Updated

A Missouri funeral director is sending his father out with a bang. His father's ashes, anyway.

Greenlawn Funeral Homes will hold its first Firework Memorial program on Saturday night, when fireworks packed with James Carver's cremated remains will be launched skyward as part of his family's goodbye.

Carver's family is the first to try Greenlawn's new program. His son is funeral director Jim Carver. He says his father, who died in 2008, loved watching fireworks and would appreciate the unusual send off. The family will follow the eight-minute fireworks display with a cookout and memorial celebration.

The Springfield News-Leader reports that (http://sgfnow.co/10nwiK6 ) Greenlawn's Fireworks Memorials range from a $300 "Sensational Celebration" to the "Ultimate Goodbye," costing between $8,000 and $10,000.

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Information from: Springfield News-Leader, http://www.news-leader.com