A large part of what we do with a family is walking with them from the beginning of grief to the other side.  Often this journey begins with a hospice evaluation, but sometimes, we only start the walk after the pet has crossed over to the Rainbow Bridge.  Our goal is for them to emerge healed and ready to give the love they have to another furry family-member. Never replacing one with another, but rather sharing the love they have in their heart with the next baby to need them.

We first met Olivia, a beautiful, bright and gifted 9 year-old, last January when Mia, her precious baby gerbil had died.  As we wrapped Mia in our blanket and Olivia warned us to be careful and not lose her “because she is so little”, we instantly fell in love.  We learned a few weeks later, when we were again called to take care of Henry, the only hamster in the family, that Olivia had lost her dad when she was just 3…too young to grasp the concept of death, even for the darling and intuitive child that she was.  I’ll never forget Olivia’s response when I asked her if she wanted Mia and Henry to share an urn…she told me adamantly that they could NOT…because “one’s a boy and one’s a girl, and, they didn’t even know each other !!!”

Since our first meeting 12 months ago, we have walked this journey of death and grief and emerged on the other side with 6 of Olivia’s sweet pocket babies; Mia, Henry, Alexis, Emma, Snowball and Sweet Cheeks. Olivia now meets us at the door with the dearly departed tucked into a baggie ready for us to take into our care. 

And in this year, with the loss of so many of her little friends, she has been able to open her heart and her hands, and give the love she has to new babies.  We know that our pet parents  are well on the road to “grief recovery” when there is room in their heart for a new family member.  

What amazed me this week, as we picked up, and then delivered back another pocket pet, is how well Olivia is memorializing these tiny babies that were a part of her life for all too brief a time.  We talk about “establishing significance” and finding a way to remember each life that is gone and how they will forever remain a part of your life. Olivia, in all of her 9 years of wisdom, has grasped that concept better that many families I have served in 2 decades as a funeral director.

We have all heard, and probably said “from the mouths of babes”, but Olivia has put more thought and therapy into establishing the significance of her tiny fur-babies than many people I know do with their human family members. 

A picture is worth a thousand words, so please browse through Olivia’s scrapbook with me, as we look through the eyes of a child; walking the journey of grief.   

Kate Moore, CFSP

Beyond the Rainbow Pet Hospice & Memorial Center, Inc. 

With the legislative action in California bringing some attention to the alkaline hydrolysis process, both within the profession and in the consumer media, now seems like as good a time as any to have a discussion on the process which has been called everything from “Cremation Lite” to a real “game changer.” In the past week there have been many newspaper articles describing the process. But the bigger story is yet to come.

While the process has had some institutional applications, at medical schools, veterinary schools, etc., let’s face it, the process is still in its infancy. No one is calling funeral homes asking the funeral directors to describe the alkaline hydrolysis process. The “wave” referred to in the page 1 headline of the May 13, 2010, edition of the Memorial Business Journal (available now as a free download) could conceivably be 10 years away. But questions are going to be asked about the same time Matthews unveils its commercial bio-cremation unit in St.Petersburg later this summer.

This will be the opportunity for all of funeral service to tell the story of what could be the next chapter in the disposition of remains. And, the conversation will have legs. Anything that aligns itself with the “green” discussion will earn its share of attention. So be prepared.

Hindsight being 20/20, it is widely acknowledged that funeral service dropped the ball when it came to educating consumers on all things cremation during its advent and climb. The discussion about the memorialization, the ceremony, was lost in a discussion about the process and price. Everybody knew there was fire and ashes but the part of the story that wasn’t told was that connection between the process and the service. The newspaper article that Curt Rostad referenced in the headline article described the disconnect succinctly: A funeral director recently was quoted in a news article (commenting on the effect of the recession on the funeral business) that “Some people can’t afford a funeral so they are choosing cremation.”

Somewhere years ago a connection was made that allowed cremation to become more synonymous with the word “funeral” rather than it being communicated that it was only a process — an alternative to earth burial for the disposition of the remains. Funeral directors not particularly happy to offer cremation disparaged the process creating an image-rebuilding project that is still underway. The public perception of cremation was marginalized as cheap, immediate and sterile. How could a process that used fire be seen as something so cold?

Cremation customers were sometimes viewed as low-level customers, “You want just a cremation?” Especially now at the ground floor of a new process, there is a tremendous opportunity to put focus back on ceremony as we talk about a new form of disposition.

Many of the people we spoke with see at least one major opportunity for funeral service in a conversation about alkaline hydrolysis and that is the connect the dots to the ceremony and memorialization process while talking about the disposition process. Funeral service forgot to include as part of the story of where the memorialization process plays into it, they got fixated on the actual disposition and not what leads up to it. The meaning and the value were never on the table during the discussion. The conversation may begin about what you do, but you can easily steer it toward why you do it.

A copy of the May 13 issue of the Memorial Business Journal is available as a FREE DOWNLOAD at www.memorialbusinessjournal.com

Edward J. Defort

All of us in this industry are on top of the cremation trend.  The general public pretends to be on top of this trend, but they are grossly ignorant (to no fault of their own) as to what cremation really means. I see a strong connection to the increase in cremation to being able to put off, ignore or prolong the process of death; this is unhealthy on so many different levels and I wish we could all do a better job of letting the public know this.

Currently, I'm working diligently to propose the construction of a beautiful, yet modest chapel on a small cemetery which our company owns in what is referred to as the "Lake Country area" of Wisconsin.  It's not exactly a rural community in comparison to what rural really means, but it is a smaller community which houses several prestigious lakes.  Included with this chapel is a crematory.   Because of this, the community is outraged.  I'm being threatened, am being called immoral and our company is being referred to as unethical and lacking values - all from people who do not know us personally or likely haven't been involved with actually having to make funeral arrangements for anyone closes to them.  Ouch!  To not take this personally is very difficult. 

I'm not ignorant to our society's general fear of death.  But, within the last 45 days, my eyes have been opened up and I have an entirely different perspective on the general stigma that death creates.  Although this crematory proposal is to be within a cemetery, which has been part of the community since 1847, I'm in awe of the different perception this community has of what we have been doing as a cemetery operation vs. what we are proposing to do as a cemetery operation which now offers cremation services.  My jaw has literally dropped when people try to communicate to me what they think is going to happen if a crematory operation is in their community:  the lakes in the area are now going to be polluted and contaminated; their children are going to get mercury poisoning, the soot created from the cremation process is going to leave a path whichever the way the wind is blowing that day.  I haven't had the courage to ask them about the cremated remains that they scattered over these same lakes because it was "mom's wishes" to do so. Why is this acceptable for them to scatter the cremated remains over the lakes, but they want nothing to do with really understanding how a human body was altered into that form. 

