Ben Parker funeral [OOC: Sorta placeholder-ish right now? Mainly because I've been slow getting the thread leading up to this done because of the feels, so for now, more of an ooc-ish write up]
Right, this sad time. Since there is plot-ish things going on, feel free to be wibble-wobbley with the time of when this happens!
The basics:
The day before the funeral, there was a visitation of the body and Buddhist ceremony before the body was cremated.
Due to a 'mysterious contribution' (*cough*coulson*cough*shield*cough*), the actual funeral/memorial service was able to be held on a Saturday at a Forest Hills cemetary. There was a table set up with a picture of Uncle Ben, candles, and offerings of flowers and fruit. This ceremony was mostly Christian with a few Buddhist elements thrown in (ie the recitation of the Amitabha Sutra and the name of Amitabha). It was also announced that a donation would be made to a local charity in Ben's name. People were welcome to give their regards if they wanted, although the burial wasn't as big a show as it was a laptop sized box rather than a coffin.
Afterwards, they were all invited to come back to the Parkers' house (also in Forest Hills) for food, refreshments, to help them plant a sapling in the backyard, and just generally hang out and pay their respects. A table similar to the one at the funeral with Ben's picture was also set up in the living room of their house. There was a LOT of food available. A LOT. And Aunt May will be making sure that everyone is taken care of and well fed. There was also a variety of refreshments, though few of the alcoholic variety. Gifts/cards/offerings/etc can be left on the table with Ben's picture and is probably the best way to go about it, because both Aunt May and Peter will be stubborn about taking any sort of gifts people try to give to them.
[OOC note in regards to Parkers: Richard and Mary Parker both worked for SHIELD for some years until their untimely demise in the line of duty in 2001. Richard was more on the science side of the SHIELD game, while Mary worked more as a field agent. How exactly they died is still wide open in terms of plotting. Phil Coulson however was the one to inform May and Ben Parker about their deaths (and all the lovely cover stories about their mysterious jobs) after the fact.]