Chevra Kadisha

Arranging for Kaddish to be said

Kaddish is recited three times a day for eleven months after a parent dies, and then every year on the yahrzeit. For many people that is not possible — a job, a commute, an illness, or no minyan within reach. This is the old answer to that, and it is a good one.

Say it yourself on the days you can. This is a floor under the year, not a replacement for it. Our Shabbat morning service is one place, and if you need a weekday minyan call and we will help you find one.

The plans

Daily Kaddish + perpetual yahrzeit

$395

Kaddish and Mishnayos recited three times daily through the first year
Kaddish and Mishnayos recited three times on the yahrzeit, every year afterwards
A notification to the family before each yahrzeit

What most families choose, because the yahrzeit reminder alone is worth having — the date otherwise slips past a generation later.

Daily Kaddish

$225

Kaddish and Mishnayos recited three times daily through the first year

Perpetual yahrzeit

$250

Kaddish and Mishnayos recited three times on the yahrzeit, every year
A notification to the family before each yahrzeit

One yahrzeit

$36

Kaddish and Mishnayos recited three times on the coming yahrzeit

To arrange it

Call 408-910-2034 or write to info@jmemorial.org. Have to hand, if you can, the Hebrew name of the person who died and their father’s Hebrew name, and the Hebrew date. If you do not know them, bring what you have — the English date and the wording on the stone are usually enough for us to work the rest out.

If the cost is a problem, say so. It is handled, and it is handled privately.

Questions people ask

Is it acceptable to have someone else say Kaddish?

Yes, and it is a very old practice — not a modern shortcut. Where a mourner cannot get to a minyan three times a day, arranging for Kaddish to be recited in the merit of the person who died is the accepted and long-standing answer, and it is what a great many observant families do.

Should I say it myself as well?

Wherever you can, yes. Arranging this is not instead of saying it — it is a floor under the year, so that the days you cannot get to a minyan are still covered. Say it on the days you are able, at whatever service you can reach, and let this hold the rest.

Who actually says it?

Rabbis in Israel who are in shul three times a day in any case. We arrange it through SayKaddish, a project of the Lubavitch Youth Organization, and stay in contact with them about it.

How long does Kaddish get said for?

For a parent, eleven months from the burial — not twelve, and there is a reason for that which is worth asking about. For a spouse, a sibling or a child, thirty days. And then on the yahrzeit, every year, for as long as there is somebody to say it.

What do you need from me?

The Hebrew name of the person who died and their father’s Hebrew name, and the Hebrew date of the passing. If you do not know any of that, we can usually work it out — bring what you have, including an English date and the name on the stone.

What if I cannot afford it?

Say so. Nobody has ever been turned down for this and nobody is going to be. Call the number on this page.

Work out a yahrzeit dateConvert an English date to the Hebrew one, and be reminded every year.Saying Kaddish yourselfWhat it is, how long for, and finding a minyan.The year of mourningSheloshim, the eleven months, the stone, the yahrzeit.The Chevra KadishaEverything else it arranges, at any hour.