Last night I was watching "Taboo" on the National Geographic channel.  The topic was exactly what I'm referring to here:  The stigma of death.  It was a fascinating episode which I just happened to stumble upon.  It discussed and showed the Hindu vs. American culture's funeral practices along with other topics relating to death.  It reminded me of my hope for our society:  to be more accepting of death, of the conversation revolving around it and the healing process that a funeral, life celebration or some sort of ceremony brings to those left behind.  Ignoring the fact of life - death - is becoming more of the norm.  All of us in the funeral industry need to continue to help families through education and the encouragement of preplanning.   This creates a conversation which likely would not have been had if we didn't individually take the time to provoke a few questions to them. 

It is my hope that the hearing that we are holding on May 5th doesn't get too ugly.  I hope that my passion for showing people how we can help them in the long run by providing quality, personalized services, which now includes cremation, is strong enough to overpower the threats, irrational thoughts and hundreds of people who will be there to oppose the crematory. For what is a natural way to do business for us is causing normally educated and reasonable people to come across as the exact opposite.

Crematory Operator Training
Glen Allen/Richmond Area
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Richmond Marriott West
4240 Dominion Boulevard
Glen Allen, VA 23060
804.965.9500
8 a.m. to 5 p.m. with continental
breakfast beginning at 7:30 a.m.

If you haven’t already received your crematory operator certififcation, you have another chance to do so before July 1st! The International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association in conjunction with the Independent Funeral Homes of Virginia will be conducting a one-day crematory operator certification program on Thursday, May 27, at the Richmond Marriott West in Glen Allen, Virginia.

Click here to register now: https://www.iccfa.com/files/glenallentraining_may2010.pdf

You may now register online for the 2010 session of ICCFA University. Visit http://www.iccfa.com/education-events/iccfa-university/iccfa-university for complete details.

This week I received a message from a former student of mine who today is a success in our profession (no thanks to me having been his professor). His message caught my attention and once again I sat in my office asking myself questions about the state of the state of this great profession.

Here is the situation my former student encountered.  In one week two former casket company sales representatives and executives from two separate casket companies died and my former student received the call to serve both families.  I gleaned from his message that these two men had worked in the casket world for decades, and between the two many decades of work had taken place, and I was of the thinking that thousands of casket had been sold to funeral directors who in turn sold them to bereaved families.

Both casket representatives were immediately cremated.  No casket, no embalming, no flowers, and no nothing save for the incineration of the dead human remains, and an instruction from the descendents of both families concerning the disposition of the cremated remains.  There you have it in a nutshell, and this made me start thinking.

I have the firm conviction that it is anyone’s absolute right to choose what they want.  No question, I mean this is American – freedom reigns supreme.  The funeral profession and cemetery activities will not fold up because two former casket sales reps, or someone else for that matter, decided to do what anybody finally decides to do.  Options and alternatives are quite popular in our society today and the insightful funeral profession offers scads of options and alternative.  This decision concerning the two casket representatives is not the end of the world.  There are many more important issues confronting the human experience than what happened to two casket reps who sold caskets thousands of times.

However this situation just started my brain thinking again about the state of the state of this world of death that we all live in.  Here are some unanswered questions that I have, and as I always like to learn stuff about my profession, so I openly ask for anybody reading this to jump in the deep end of the pool and educate this old fat grumpy undertaker as to why these things continue to go on.   Remember these questions come from Todd, so don’t expect too much sophistication.

Here are some questions:

1.  Why would someone who has sold caskets for decades to hundreds of funeral directors upon their own death would not utilize a casket? 

2.  Why would a funeral director, who has conducted hundreds and in some cases thousands of funerals in their career, upon their own death not have a funeral?  I remember several times in my own limited career that some mighty prominent funeral directors died and nothing was done.  No ritual, no ceremony, nothing.  Why?  Does this not strike anyone else out there funeral land as something to question?  When a funeral director does not have a funeral for themselves what kind of a message is sent to the community that they have served faithfully for years?  Is it not an oxymoron, the funeral director might just not like funerals?

3.   Why it is less expensive to cremate a dead human body than to dig a grave usually? Crematories require thousands and thousands of dollars of equipment and facility investments, and cremation requires certifications, training and expensive on-going maintenance,  and has significant liability and is a time consuming procedure, and then the post cremation activities are involved and requires meticulous attention to detail, but yet to dig a hole in the ground with a mechanical digger, which takes much less time than to cremate, and if the grave, God forbid, is dug in the wrong place the error can be quickly corrected (an error in cremation cannot be corrected), and there seems to be no certification and formal training to dig a grave, so why does this cost more money than to cremate?, And if you die and want a burial on a week-end the cost can be ten times what a cremation costs to accomplish.   So here is my question: why is digging a grave so much more expensive than cremating a dead body?

4.   Why is it that embalming a dead human body is cheaper than digging a grave?  A dead human body was alive, lived life, and influenced others.  In some religions the human body is sacred.   Learning the art and science of embalming is not a snap.  It takes time, several years of college education, mentorship, internships, study, examinations (tons of them) skill, knowledge and expertise.  Embalming a dead human body appears to me to be ten times more intricate and requires ten times more skill and knowledge than it does to dig a hole in the ground, no matter how important that grave might be.  Why is this?

These are four questions that just baffle me, and I ask for and am extending the right arm of fellowship to any reader that can help me fill in the blanks concerning this stuff.  I am obviously missing something here, but then missing stuff happens to me all the time.

I am asking for insight, for education, for your thoughts out there in the funeral/cemetery world, and please don’t give a thought if your answers establish that the person (me) who generated these questions is not the sharpest knife in the drawer, many people have concluded that fact years ago.  Your thoughts, honest candid thoughts, are welcomed, and at my stage of life and career, well, folks, when you have been shot with seventeen arrows the eighteenth one does not hurt very much.  I hope to hear from many of you good folks.

TVB

The first month at my first job in funeral service (I was very young), the firm I was associated with was summoned to a mansion to make the removal of an extremely wealthy person who was a member of one of the pioneer merchant families. In other words, he was "loaded!"

