Forest Meadows Funeral Home & Cemeteries, Gainesville FL

My husband and I lost our son on 8/18/23 and the hospital gave us Forrest Meadows as an option for funeral services.
Rebecca came and was absolutely who we needed. She was very empathetic to our situation and made me comfortable with handing my son over to her (first time mom).
I needed to know that my baby was going to be alright, and she assured me of such. She gave me that comfort.
I went to sit with him one day and she treated him as if he was her own. She was gentle and loving towards him. She even gave him a little elephant " for protection".
When it was time to go, i just couldn't walk away and leave him in an empty room, so she came and took him gently in her arms and made sure he was handled correctly.
The day of the cremation, we were definitely on edge, and Rebecca's welcoming face was assuring.
When she called us back to pick up Taelins ashes, she placed them in a teddy bear so that I could still"hold" my son.
I will never forget the sheer compassion and love we felt. Rebecca was and always will be dear to our hearts. Thank you so much for being who you are, Rebecca. May God continue to shine His light on you.
#Taelin James Jackson

I had the pleasure of working with Patrick for my husband's beautiful military service. The staff at the funeral home was always kind and helpful, especially since I was doing most of the planning remotely.

Regina at the mausoleum location was a dear, but her supervisor - I think the owner - was very abrasive anytime I stopped by to check on nameplates, etc. She is the only reason I cannot give them 5 stars.

Beautiful location with a very compassionate staff. The owner is one of the kindest professionals I know. Would highly recommend!

Professional staff and great facility. New ownership is committed to quality service for families ensuring your loved one is treated with care and respect. Great options for memorial services for both burial and cremation. Will work with families to find a way to honor your loved one and within your budget.

It is definitely a difficult time. Appreciate everything that y’all did to help my family get through a difficult time.

My brother's passing was unexpected. The staff was very kind and thoughtful. We did not feel pressured to make any decisions right away. They explained all of our choices and gave us time to consider our options. We are very thankful to them and would certainly recommend Forest Meadows Funeral Home to anyone needing thier services. Very kind folks.

Members are very courteous and helpful. I have attended 4 funerals here for my grandparents, uncle, and a friend. Always very warming!

Be aware of unethical practices. My relatives paid extra to have the burial on a Saturday. The space was selected with Ivana. A flag was placed to mark the space. The contract was signed, everything was paid. We presented to the Forest Meadow Cemeteries (39th location) on the date agreed and there was NO preparation for my grandmother's burrial. Staff member showed us documents where he was instructed to prepare a different lot. We never received a direct call for an apology or explanation. We had to communicate through another staff member who shared frustration as well as this is their typical practice. They verbally agreed to reimburse a portion of the amount paid extra for a Saturday burial. We requested a statement in writing and waited over 2 hours to hear back. The staff on Saturday was kind enough to stay during this process. This is unacceptable. They had no regards for our grieving or for the time of their own employees. Inhumane. The most disrespectful experience ever with a business. To hear that this has happened before is an indication of corruption that requires more escrutiny from their licencing boards. I do not recommend them. I am amazed as to how they continue in business. I am not from the area. Be cautios when dealing with them.

3 months! It took them 3 MONTHS to cremate my NEWBORN child!
Quick story, at 20 weeks we found out my baby had a rare heart condition where she had a 50/50 chance. I Live in Pensacola Fl so me &’ my Bf had to go to shands hospital to talk to the surgeon and well we didn’t get the news we wanted and he prepared us for the worst. I delivered at shands hospital and they did their best but my baby just didn’t do to well and survived 5 days. It’s crazy because Shands hospital RECOMMENDED Forrest Meadows &’ I don’t know why. We gave the hospital permission for an autopsy and after that they said it should take at LEAST 2 weeks until our baby would be home with us. Mind you on the phone with one of they ladies (who QUIT while helping us out) she told us it would be a 50$ charge for her to be sent home. Not a problem. I called EVERY WEEK for 3 MONTHS and I was getting told a different story. “ we’re short staff, we have other cremations, paper work waiting for the dr to sign her death certificate “ ETC! Finally! FINALLY when they called and told us she was ready and they needed our shipping address and the payment for shipping they had the NERVE to CHARGE US ALMOST 200$ for shipping when we was told 50$. So that put a hold on us getting our baby because they had to go back and go though phone records and things like that and when they did, they did confirm that the lady who told us 50$ quit! IN THE MIDDLE OF WORKING &’ only charged us 50$ for the “ INCONVENIENCE “ my babys body sat there for 3 months for god knows what and got cremated as soon as they got their “ payment “ i DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS FUNERAL HOME. Bad business especially if you live out of town!

Save ur money! Go else where! Something is very wrong about the way this place is run! They are betting on ur grieving to get away with their very poor business practices! Something is very wrong here! State needs to look into!

Dillon & Patrick were very nice, but.when I was over charged I was promised TWICE a call back. Amount was taken care of, but no call back as usual! Manager Patrick had no clue about BASIC math over charge! Too many spread out locations! Nothing is anyone else's problem! I have learned my lesson. Cheaper simple cremation else where! Save ur $, go else where!

A Tallahassee mother is speaking out, saying her premature son died in November 2022, and a Gainesville funeral home never gave her his ashes.

“I want justice for my baby, ” said mother Deondraneshia Williams. “I don’t want anyone else to have this experience. ” Williams said her son died at 26 days old after being transferred from Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare (TMH) to UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville.

Williams said the hospital recommended she use Forest Meadows Funeral Home for her crematory services. After signing consent forms, Williams said she called multiple times since December 2022 to check on the status of her son’s ashes, but none of her calls have been returned.

“They didn’t sympathize for what was going on with me, ” said Williams. “It was like he was just another baby there - just another person who died. ”

Horrible and do not recommend! How can you be so ill during a family’s toughest time. Stay far away!

They have had my friends baby’s remains for over 4 months! They had the wrong time of death on my sons death certificate and on my friends sons death certificate. They refuse to answer her calls and they refuse to make a statement as this has made the news. Something shady must be going on!

Will not return my cousin’s correspondences regarding the cremation of her newborn son. Hour could one be so cruel during a family’s time of grief. Run far away to everyone reading this.