City of Oaks Funeral Home & Cremation
Obituary
Michelle Haran
Raleigh, North Carolina
Age 61.
Died 02/18/2023.
kidney cancer. Michelle is survived by her loving husband of 34 years, Marty, daughter Cassie West
(Jake), and son Joel Haran (Caroline). She was as strong as they come and fought to the end giving us all
an example of how to never give up hope.
Michelle Ann Haran was born September 15, 1961, in Columbus, Ohio. Michelle grew up in Ohio
alongside her three siblings Debbie Davis, Chris Michael, and Todd Michael. In 1986 she would meet her
beloved Marty and would spend the next few years with lifelong friends at the campground, cheering on
the Cleveland Browns, and taking any opportunity she could to go to the beach. With the birth of Cassie
and Joel, her role and true calling of being a mother began. For the rest of her life, she would support
them in all their endeavors. In 1998, the family moved to their forever home in Raleigh where they built
a network of friends that have all become family.
Michelle was extremely devoted to her family. Her love for her children and grandchildren shined from
within her. She was the best Gigi to her three grandchildren; Evelyn, Abigail, and Watson who filled her
last few years with more love and pride imaginable.
Michelle spent 45 years in the service industry. Whether at work or at home, she was a master at
making those around her feel comfortable. Always squeezing in as much productivity as possible into
every day, her work ethic and energy were endless. She spent the last 11 years of her career at Relish,
brightening the lives of her patrons daily.
Michelle wasn’t afraid to spark conversation with strangers and loved others without judgment. These
traits made her many friends including but not limited to her “happy hour” crew of 25+ years, and more
recently her Myrtle Beach crew whom she became fast friends and spent many days on the beach.
Michelle was fierce, kind, extremely industrious, selfless, and the life of the party. She lived her life with
a healthy sense of urgency, making her dream of living part-time at the beach a reality just 5 years ago.
Michelle was happiest at the ocean, and the sunshine always found her. She absorbed it and sprinkled it
to everyone she came in contact with.
The family would like to personally thank the Oncology team at Rex Cancer Center, and the staff at
ProMedica Hospice. Michelle is preceded in death by her father, David Michael, and sister, Debbie
Michael.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Raleigh Rescue Mission which is near and dear to
Michelle’s heart.
https://give.raleighrescue.org/give/273438/#!/donation/checkout
Please join us for a celebration of life on Thursday, February 23rd at 11:00 AM in the Chapel at St. Francis
of Assisi in Raleigh, NC. The family will gather and celebrate with friends at Relish Kitchen Table at 2:00
PM.
For additional information or for service details, please reach out to the family directly.
You can share this obituary using the following address, or click the button below to share on Facebook.
City of Oaks Cremation and Funeral Home is a full-service funeral home in Raleigh, serving all of North Carolina and beyond. We provide an alternative to costly funeral homes and every day we help families in Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and all over North Carolina make simple, affordable funeral arrangements.
Simply having to reach out to a funeral home can feel overwhelming. Our goal is to simplify the entire funeral home experience and make the process as easy as possible. We hope to eliminate any unnecessary surprises by publishing our total cost and the services we provide directly on our website. All of our obituaries are provided free of charge as a way to help families celebrate and commemorate the lives of their loved ones.
Our Promise
Apples to Apples
Just like all other licensed funeral homes in North Carolina, City of Oaks Cremation, LLC is regulated by the NC Board of Funeral Service.
The same laws that apply to the big corporate funeral homes also apply to the modest independently owned firms like ours. All crematories in North Carolina, regardless of who owns them, are inspected annually by the state and must adhere to the same rules and laws.
Genuine Care
We're committed to providing families within our community unsurpassed service before, during and after the time of loss.
Our staff will provide clear communication to your family through each step as we move forward from the original phone call notifying us of a death to the time we deliver the urn back to your family. We will treat your family with the utmost respect, as we honor the wishes of your loved one.
We promise to make this process affordable and as endurable as possible.
State Wide
Our Funeral Home is located in Wake County NC; however, we provide our services to families throughout the entire State.
Unlike other funeral homes, we don't charge an additional mileage fee. Regardless of what county you live in, we can help your family with making simple, affordable funeral arrangements. From Asheville to Wilmington, we're proud to help families statewide.
Our Services
$1196.75
Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. We include everything you need for a simple or direct cremation. Simple, affordable and reliable. We have not changed the cost of our direct cremation service since we opened City of Oaks in 2012.
$2875.66
We offer the option of choosing how you receive your loved ones remains. Selecting our Direct Cremation with Solidified Remains option is a beautiful way to transform cremated remains into 40-60 “stones” that you can hold.
$1917.84
City of Oaks Funeral Home and Cremation provides an affordable cremation option with onsite visitation. Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. Simple, affordable and reliable.
$2497.50
An immediate burial has the same end result as a traditional burial; however, we have eliminated the extra (sometimes unnecessary) services prior to getting to the cemetery. Not everyone wants an open casket for viewing or a limousine for the family. Despite the term immediate, we can move as fast as you need or as slow as you like. This option simply allows you to save money by eliminating some of the fancy extras at the funeral home.
$5866.98
We offer the same traditional funeral services as the big corporately owned funeral homes in the area; however, we cost about half the amount. You might consider a traditional funeral service if your family is looking for an open casket visitation, a traditional church service or a funeral service in the funeral home's chapel. A traditional funeral service can be altered to fit the needs of your family.
$3033.75
This establishment is one of a select number of funeral homes who meet the criteria for providing green funeral service by the Green Burial Council; a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization working to encourage environmentally sustainability in the field of funeral service. Our Green options allow for a funeral to take place without the use of toxic and non-biodegradable materials/chemicals.
$2640.59
As an alternative to traditional cremation, City of Oaks Funeral Home also offers Aquamation. The Aquamation process, often referred to as alkaline hydrolysis, uses a solution of water and potassium hydroxide to facilitate natural decomposition.