Everybody in the area knew he was a total recluse and basically was never seen anywhere, let alone at the great big department store his family owned downtown.  I had driven past this man’s mansion a thousand times and it was a gloomy “Withering Heights” looking thing which had a scary looking brick wall surrounding the property.  Every time we would pass the mansion, the same story would be told.  Whether the story was true I never found out, but it was one hell of a story.

The story goes that this old multimillionaire recluse had been a passenger on the “Titanic.”  As everybody knew, the “Titanic” sank with a terrible loss of life.  However the stunner about this old recluse and the “Titanic” was that this man was supposedly the man who had dressed up like a woman to escape the fate of the ship’s sinking – remember, women and children first.  The story that somebody had dressed up like a woman to get off the “Titanic” was common knowledge; I had seen it in the 1952 movie “Titanic” with Clifton Webb and Barbara Stanwyck.  However, the local twist was that this recluse millionaire was the actual person who had acted in such a cowardly manner.

The story continued that this man returned home in total disgrace because he had easily been found out and quickly identified, and that his utter and complete shame was the reason for his total withdrawal from society.  It was one hell of a story, and gave us all the heeby jeeby’s when we would tell it.  Today I doubt that it is true, but it is still a good story.

This night the alleged “Titanic” recluse had died and the firm I was associated with was called in.  My boss told me to say nothing, absolutely nothing, just stand there looking stupid, which I was able to do perfectly without any error.

When we arrived at the mansion, we were instructed to go to the back door for privacy.  As we entered the mansion, the widow was sitting at the breakfast nook with a half empty bottle of vodka – it was 5 a.m. and she was popped.  I felt sorry for her until she opened her mouth.

The bereaved widow left nothing to the imagination.  She declared to all that her husband was worthless, the years with him had been wasted, that he was reprobate, rogue, a rascal, who ignored her and worse was a complete and worthless coward, and she wanted him out of the mansion – NOW!

Her instructions were clear.  Burn him up immediately.  Do nothing, say nothing, just burn him up.   Not even an obituary, although she did ask if cremation was absolutely the cheapest way to go.  What did she want to do with the cremated remains, you ask? Who cares? was her response. She told us to do what we wanted to with them.  I suspect they are still sitting in the mortuary, in the eternally, absolutely free cremation storage closet in the basement of the mortuary since 1966!

I did not feel so sorry for her when we left.  In fact I felt mighty happy to get out of that house with a deranged widow present who was polishing off a gallon of vodka and sitting extremely close to carving knives and other such sharp kitchen weapons.

Not one word was said on our trip back to the mortuary.

The millionaire was cremated.  End of story?  Well, not quite yet.

About two years later we received another call from the mansion.  There had been another death.  This time, however, we did not take the funeral coach, but instead the sedan. 

Once again my boss instructed me to play stupid and say nothing, and I am happy to report  that my skills at acting stupid had definitely improved over a two year span of time – by this time I was an expert at the art of stupidology.

Once again we went to the back door, and once again here was the wife of the deceased millionaire at the breakfast nook, again with a bottle of vodka, again chain smoking, again dressed in a skimpy nightgown – she was again popped.  The only difference, which was a big difference, was that this time she was out of her mind with grief.  She was weeping, sobbing, crying, bawling so much so she could not talk.  Finally she blurted out, “She is in there,” pointing to the mansion’s library.

“Ishy Pishy Poo Poo” had unfortunately passed away.  The death was not totally unexpected as the poodle was 300 years old, but still the death had come as a horrible shock to the nervous system of this poor woman.

Courageously my boss looked my way and instructed ME to pick the dead dog up and wrap her in a baby blanket and carry her gently out to the sedan.  I damned near burst out laughing – you want me to wrap up a dead dog with a what? but my boss was deadly serious – he was not laughing at all.  The removal was professionally made and off to the mortuary we went.  Not one word was said, but having grown up on a farm where animals were usually seen as just animals, my brain was spinning with thoughts that still to this day must be kept private.

“Ishy Pishy Poo Poo” was placed in a solid bronze child’s casket filled in the bottom with dried ice, and taken to the mansion to lie in state in the library surrounding by Ishy’s favorite toys, bones, rags, food and water bowls, winter apparel and of course surrounded on the book shelves by the likes of “Moby Dick”, “The Scarlett Letter,” “Plato’s Apology” and other classics in literature.

A grave was dug on the property and the local vault company lined the grave with concrete and brick.  In time an extremely nice monument was erected with Ishy’s vital statistics engraved, and the inscription “Love Is Eternal.”  I was not allowed to attend the funeral – it was a private affair.

The pet owner’s grief was real.  It was true.  It was authentic.

Having grown up around farms, I was struck for many years after this experience by the seemingly odd fact that this pet owner would expend more time, money and emotion on a dead dog than on her own dead husband.  However my confusion over such life matters simply reflected my innocence and naïveté concerning such matters.  I was unenlightened. I had not lived long enough.

I today watch the pet funeral area growing by leaps and bounds, and I say bravo.  Yes, it is probably sad that a woman will think more of memorializing her dog than her husband or vice versa, but who is to really judge this?  Is it really that sad?  I say no, it is not.

Given the state of affairs concerning just marriage – let’s see a 50%+ divorce rate for going on a half a century, then add to this everyday cheating, lying, and a myriad other reasons why human relationships fall apart . Contrast to this vulnerability the possibility of loyalty, unconditional positive regard, total commitment, fun, entertainment, cuddling, walking, playing with a pet. Why shouldn't the living give their dead pet who was more trustworthy, kind, and considerate than the dead human the experience of leave-taking and saying a formal goodbye?  I again say bravo.

In fact, children are instinctually programmed to have funerals for their dead pets, long before they have figured out the meaning and purpose of adult funerals.  Leave a child alone and don’t let adults fiddle with things and corrupt them, and sure enough, when their pet dies there will be some type of funeral.  Too bad children grow up and become adults concerning funerals.

I have watched, albeit from a distance, one of the large professional associations embrace pet funeralization and memorialization and I say go for it.

Given the fragility of human adult relationships these days, the innocence and security that many pet relationships offer creates bonds, lasting bonds, which are filled with wonderful memories.  Honestly I have encountered many adults that when I look back at my relationship with them the memories are – well let’s just say they are less than stellar – and some of these people have been dead for years – I have not forgotten.

