Losing someone is heavy. Honestly, the last thing anyone wants to do when they’re grieving is navigate a clunky, confusing website just to find service times or leave a kind word for a friend’s family. If you’re looking for modetz funeral home obituaries, you’re likely trying to honor a legacy or get the details for a local service in Southeast Michigan.
The Modetz family has been a staple in communities like Rochester, Orion, and Waterford for a long time—we’re talking decades of history. Because they operate several different locations under slightly different names, finding the specific obituary you need can feel like a bit of a scavenger hunt if you don't know where to look.
Where to Actually Find Recent Listings
The most direct way to find an obituary is through their main portal, but it’s helpful to know which "branch" the person was associated with. The Modetz network isn't just one building; it's a family of chapels that each have their own deep local roots.
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If you go to the main website, you’ll typically see a "Recent Obituaries" section. However, people often get tripped up because they might be looking for "Potere-Modetz" or "Riverside Chapel" specifically. Here is how the locations are currently split up:
- Potere-Modetz Funeral Home: This is the downtown Rochester landmark. It's been around in some form since the 1800s.
- Modetz Funeral Home & Cremation Service (Silverbell Chapel): Located in Orion Township. This one was actually built from the ground up by John Modetz back in 2003.
- Riverside Chapel Simpson-Modetz: This is the Waterford location on Pontiac Lake Road.
- Hauss-Modetz & Tiffany-Young-Hauss: These serve the Macomb and Armada areas.
Most of the time, the search bar on their central site works across all these locations. You just type in the last name. But if you’re looking for someone from five or ten years ago, you might need to dig a little deeper into the archives or use a third-party site like Legacy or a local newspaper archive like the Rochester Post or The Oakland Press.
Why These Obituaries Look a Little Different
You’ve probably noticed that some funeral home sites are just blocks of text. The modetz funeral home obituaries online usually include what they call a "Tribute Book."
It’s actually kinda cool. Instead of just a static list of dates, it allows for "Online Memory & Photo Sharing." Families can look at these years later and see photos that friends uploaded—stuff they might never have seen otherwise. If you're planning on attending a service, these pages also usually have a direct link to order flowers or donate to a specific charity the deceased cared about.
Small Details That Save Time
If you’re the one writing the obituary or coordinating with the Modetz staff, there are a few things they do that make the process smoother. They have a reputation for being "on" 24/7. Seriously. John and Mary Modetz are known for answering the phones themselves even at 3 a.m.
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When you’re looking at an obituary online, keep an eye out for:
- Service Type: Is it a traditional viewing at the Silverbell Chapel or a memorial service at a local church?
- Live Streams: Since 2020, many of their services offer a digital viewing option for relatives who can’t fly into Michigan.
- The Memorial Wall: For veterans and first responders, the Silverbell location has a dedicated wall. Sometimes the obituary will mention that the person’s name is being inscribed there.
What to Do If You Can't Find Someone
Sometimes an obituary isn't published immediately. There can be a delay of 24 to 48 hours while the family finalizes the wording or waits for a specific photo. If you know a death has occurred but the modetz funeral home obituaries page isn't showing the name yet, it’s usually best to check back the following afternoon.
If you are looking for historical records—say, a relative who passed in the 1990s—the digital archives might be thin. In those cases, the local libraries in Rochester or Waterford are actually better resources. They keep microfilm of the old community papers where every Modetz notice was printed.
Basically, the Modetz family runs a very "human" business. They aren't some giant faceless corporation. If you’re stuck or can’t find a specific piece of information about a service, just calling them is usually faster than clicking through ten pages of search results. They’re known for being incredibly patient on the phone.
Quick Action Steps for Finding Info
- Search by Last Name Only: The search bars on funeral sites can be picky. Start with just the surname to see all results.
- Check the Location Header: Make sure you aren't on the "Armada" page if the person lived in "Waterford."
- Look for the "Tribute Wall": This is where the most up-to-date service changes (like weather delays) are often posted by the staff.
- Save the Link: If you find the page, bookmark it. Service times sometimes change last minute, and having the direct link saves you the re-search.
To get started, visit the official Modetz Funeral Homes website and use the search tool at the top of the homepage to filter through their current and archived records across all Southeast Michigan chapels.