Grissom’s Chapel & Mortuary

As most of us know, death can come with and without warning. In these surprising times, you want someone who will help you make the decisions you need to make with a caring heart and not with a stretched out hand. Grissom’s Chapel & Mortuary is the one to go to in times of crisis. One of my best friends passed a few weeks ago. Her husband had no experience in these matters and we were all shocked at the other mortuary prices and all the various options. IN ONE TELEPHONE CALL, the owner and staff of Grissom’s took away our anxiety and did an awesome job in helping us make the necessary decisions. They calmly walked us through the various options, focusing on our budget and on what we wanted to do for our loved one. THEY WERE SIMPLY THE BEST — IN FACT, THEY WERE FABULOUS! And because they are a family owned business and not another corporate entity, they were able to offer us the best pricing and best services on the market. WE RECOMMEND THEM WITH OUR WHOLE HEARTS. So, if you are currently looking for a way to send your loved one home to the Creator with care, please do not overlook Grissom’s Chapel & Mortuary. They may be small, but remember, big things come in small packages.
L. Knox
Oakland, California

During times like these, it is comforting to deal with someone who knows exactly what needs to be done. Lisa was great. She was very easy to work with and took care of everything for us. I would highly recommend this place.

Grissom’s Mortuary and Chapel were extraordinary from beginning to end! When I say extraordinary I mean EXTRAORDINARY!
Recently, I had to help a family member with funeral arrangements for her 29-​year old daughter who was murdered. What was different about these funeral arrangements was the fact that my cousin wanted to have the repass at the funeral home and I had never heard of such a thing. I contacted Lovetta via Facebook messenger because I knew she worked in the industry from seeing her at various funerals in the past. Lovetta, of course, suggested that I come to Grissom’s where she was now employed. I had never been to a funeral at Grissom’s and wasn’t familiar with them so I Unilocaled them. One review raised my brow because it talked about how the owner, Lisa Wyrabkiewicz was unprofessional on so many levels. I decided to arrange and attend a meeting with Lovetta just to see what the funeral home had to offer. When my cousin and I arrived for our first meeting at Grissom’s Lovetta greeted us at the door and took us into a small conference room. She then informed us that Lisa, the owner would be in shortly. You can imagine my panic from the Unilocal review (which I never disclosed to Lovetta or my cousin that I read). I took a deep breath and said ok. From the moment Lisa entered the room until the time I picked up the ashes yesterday, she, along with the entire staff at Grissom’s has made this painful process seamless.
Immediately both Lovetta and Lisa gave me their private cell numbers, were in constant contact with me, and did everything in their power to make all of our wishes a reality! One of the first things Lisa said was «you will be hard pressed to get a No from me!» What was more impressive was that she truly meant it!
The repass was catered by Everett and Jones in Berkeley which meant there would be bar-​b-​que! Lisa simply said, «No problem!» We needed to bring more tables and chairs to set up outside due to the large turnout that we were expecting and Lisa said, «No problem!» We wanted the funeral to take place on Friday and have her cremated on Monday and… you guessed it, Lisa said, «No problem!». Everything she agreed to (everything we asked for), she delivered!
The day of the funeral the entire staff was onsite! Every time I made a move or looked as if I need something Lisa, Lovetta or Annie were right there asking me what I needed! The number of people that attended the funeral was far more than we expected and even with that they were more than professional! The ashes was ready and available for pick up on Monday, just like she promised.
I could go on and on about their level of commitment to make this process seamless but I believe you get the point! Grissom’s Mortuary and Chapel went above and beyond the call of duty on every level for my cousin and words could never express the gratitude we feel. From the bottom of our hearts we say «Thank You» especially to Lovetta, who I was texting at random hours asking all sorts of questions; Lisa who is part of our family now; and Annie who worked behind the scenes with everyone else making it happen!

From 1974 my family had Grissom’s do six funerals. They always did a great job. They are friendly and answered all questions. There prices are good. There’s in no sales person on caskets you just simply select the one you want and you director takes care of it.

WARNING! Our mother’s cremated ashes were not ready in time for the service, 1 week later! The new owner, Lisa M. Wyrabkiewicz should not be in this profession. At the San Lorenzo Location, during a crisis that her mortuary caused, she left the premises, blamed everyone else for the mistake and left the cremation technician to fix the problem.
Our initial appointment was with a very nice lady, Debra Marquez, on July 25^th, 2015. All of the arrangements were made at that time for my mother’s cremation and follow on services to be completed for a church service 1 week later on July 31^st. The church is right across the street and we thought it would be convenient to get her ashes from Grissom’s to the church. Grissom’s published the obituary and had all of the details of the church service, time, date, etc.
On Friday, July 31^st, at 10 AM, the day of the service at 10:30am, we called and asked Grissom’s about the whereabouts of our mother’s ashes (we had dropped the urn by to them the previous Tuesday) just as the guests were arriving at the church, the owner, Ms. Wyrabkiewicz walked across the street to inform us that our mother had not yet been cremated! She was not discreet or apologetic. She blamed it on the doctor not signing the death certificate, which we found out was a lie. All of the paperwork was had been completed days before.
My sisters and family members were very very upset. We decided to discreetly continue the church services with an empty urn.
The new owner, Ms. Wyrabkiewicz, did not properly handle the situation, she was defensive, argumentative, condescending and lied about the reason’s for the delay in cremation. We were never even given a phone call about any delays prior to the church service.
The situation only worsened.
After the church service I walked across the street to Grissom’s to get an update from Ms. Wyrabkiewicz, She had left her mortuary and put the cremation technician, Annie, in charge to handle the problem. Ms. Wyrabkiewicz was unreachable by phone.
At 11:30 am our mother had still not been cremated and the cemetery commitment was scheduled at 12:00. Annie cremated her remains and her ashes were finally delivered to the cemetery at 2:15 where the services were delayed until 2:30 pm. The Deacon was delayed for his outbound flight, relatives waited in the hot sun for 2.5 hours, some relatives had to leave to catch their flights out. Thank you to Annie the Cremation technician for doing her best to fix the situation. My sister and I visited Grissom’s the day after to discuss all with our Grissom’s rep Debra. She was apologetic and sorry she had not been «around» that day to help out, but, that her cousin Lisa Wyrabkiewicz was the owner and there wasn’t much she could do. We still have not heard back from the owner Ms. Wyrabkiewicz and I don’t believe we will.