However when I remember my little dog “Tinker Bell,” yes folks that was her name, “Tinker Bell” (anybody want to make something of this?), my memories of that little dog are of sitting with her on the banks of the Nishnabotana River in Iowa and pouring my soul out to her about people who had upset me or did not understand me – my goodness Tinker Bell was a marvelous listener.  In fact I have never encountered any human being who could match her in listening skills.  She seemed to understand that you cannot talk and listen at the same time.  She never said one word, just listened and licked my face – what great memories.

When my dog was put down (that’s an Iowa phrase) I was devastated, however my buddies and I gave her I believe four different impressive stately funerals in one day, and while I could not afford a solid bronze child’s casket, my buddies and I all worked on an orange crate and painted it a beautiful bronze color, lined it with a white sheet, put a transverse cut in the lid and held a public viewing in my barn. That was indeed “Tinker Bell’s” precious metal casket.

Grief is an emotion pure and simple.  Love is an emotion pure and simple.  They go hand in hand in life.  I have had people in my life profess love and take it back and I have done the same thing.  I have had people all my life say this and that – but it was only words, no action, and I have done the same thing.  Yes, here and there in my life noble human beings have emerged who are trustworthy, loyal, and kind and good listeners, and when that happens my life is indeed sweet.

It was my pet, however, who batted 1,000 in these “sweet” characteristics.  It was my dog who was my buddy and friend, companion and confidant.  It was my dog who when she died indeed deserved a funeral – she got one, and even to this day I feel peace of mind and a long standing feeling that I and my kid community did the right thing – she died in 1962.  I bet even Ishy’s mother would agree with me on this point, with or without the vodka.

It is a danger for human beings to distance themselves too far from our animal friends and compatriots – we inhabit the same globe – none of us can escape, we are on this planet together.  Bonds that create security, stability, comfort, loyalty, support, unconditional positive regard, I vote are good no matter where they come from.

My vote is for us to jump on the pet funeral and commemoration movement in a big way, it seems to possess all the ingredients necessary to really help people out. And in the end what more do we have to offer our communities, our friends, our family, and today, our pets?

I believe that funeralization and memorialization are wise and valuable for all life, no matter their technical genus or species.  Saying goodbye under any conditions just makes sense.

Anyway that’s one old undertaker’s opinion. TVB

Star Legacy Funeral Network, the casket supplier to Wal-Mart, has reached an agreement with Internet giant Amazon.com to add an extensive line of cremation products to the site. The first wave of the rollout, 117 SKUs of cremation urns, appeared on Amazon.com on Nov. 10. In about two weeks the rest of Star Legacy’s cremation offerings — pet urns, jewelry and flowers — will be added. 

I do not like to bring up subjects that annoy people.  Well on second thought there are a few people I like to annoy, but not many.

With that said, and with profuse apologizes made right now before I really say anything, I have noticed that the press is amazed at the number of people who die at this particular time and have no funds per se for a funeral, cemetery plot, or even cremation.  Also the newspapers are reporting that this trend is not going to slow down anytime soon.  Once again I sit back and wonder the same old thought, why is it that the press just misses so much about the truths, the many truths, the glaring truths, about funeral service?  

For years I have known that the press does not “get it” about us and for a while I thought it was because they were just rash, rude and rough, but over the last several years I have developed a sneaky suspicion that they really do “get it” they just don’t want to report it, because “getting it” about funeral service almost always translates into the average Archie and Edith Bunker in America ending up being quite interested in our fascinating profession, and that translates into “good news” for us.  We know the press gives lip service to good news, but does not really like good news because good news does not create fear, and worse yet the readers and listeners of the news might just conclude that the world is not such a bad place, and that idea terrifies media people, who seem to thrive on doom and gloom. 

I can’t empirically prove this, but my old trusty Iowa farmer’s instinct tells me I am right on the mark about this issue.  Good news just does not sell – that is really a shame. 

So now the media is telling us another doom and gloom story that people are in a financial bind because the economy is in the bucket and of all things this is affecting funeral service.  Now there is an extremely insightful idea – something in life affecting funeral service – my, my they do know how to cut to the chase.  I would venture to think that the only people who are not in a financial bind concerning just about everything in life are those fat cats on some famous street in New York City whose mouths are watering right now in anticipation of some mighty obscene bonuses which I think you and I are paying for.  I also suspect that those fat cats are not in the least concerned about paying for a funeral when they need one.  In fact it might easily be predicted that these fat cats will never ever be concerned about death care costs, because I have noticed when a family pulls up in a Bentley their loved one usually goes out in a carboard box with no services whether the Bentley is paid for or not. 

In my career it is Archie and Edith Bunker, the salt of the earth, common folk who pull up to the funeral home in a Chevy whose loved one often times goes out in a wood or metal casket, with some services.  Thank God for the common folks, I believe they are the foundation, the rock, the anchor of our great profession – but exploration of that subject is being held for a future blog.  (I can’t still believe I am blogging!).

Anyway.

For many years I have been told, undercover of course, that people who select cremation are, well, cheap, they don’t care, they are strange.  Might I balance the scales here a tad?  For my entire career I have encountered clients, no matter what method of final disposition they select who are, well, cheap, they don’t care, they are strange (to me, anyway, and I have been mistaken many times in these judgments).

Sometime back I concluded that people choose cremation because it reflects in an almost unconscious way how they have lived their lives, long before they encountered any funeral director and/or cemeterian.  Long, long before.

I believe that in the instance of cremation the attraction –  again almost unconsciously these days – is because it mirrors how these good people, common ordinary people have eaten, driven, entertained themselves, cooked, washed, taken care of their autos, just lived daily life long before they were involved with our profession. In other words they walk in the front door with already set lifestyles, attitudes, values and convictions concerning the disposal of the dead, and unfortunately they might well have formed these pretty solid ideas without any input from any person from our profession. Now that is too bad.

Seems to me that most people make medical decisions in consultation with a physician, dental decisions in consultation with a dentist, financial decisions with a banker, educational decisions with a teacher, but too often, way too often, rock solid decisions are made concerning death services or the lack of them without any consultation with the funeral director.  To be sure consultations with funeral directors happen every day but possibly not on the scale to which is might or should.  Too bad so many people have such solid opinions and arrive at such convictions concerning anything to do with death and fail to converse or communicate with the funeral director.  We have some dandy valuable information – anyway I believe we do.

