finished watching the undertaking on Frontline and I am both emotional and in awe. It was an absolutely eye opening, beautiful documentary with beautiful , likeable and sympathetic people involved. The Lynch Family are outstanding, kind wonderful people and the kind of people I wish all funeral directors were like and funeral homes were run by, unfortunately that's not the case. The Verrinos, what can you say about this lovely young couple and their baby without getting teary eyed? These lovely young people are without a doubt two of the strongest and most loving parents I have ever seen. I hope they have peace and happiness in their future. Everyone featured in this wonderful documentary were exceptional. I hope when my time comes and that of my loved ones we will be lucky enough to deal with people like the Lynches. This documentary was thoroughly engrossing without being morbid. Thank you.

barbara corbett
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada

Dear FRONTLINE,

Dear Mr. & Mrs. Verrino,

Seeing your son, Anthony John and your courage to dignify his life with such honesty and preparation for his death was overwhelmingly beautiful. I could feel the love you have for Anthony John. You are amazing people and I send my sympathies for your loss, but recognize the love you had for that beautiful little boy! May God continue to bless you with such amazing strength, courage, love, and furture Joys to come.Please know I am not given to blogging, or e-mailing random strangers, and hope I have in no way offended you, Mr. & Mrs. Verrino you have my sincerest wishes.

Be Well and warmest regards,

Jennifer Brown
Buffalo, New York

Dear FRONTLINE,

Without question, "The Undertaking" is one of the most powerfully moving programs I have ever watched.

Every parent lives with the fear that they will have to endure the death of a child, or, in my case now also, a grandchild. The Verrinos' strength and dignity while dealing with the death of their son was inspiring, and the compassion and decency of the Lynches was apparent.

Wakefield, Massachusetts

Dear FRONTLINE,

Words cannot express the impact that Anthony and your story has left on my soul. To say thank you feels inadequate. Please know that Anthony and the love of his parents will live for time beyond memorial.

Fred Crawford
Buda, Texas

Dear FRONTLINE,

After having a celebration of life in Florida, I brought my mother's ashes back home for burial to the city she had left 30 years before. I didn't think to put a notice in the newspaper for the burial, or invite anyone. I didn't think anyone would come. I was afraid no one would come. I'm so sorry. Maybe someone would have come. I wanted the chance to tell people how graciously she died, what a trooper she was, how pleasant and appreciative she was, and how she was funny until the very end. If I had known how bad I feel that no one was there to acknowledge her life at her burial, maybe I would have taken the risk to invite people.

Rochester, NY

Dear FRONTLINE,

I have been teaching a college course to seniors entitled Loss & Bereavement for more than twenty years. I have never seen a presentation so honest, so sensitive, so graphic, so respectful of people who are dying, those who are dead, and those who love them. I regret that I cannot obtain this DVD until my present semester is over, for I have determined that it is a must for every person studying loss and bereavement in my class. Thank you for this much needed contribution to the education of those who seek it.

Charles K Stuart
Worcester, MA

Dear FRONTLINE,

So this was Happy Halloween from Frontline? Or what? There are theives and liars to expose. I didn't get this little trip to sadsville. Give me liberty or give me death but don't show me someone putting a tie on my corpse and hoping it's snows so my burial will be just messy enough to be memorable. Let's boot some tail and let the chips fall where they may.

James McGuiness
Baldwin, NY

Dear FRONTLINE,

While reporting on how people deal with dying and death is always valuable, I was dumbstruck by tonight's uncritical acceptance of the American way of death, which in fact amounted to an endorsement of the funeral industry. Nowhere in the program were questions raised about whether the practices of the funeral industry create needless expense and delusions about what happens to dead bodies in sealed caskets, or the fact that people have alternatives. You simply allowed Mr. Lynch, the undertaker, to espouse his view of how we should care for our dead, to wax poetic about his belief that the funeral industry "serves" both the living and the dead. In 1963 Jessica Mitford exposed the funeral industry for what it was in her famous book "The American Way of Death". Apparently the producers of tonight's program haven't read it. Her investigative journalism was honest, probing, and revealing. Unfortunately, too little has changed since then. Americans continue to pay huge bills for funerals, continue to burn up expensive caskets in crematories, continue to believe that embalming is mandatory and will somehow save Aunt Sally for eternity - the list goes on. Tonight, Frontline utterly failed to educate the public about the funeral industry and alternative options. I am so disgusted. You owe the public an hour about how others have found a better way to honor their dead relatives.

Tom Kara
Norwood, Missouri