If you dont have much money, and dont want a fancy funeral service they do a good job. Across the st is the church very convenient happens everyhing in one spot. Very helpful with our food outside. Thanks grissoms.

5 star service all around!!! We had a family tragedy and Grissom’s helped us through the whole process. We worked with Roger who was very helpful, he helped us with everything since our family never had to do this before. He didn’t pressure us at all like other companies. Their prices were more than reasonable and there were no hidden fees. He even threw in a few things which I won’t mention because I don’t want their future customers trying to do the same. They didn’t rush the service. Our family was very pleased with their service as well. As much as I love their service I hope we don’t ever have to use them again but if it that horrible time does come again in the future I will definitely give them a call.

In the beginning, my family went to Grissom’s for services for my Brother. Knowing the limitations of the expenses, before they went there I found a place that would do this $ 620 cheaper. Of course with the price sacrifice, we would have to find our own place for the gathering. No worries there… we would have had that covered.
No offense to Grissom’s. They did a great job for my Wife’s Grandfather.
My brother wished to be cremated. We had Grissom’s handle the details and dated the funeral for July 7, 2012. Unfortunate for me… It was my Birthday.
It is indeed unfortunate to have to send off someone you love on the day of your birth. But it was also a sign that it was okay to live and move on and we would meet again!
The day before the funeral, my Brother’s ashes were scheduled to arrive back for placing of his ashes in the Urn that I made with family members (See my profile pictures)
I called ahead myself and found out he didn’t have crematory services yet. As anyone would react, I was to blame the Chapel for incompetency.
Later I found out from the Director that Eden Hospital’s Doctor that tended to my Brother, Did not sign the release papers!
As my review for Eden Hospital was already submitted to Unilocal… you can see why this wasn’t surprising.
I want to thank Todd for helping us through this trying time. Todd allowed me to place my Brother’s ashes in the Urn/​Memorial PERSONALLY!
I was also able to have some of his ashes placed in several lockettes that my Wife had purchased and were presented to my Sister-​in-​Law, my Mother and my Two Sisters. Each of his Children will receive special charm urns with his ashes inside as well that she bought for them.
Thank you Grissom’s for handling my Brother’s send off with care. The funeral day was well handled.
The entire Marhx family will indeed recommend your services to friends and family.

My Dad passed and Grissom’s handled the service.
They were polite, professional, and caring. They worked with my Mom and Sister and provided exactly what we had in mind, no attempts to sell additional services etc. On the day of the memorial everything went smoothly. They were also able to refer us to other professionals who proved to be excellent.
Very high recommendation for this company.

The owner John is great, loving and understanding.
The son who keeps answering the phone is inefficient, does not give phone messages and is cocky. its like he was born into money and shows his attitude. Stay away from anyone but John. I wish they had more professionality and do what they are suppose to do, then do what they want.
I would probably go but only request for John.

Our family has used Grissom’s for the last 30 years and they have always been wonderful. Ed spent alot of time with us last year while doing a pre-​plan for a terminal family member and rose above and beyond when the time actually came. They were patient, professional, caring, compassionate and helpful. The fact that they have remembered our family through the years and have always treated us with respect speaks volumes to me.

Our family is very simple, and only wanted minimal service and throughout the process they were very friendly and accomodating while maintaining a high standard of professionalism.
The place is small, holding 170 people… but it feels is cozy and warm inside. Is it wierd to say that, considering its purpose?
What I liked about this place is that it is very well maintained and quite nice. It had a parking lot in addition to street parking and the customer service was excellent. For example, during the viewing and funeral service, one of the gentleman workers remained by the entryway and open/​closed the door each time someone walked in/​out. Not once did he seem to mind. The staff didn’t say much, except when needed. And when they spoke, they seem to genuinely care. They were sensitive and aware of all that was going on, which really provided a sense of comfort in such a difficult time.

Sadly I’ve been to a couple services at Grissom’s before. About 10 years ago my best friend’s dad passed away and the service was held here. I revisited Grissoms again last night for my close friend’s viewing service.
What I can say about Grissom’s staff is that they are very friendly, sympathetic, and very patient. The viewing was suppose to last a few hours but since people were arriving late, the staff welcomed everyone and extended the time. As Brian D. stated, they take care of most things and provide a service that most individuals don’t think about or care to do.

Extremely friendly; very sensitive. For better or for worse, we have actually used this place twice.
Grissom’s coodinates everything– flowers, casket purchases, extra copies of death certificate, guestbook, memorial cards, limo service. They coordinate with the church and will cater to special requests.
When someone close to you passes away, you really don’t want to deal with all this stuff.
Plus it’s really close to Banchero’s so you can stuff your head with food to celebrate the life of the bereaved. We did that twice too.