In fact I had a woman tell me once, very innocently that she spent more time picking out her hair dresser than she did the funeral director when her husband died, and her experience with this 11^th hour funeral director was not good.  When I suggested to her that it was her responsibility to select a reputable funeral director to insure she didn’t end up with what she encountered with the “last minute” guy she got grumpy with me. 

So right now, people, good common ordinary people, have become used to a way of daily life which is quick, painless, easy, instant, and perceived as inexpensive - this latter point is all the more critical these days.  Put all those ingredients together and when people walk into the funeral home it might well be way too much to expect on our parts to ask them to “slow down” and smell the roses, and experience something which we know is valuable but they have not developed those insights which are common knowledge to you and I.

For years we have known in funeral service that people want instantaneous gratification.  Now add a terribly shaky economy to this mix, and the implications for funeral service are something to monitor and examine carefully.

When I was a child in Iowa if I ordered a hamburger, French fries, and a soda it took on average about half an hour for my food to show up, and guess what?  We all waited, never complained, had no high expectations, we just sat there waiting for the food – of course that was in 1956.

My father would take our car to the service station to get the oil changed and we had to leave the bloody vehicle all day long and three service attendants worked on the project throughout the entire day – of course that was in 1962.

Let’s do an internal check.  How many of us would wait for a NUMBER FOUR at Burger King for say half hour?  How many of us would leave our auto at Jiffy Lube for an entire day just to get the oil changed?  I am predicting - - - - NOT MANY!

Now add to this social condition the ingrained social mores and folkways about life being fast and easy and add a horrible economy. Why would anybody these days wonder why the number of people who die and have no money would be increasing? 

The average layperson might be interested in such news, but for you and I this reality is yet another truth concerning people caring, or not caring, for their dead in a consistent manner with how they live their life day to day.  This is a powerful insight which calls out for analysis and action, for if anybody in our profession wants to get a true, accurate, real insight as to where funeral service has been and where it is going, all anybody in any funeral home or cemetery needs to do is to get out of the office and walk downtown and witness daily life, soak it in.  This is a real type of focus group as sure in its accuracy as if a funeral company paid a professional focus group leader $100,000 to come to town and tell them what’s going on.

Downtown, neighborhoods, the local café, the church suppers, and scouting activities, the Friday night ballgames all are living indicators, all are truth serums as to what is going on in your communities, which will ultimately translate into what is going on in funeral service, cemetery work, cremation, burials, and yes, even indigent/penniless deaths.  I find it disconcerting that the poor indigents or just people who can never pay for a funeral through no fault of their own never before made the newspapers until now when increasingly their deaths create (according to the reports) an economic hardship on the community.  Can the indigent and poor of this country when they die possibly be a problem?  The dead being a problem, what are we coming to?  I think a much better question would be to ask is why is it that these people dying without any money, did they once have money, and if they did what happened to the money, which appears today to be translating into a pauper’s grave or immediate cremation?  What happened to these people? 

Yes people are going to care for their dead in a consistent manner with how they live their lives, and if now they have no money – well my friends in funeral service, what are the alternatives? 

Do you think any of the bonus people, the very wealthy, would, because of this terrible economic situation kindly make a large contribution to the “Worthy Poor Funeral Fund?”  I doubt this very much, and as has been the case before in funeral service history, the responsibility of caring for the dead in good and bad times falls to the local funeral director/cemeterian.

I am of the opinion that these poor economic times will see funeral history repeat itself so in the end the compassionate, caring and concerned service to humanity regarding basic care of the dead, regardless of monetary wealth, regardless of station in life, regardless of unavoidable changes in life circumstances and fortunes, will end up on the front door step of the local, hometown funeral director, as it always has in the past.  Thank heavens many funeral homes still have good old-fashioned front porches on them – the front porch has always been a symbol of safety and comfort which are mighty important mental health assets in turbulent times like these.

A great American funeral director - I mean folks this gentleman was one of the best in our profession - once passed along two pieces of funeral service philosophy, not advice but philosophy, to me.  First he said that the word “No” should not be in any funeral director's vocabulary, and second he said, “If it is mentionable by the family it ought to me manageable by the funeral home.” 

This great American funeral director was named Alfred Bickford Marsh and I worked for him while I was a student in Mortuary College in Boston.  No matter who walked through the front door Mr. Marsh embraced them, exercised unconditional positive regard, and became a legend in funeral service.  What an honor it was to work with him.

My friends, Al lived his philosophy with a consistency that most men never attain in life.  He had the ability to gauge his community, he accepted always without question any call, he served "the least of these," and he drove a 1964 Plymouth Fury which seemed to always be in the shop.  The stellar human beings who have been attracted to funeral service make one proud.

Times are not good right now, and there are good people who are living in a consistent and required “new economic” manner by having to watch pennies, to tighten up the belt and yes to spend money on life essentials and in the end possibly die without funds. 

This is happening right now, but as mentioned before, consultation with a funeral professional is ALWAYS a good idea.  Since funerals and death activities are important aspects of living life, given the current situation might it not be wise that funeral homes/cemeteries rekindle, rejuvenate, rebirth the advance planning programs, and get out into the communities and tell our important story? Not to make a sale, but to help a friend make wise and careful and informed decisions and help them make the future not such a scary place.

Anyway that’s one old undertaker’s opinion.    TVB

I just finished reading a short news clip concerning burying the dead with respect and dignity.  I read nothing new in this short article save for the fact that the author was a clergyperson associated with the Unitarian-Universalist Church.  Having been a Unitarian myself for years I found it interesting that a clergy of this particular denomination would even give the issue of treating the dead with respect and dignity a glance, let alone compose a short epistle on the subject.  Bravo – I personally thought it a breakthrough of sorts to have a leader in an extremely liberal religious movement, where many of the Memorial Societies in the country are located and who historically have promoted cremation and memorial services, to take up the torch that the dead deserve respect and dignity.  This clergyperson focused her outline on an examination of the seven corporal acts of mercy, the seventh being “burial of the dead.”

It would be a miracle if this clergyperson’s thoughts took hold in the mainstream, but hope springs eternal and concerning the care of the dead I have discovered, at times much to my chagrin and at times much to my own humor, that almost anything goes these day.  In fact I had a conversation with a buddy of mine yesterday conceiving the idea that what we could do next with cremated remains is load them up in empty shot gun shells, blast them into the sky, and gather the casings and get them bronzed and engrave the name of the deceased on the outside – and sell them.  I then discovered that once again my imagination is not that sharp, for a farmer in Iowa is already offering this type of service to his community – does death creativity and invention have any limits? 

