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About

First Memorial Funeral Services® and Garden of Memories have worked as sister locations to provide funeral, cremation and burial services in the Victoria community for more than 56 years.

A pillar in the Victoria community, the funeral home is situated on 2.5 beautiful acres replete with established trees and an abundance of flowers, providing families a quiet place to honour their loved ones. A newly remodelled chapel reflects the beauty of the surrounding cemetery grounds. It is a versatile space designed to meet the needs of modern families, so that regardless of the type of service you choose—from traditional to contemporary—your friends and family will feel welcome and comfortable.

Communities served in Victoria

  • Brentwood Bay
  • Cadboro Bay
  • Langford
  • North Saanich
  • Oak Bay
  • Saanich
  • Saanichton
  • Sidney
  • Sooke

Personalized funerals

Chapel at First Memorial Funeral ServicesOur mission  at First Memorial Funeral Services is to help families create personalized funerals and memorials. This approach keeps us open to traditional religious rites as well as contemporary gatherings that deeply reflect a person's life. That means that whether you want a basic cremation with cremated remains scattered in a personally meaningful place, a funeral at the funeral home with cemetery burial nearby, or a modern celebration of life with live music and a send-off that expresses the passions of yourself or your loved one, we are happy to deliver. If you can imagine it, we can make it happen.

Whether traditional or increasingly creative, our funerals and memorials leave lasting and healing impressions on families and their guests. First Memorial Funeral Services is the leader in funeral services in the Victoria community, and the care that our staff provides is unmatched. In addition to conducting funerals and arranging cremations, we will forward or receive remains. We are a non-denominational funeral home and work with all churches and cemeteries.

Cremation services

We specialize in cremation services that honor loved ones in personalized ways, and families love our transparent pricing. With expertise in scattering ashes and a friendly team who pays attention to every detail, we provide service that is second to none.

More and more people are choosing cremation over traditional burial, but most aren’t familiar with the many options:

  • a cremation without a funeral or memorial service of any kind.
  • a funeral with your loved one present, followed by cremation.
  • a cremation followed by a scattering, cemetery memorialization or celebration of life—or all three.

For those who wish for a more momentous memorial, Neptune Memorial Reef is an underwater cremation garden off the coast of Florida. A Celestis Memorial Spaceflight takes ashes into space for a little while or forever.

There are many options for cremation—and they're not all equal. Here's what you can expect when you choose us for your loved one's cremation:

  • Custody of care guaranteed. Our custody-of-care program helps safeguard the identification of your loved one from the time we bring them into our care until the time we return them to your family. We check, cross-check and check again, every step of the way.
  • Exclusive custody of your loved one. We use only crematories owned and operated by Dignity Memorial® providers or trusted partners. Once your loved one is in our custody or that of a trusted partner, they’re in our care until they’re returned to your family.
  • Licensed, certified, conscientious staff. All Dignity Memorial crematory operators are licensed and certified by Cremation Association of North America, or CANA. Only one person at a time is cremated, and the cremation chamber is thoroughly cleaned before the next person is cremated.

Read more about our cremation services.

People you can count on

Our caring team members are all professionally trained, provincially licensed and accredited. They are dedicated, innovative and committed to excellence. Whether you need a simple cremation with no service or a highly personalized celebration of life, we at First Memorial Funeral Services are honoured to serve you. Feel free to call us 24 hours a day.

Garden of Memories

Columbariums at First Memorial Garden of MemoriesUnique to Vancouver Island, the Garden of Memories is a place to memorialize loved ones who have chosen cremation. Nestled in a hollow adjacent to Victoria's Royal Oak Burial Park, it offers a tranquil setting for families and friends to gather and reflect. Thoughtfully situated between elegant gazebos and winding paths are a range of inurnment choices: granite columbaria, memorial books, ossuaries, urn gardens, gazebo niches, scroll walls, terraced brick wall niches and family estate memorials beautifully finished in natural stone. A waterfall provides a gentle soundtrack; delicate patterns of rain and sunlight dance across the pond.

Community service

Throughout the year, First Memorial Funeral Services holds a number of events. Reflections is one of those special occasions. Held each December, the service allows families the opportunity to come together and remember their loved ones during the Christmas season. We also open our doors to Victoria community organizations for meetings, luncheons and other events.

History

Cemetery grounds at First Memorial Funeral Services"A company that is dedicated to compassionately supporting families at difficult times, celebrating the significance of lives that have been lived, and preserving memories that transcend generations, with dignity and honour." That is our philosophy at First Memorial Funeral Services.

It's a philosophy that emerged during the Vietnam War, when many people were facing the emotional and financial burdens of burying their loved ones. Our founders believed that everyone was entitled to a dignified funeral service. Today, we hold true to the same simple belief and continue the tradition of affordable, compassionate service. To that end, our facilities' prices for burial and cremation have remained affordable—without sacrificing professionalism, quality or care.

An enduring legacy

First Memorial Funeral Services has served Canadian families since 1961. Through the years, we grew from a single funeral home location to a network of funeral homes throughout British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario. We provide a range of services to meet the ever-changing needs of the people for whom we care.

Today, First Memorial Funeral Services and Garden of Memories are members of the Dignity Memorial® network of funeral, cremation and cemetery service providers, offering compassionate care and personalized service you can trust.

Amenities

Location

Cremation

Service

Religious & Cultural

Other

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Plan a Simple Cremation

Simple can still mean exceptional. Let us show you how.

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Remember the one you love

Honour the memory of your loved one with cemetery flower placement.

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Express your sympathy with flowers & gifts

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View arrangements

Bouquet of flowers on a cemetery

Remember the one you love

Honour the memory of your loved one with cemetery flower placement. You choose the flowers. You choose the months. We do the rest.

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Learn more

Express your sympathy with flowers & gifts

View arrangements
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Express your sympathy with flowers & gifts

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View arrangements

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Unable to find an obituary?

Not finding what you are looking for? Search for your loved one's obituary across any of our other locations.

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Ratings & Reviews

Verified Customer Reviews

Since 2005, many of our customers have taken the time to tell us how we did each year via our Voice of the Customer program. Our star ratings and comments from families come directly from these surveys.

"The team at Dignity Memorial was compassionate and professional and supportive from start to finish."

Verified customer reviews Verified Customer

August 2022

"Kevin and the staff at First Memorial made one of the most unbearable days one that we could endure. The caring, quick to respond service and the live stream that allowed family from afar to attend made our experience an exceptional one."

Verified customer reviews Verified Customer

July 2022

"All the staff were exceptional. I was extremely pleased with the service I got from First Memorial!"

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July 2022

"Your team always was able to answer questions or concerns which was important to me and this I valued in such a stressful time very nice and approachable and kind team you guys are thankful for that"

Verified customer reviews Verified Customer

July 2022

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