Will Durant, the great Columbia University philosopher, once remarked that “religion is the last subject the intellectual tackles,” and so right was Mr. Durant.  If you want controversy just start talking religion and surely you will find the controversy you are looking for.  

However let’s tackle religion a bit concerning this haunting 7^th Corporal Act of Mercy – burial of the dead.  From the outset let me assure my associates and friends that I am not anti-cremation, and I recognize the foolishness of taking such a position in this period of death care history (but as any student of history knows the popularity of cremation will change over time).

With that disclaimer said let me state a few facts regarding the historical traditions of the Judeo-Christian tradition in regards to this 7^th Corporal Act of Mercy.  Historically the Christian church and the Jewish temple have basically been against cremation – it’s true.  Now of course this stance against has changed in a big way, but the history has not changed.

For years I have been told by not just a few people that funerals are “pagan.”  It is abundantly clear that those who pontificate such remarks have no clue as to the relationship of paganism and cremation.  It was the pagans, not the Jews or Christians who embraced cremation.  Throughout the history of Judaism and for most of Christian history cremation has been an extremely rare practice, and the early Christian believed firmly that cremation was not a wise decision, based on the following:

• Pagan cultures used cremation as a method to deny the reality of the Christian conception of a bodily resurrection and hence used the burning of a dead human being to mock the Christians belief in a bodily resurrection.  We need to remember that the dualism of body and soul is not a Christian concept, but it instead emerged in the Greek philosophies of Plato and Aristotle.  
• The Bible clearly teaches that the human body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit and cremation was viewed as an extremely destructive process as compared to earth burial.
• Jesus was not cremated.
• The early Christian equated fire with hell.
• Cremation caused practical problems even in the early period of Christianity in determining foul play and the cause of death.
• Cremation was formally prohibited by Constantine the Great, the first world leader to embrace Christianity.

In time the issue of cremation became so frustrating to the Roman Catholic Church that Pope Leo the XIII issued Canon Law #1203 which reads:  “The bodies of the faithful must be buried; cremation is forbidden.”  Then #1203 goes on to prohibit all Roman Catholics from joining memorial and/or cremation societies whose purpose according to the church is to deny the bodily resurrection.

On May 8, 1963, Pope Paul VI removed Canon Law #1203, and recently I was informed of the cremation of a Monsignor in the Roman Catholic Church.  Things have indeed changed.

However this history, while possibly interesting to some, does not address the 7^th Corporal Act of Mercy which was not removed by any council of the church; the concept is alive, but maybe not well.  “Burial of the Dead” continues to impact our culture and life, and when one stops and seriously ponders this act of mercy some sobering thoughts come into mind.

First the 7^th Corporal Act of Mercy does not say “Cremation of the Dead.”  It clearly states “Burial of the Dead.”  I think however what this really is saying has not so much to do with the method of final disposition – I mean what you have in a grave over a long time, you have in a crematory chamber in a very short time.  The implications must be of a deeper more thoughtful nature.

I think this 7^th Corporal Act of Mercy is a clear call to those of us who decided to devote our lives to the ethical care of the dead – regardless the method of disposition.  It falls, in a big way, to every funeral profession, embalmer, cemeterian, everybody involved with our great profession, to think out, practice, and instill the ethic of Reverence for the Dead in the minds, hearts, and nay souls of everybody involved with this terribly important work.

To be sure the family unit is fractured, and sometimes the very next of kin are not in the least concerned about what happens to Dad’s body – but that does not automatically mean that you and I should abandon our level of care, abandon the 7^th Corporal Act of Mercy – just because we are standing in the shadows of a disunited, disgruntled, disharmonious family unit.  No our work, our mission, our calling supersedes the agenda of any wacky family.

I have only to alert my associates and friends to the horrors of necrophilia, to the atrocities of the German concentration camps where millions of dead people were treated in a most repulsive manner, to the anguish that a family and community feels when a dead body cannot be found, to prove that someone has to be charged with the responsibility of maintaining the 7^th Corporal Act of Mercy, and my dear friends that charge falls to you and me.  This is a good profession to be involved with.

However one last question lingers in my mind and I will simply poise the question without any attempts at answers or analysis.  The Christian perspective is of a true bodily resurrection; the scripture writers do not separate the body and the soul as the Greeks did.  No one talks much about this, and the last time I taught this stuff in a Sunday School class, people who had chosen cremation for others and also themselves got mighty defensive and did not much like the historical background.

Still, whether it is popular, or even in our contemporary culture, rational, if the bodily resurrection is accurate, if the ancient teaching is true,  then the question can easily be raised: What is going to happen to all the hundreds of thousands of people who have been cremated?  I have found very few people interested in exploring this with me. Anybody in blog land have a thought or two?  I would be mighty interested.

Anyway that’s one old undertaker’s opinion.

 TVB

Please read this touching essay by Nicole Brodeur, a columnist for the Seattle Times, about her family scattering her mother's cremated remains. When Nicole wrote about her mother's death last year I emailed her and we corresponded for a little while about life, death and memories. I was glad to see this follow-up column. I posted it on my facebook page with the comment that while a lot of people in death care disapprove of scattering, and that I agree there should be a place to "visit" your loved one, that does not mean scattering can't be a meaningful, healing experience and form of disposition. Just a refreshing look at our profession from the point of view of those whom we serve.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nicolebrodeur/2009465947_brodeur14m.html

Required Virginia Cremation Certification Training Sessions Scheduled

Attention all Virginia funeral directors, cremationists and cemeterians:
Effective July 8, 2009, all crematory managers and retort operators are required to obtain certification that is recognized by the state Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers. The Commonwealth of Virginia has recognized the ICCFA as an official provider of crematory certification training.

Get the edge over your competition by obtaining your certification training NOW from the ICCFA! Training sessions are scheduled for:

o   Tyson's Corner, Monday, July 13: Embassy Suites Tyson's Corner, 8517 Leesburg Pike, Vienna, VA, 22182
o   Richmond, Tuesday, July 14: Homewood Suites Richmond Airport, 5996 Audubon Drive, Sandston, VA, 23150
o   Norfolk, Wednesday, July 15: Doubletree Hotel Norfolk Airport, 880 N. Military Highway, Norfolk, VA, 23502

Download a registration form here. COST: $349 for ICCFA members; $429 for non-members (includes breakfast, a box lunch, refreshments and a comprehensive operations manual covering all aspects of crematory operation and maintenance)

The ICCFA Cremation Operator Certification program, presented in concert with Matthews Cremation Division and ICCFA Cremation Coaches Poul Lemasters and Julie Burn, consists of extensive training including:

o   professional terminology
o   incinerator terminology
o   principles of combustion
o   cremation and the environment
o   incinerator criteria and design
o   basics of operating cremation equipment
o   general maintenance and troubleshooting
o   litigation
o   forms and record keeping
o   handling and exposure control

REGISTER TODAY - HURRY AS SEATS ARE LIMITED!

Resources Available At The Library Of Congress Web Site (updated periodically)

Would You Await The Judgment Day In Urn Or In Coffin?
[New-York Tribune (New York [N.Y.]) September 04, 1910]

Prejudice Against Cremation Is On The Decline
[The Washington times (Washington [D.C.]): November 13, 1904]

Cremation's Odd Phase
[The Suburban Citizen (Washington, D.C) April 20, 1901]

Joaquin Miller Has Built His Own Funeral Pyre
[The San Francisco Call (San Francisco [Calif.]), October 9, 1898]

Cremating The Dead: It is warmly advocated
[The Salt Lake Herald (Salt Lake City [Utah) May 20, 1894]

Cremation For The South
[The Daily Herald (Brownsville, Tex) March 11, 1893]

Desiccation and Cremation
[Manufacturer and builder / Volume 21, Issue 8, August 1889]
Text version (uncorrected)

The New York Cremation Society
[Manufacturer and builder / Volume 19, Issue 6, June 1887]
Text version (uncorrected)

Cremation and Christianity
[The North American review. / Volume 143, Issue 359, October 1886]
Text version (uncorrected)

Cremation in Boston
[Manufacturer and builder / Volume 16, Issue 8, August 1884]
Text version (uncorrected)

Cremation
[Manufacturer and builder / Volume 16, Issue 7, July 1884]
Text version (uncorrected)

The Advantages of Cremation
[Manufacturer and builder / Volume 15, Issue 5, May 1883]
Text version (uncorrected)

Earth-burial and Cremation
[The North American review. / Volume 135, Issue 310, September 1882]
Text version (uncorrected)

Progress of Cremation
[Manufacturer and builder / Volume 13, Issue 11, November 1881]
Text version (uncorrected)

Cremation
[Manufacturer and builder / Volume 12, Issue 9, September 1880]
Text version (uncorrected)

Objections against Cremation>
[Manufacturer and builder / Volume 6, Issue 6, June 1874]
Text version (uncorrected)

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in 2004 implemented a rule for transporting urns as carry-on luggage, requiring that urns must pass successfully through the x-ray machine. According to TSA, many urns generate an opaque image and will not be permitted through airport security, and urns will not be opened by security personnel.

TSA recommends that consumers purchase a temporary container made of wood, plastic or non-lead lined ceramic for transporting their loved one's remains.

TSA also asks that cemeteries, crematories and funeral homes communicate to customers who plan to transport cremated remains via carry-on luggage the need to purchase a temporary urn along with their permanent urn or to purchase a permanent urn that meets the TSA requirement. It asks that suppliers who offer these types of urns and manufacturers who are able to create metal or standard ceramic urns with a removable container that can be successfully x-rayed also take note of the rule.

Following is the text of a letter received by the ICCFA General Counsel Robert Fells, Esq., from Bob Kapp of the Department of Homeland Security:

April 15, 2004

The Transportation Security Administration has implemented a new procedure affecting those passengers attempting to transport a crematory container on an airplane as carry-on baggage. You are still allowed to carry-on a crematory container, but it MUST pass through the x-ray machine. If the container is made of a material that generates an opaque image and prevents the security screener from clearly being able to see what is inside, then the container will not be allowed through the security checkpoint. In respect to the deceased, under NO circumstances will a screener open the container at any time, even if the passenger request that this be done.

If the x-rayed image is opaque then the next option is to transport the remains in the belly of the plane as checked baggage. The crematory container will undergo testing for explosive devices and, if cleared, will be permitted as checked baggage.

Most travelers carrying an urn are understandably hesitant to check the remains of their love ones in checked baggage. For these reasons the TSA strongly recommends that you suggest to your patrons planning on traveling with an urn that they purchase a temporary crematory container made of a material that CAN be successfully x-rayed, such as wood, plastic, or NON-lead lined ceramic. Even if they want to purchase a permanent metal or lead lined urn, they MUST have a temporary container that can be x-rayed for air travel.

As part of our outreach and education we have contacted the main funeral home associations on this matter and they have promised to make their members aware of our policy changes. Your portion of this outreach and education is important and will curb many of the urn related customer service problems.

Thank you for your support and participating in our goal of "Providing World Class Security and World Class Customer Service."

Please let me know if I can provide any additional information.

Regards,

Bob Kapp
Department of Homeland Security
Transportation Security Administration
Denver International Airport

The ICCFA Government and Legal Affairs Committee has developed a set of 28 model guidelines for state laws and regulations. The guidelines combine a sensitivity to consumer protection issues with the need for all industry members, whether for-profit or not-for-profit, cemeteries, crematories, funeral homes or retail monument designers, to conduct their operations according to sound business principles.

One of these guidelines relates specifically to the cremation process:

Handling Of Human Remains In Conjunction With The Cremation Process

A complete listing and links to all 28 Model Guidelines can be found here.

The ICCFA has developed a Model Cremation Authorization Form, which you can modify to comply with the legal requirements of your state (see "model_authorization_form.doc" at the bottom of the page).

The three-page, double-sided form includes nine sections:

1. Deceased Information
   
2. Funeral Home and Crematory
   
3. Cremation Container and Urn
   
4. Multiple Cremations, Witness, Service and Time
   
5. Authorization
   
6. Final Disposition
   
7. Certification and Indemnification
   
8. Certificate by Funeral Home Upon Transfer of Decedent's Remains to Crematory
   
9. Receipt of Cremated Remains

The ICCFA, with the help of attorney Harvey Lapin, Esq., president of Harvey Lapin PC in Northbrook, Illinois, offers model contracts for funeral homes and cemeteries using third-party contractors (see "sample_contract_funeral_crematory.doc" and "sample_contract_cemetery_crematory.doc" at the bottom of this page).

These model forms are intended as suggested guidelines only and should be modified to conform with each company's particular circumstances.

Additional information and advice on working with third-party crematories can be found on the Cremation Coaching Center's Due Diligence pages.

Due Diligence for Funeral Homes Utilizing Third Party Crematories

Step Four: Crematory Inspection

The final step in the crematory due diligence process is to conduct an unannounced inspection of the crematory during business hours. The unannounced inspection should be conducted at least once a year. If the crematory refuses to permit the inspection, it is strongly recommended that the funeral home switch its business to another crematory.

Funeral home personnel conducting the inspection should use a checklist to document their findings (see "sample_inspection_checklist.pdf" at the bottom of this page).If any problems are observed during the inspection, funeral home personnel should note it on the Checklist, raise those concerns in writing to the management of the crematory and make sure that the problem is remedied.

A new Checklist should be filled out for each inspection. As with all other documents, maintain a permanent copy of each Crematory Inspection Checklist in the cemetery due diligence file.

Due Diligence for Funeral Homes Utilizing Third Party Crematories

Step Three: Crematory Interview

The third step of crematory due diligence is to interview the management of the crematory to obtain information on its personnel, facilities and operations. A list of sample interview questions have been prepared that probes each of these three areas (see "crematory_interview_questions.pdf" at the bottom of this page). Funeral homes should feel free to supplement these questions with their own inquiries.

Prior to conducting the interview, the funeral home should call for an appointment so that the crematory manager is available and has set aside sufficient time for the interview. Funeral home personnel conducting the interview should take written notes of the responses to the questions. If any response is unsatisfactory or raises concerns, address it with the crematory manager immediately. For example, if the funeral home personnel believe that the crematory’s system for ensuring proper identification of a body is insufficient, discuss it with the crematory manager and obtain written assurances that your concerns will be addressed.

If after returning to the funeral home and reviewing the responses to the questions, the funeral home still has concerns regarding the crematory, list those concerns in writing and send them to the crematory manager. In addition, if the funeral home believes it needs further information, send a written request to the crematory listing the follow up questions. If the crematory does not respond in a timely manner, the funeral home can either contact crematory management again or decide not to use the crematory.

Make sure that the cremation interview sheet with your written notes, any followup inquiries, and all responses from the crematory are maintained in the permanent due diligence file on the crematory.

Continue to Step Four: Crematory Inspection

Due Diligence for Funeral Homes Utilizing Third Party Crematories

Step Two: Crematory Records Request

One important aspect of due diligence is a review of the licenses and operational records of the crematory. A crematory should be willing to provide copies of its licenses and applicable operational records to each funeral home it serves. A refusal by the crematory to provide the records when requested should be regarded as a red flag to the funeral home.

Funeral homes can download a records request form (see "crematory_records_request_form.pdf" at the bottom of this page). If the crematory does not send the requested records or makes an incomplete response, the funeral home should follow up with the crematory to obtain the records.

Once the records are received, review them to see that the crematory has proper authorization under state law, has trained its operators, has adopted comprehensive operational procedures, maintained sufficient liability insurance, and utilizes appropriate authorization forms. If you see a deficiency, raise it with the crematory and have it addressed to your satisfaction. If it is not, use another crematory.

All records obtained from the crematory should be maintained in the due diligence file that the funeral home keeps on each crematory. In the file, the funeral home should maintain a log showing when the records were requested, received, and reviewed, and, if any deficiencies were detected, when they were brought to the crematory's attention and when the matter was resolved.

The records request should be updated at least once a year.

Continue to Step Three: Crematory Interview

Due Diligence for Funeral Homes Utilizing Third-Party Crematories

Step One: Internal Due Diligence for Funeral Homes

Due diligence begins with a review of the funeral home’s own internal procedures. Examine each of the following areas to ensure that the funeral home properly handles cremation cases internally:

A. Cremation Authorization Forms

Does your state have a cremation authorization law which dictates the disclosures that must be addressed on a cremation authorization form? If so, make sure that the funeral home is utilizing a form that is in compliance with the requirements of the statute. If your state does not have such a law, make sure you are using a cremation authorization form that requires, at a minimum, the authorizing agent to attest to each of the following items:

• The identity of the decedent after positive identification has been made by the authorizing agent or his/her representative.
• The identity of the authorizing agent and his/her legal authority for authorizing the cremation.
• Authorization to remove and dispose of any medical devices implanted in the remains or a representation that no medical devices are present.
• Permission to cremate the body and mechanically pulverize the cremated remains after a detailed explanation of the process has been provided to the authorizing agent.
• Acknowledgement that the alternative container or casket will be cremated with the remains.
• Acknowledgement that some commingling is inevitable and that it is impossible to retrieve all of the cremated remains.
• A designation of the urn and/or container which will be utilized to hold the cremated remains.
• Specific instructions as to what disposition is to take place with any personal property (clothing, eyeglasses, jewelry) on the remains.
• Specific instructions as to whom the cremated remains are to be delivered or, in the alternative, what other disposition of the cremated remains is to be made.
• Certification as to the accuracy and truthfulness of all statements made in the authorization form and indemnification of the funeral home and crematory by the authorizing agent.

B. Identification Process

The funeral home must have in place an identification process that ensures that any body received by the funeral home has been positively identified by the authorizing agent or his/her representative. An identification tag or medallion should be affixed to the remains throughout the entire time the body is in the possession of the funeral home. The funeral home should have the crematory execute a receipt for the remains of the decedent at the time the remains are turned over to the crematory.

When the funeral home receives the cremated remains back from the crematory, it must also maintain a strict identification process for the cremated remains. Identification should be attached to the urn or container holding the cremated remains and an identification tag should also be placed inside the urn or container. If there is more than one container holding the cremated remains, both containers should be similarly identified and each identification tag should reference the fact that the cremated remains are in two containers. Cremated remains should always be stored in
a secure, enclosed area with a log book showing when and from whom the funeral home received them and when and to whom the funeral home delivered them.

If cremated remains are placed in a pendant or other piece of jewelry, or incorporated in some other fashion into an object, that object should be identified as holding or containing the cremated remains of the decedent until such time as the funeral home delivers it to the family.

C. Transportation

The funeral home should deliver the remains to the crematory using its own personnel. Funeral home personnel should confirm that the crematory operator has accepted the remains, that the crematory operator has been presented with the cremation authorization form and any necessary permits and authorization, and that the crematory operator has executed the receipt.

D. Handling Cremation Remains

When accepting cremated remains from the crematory, funeral home personnel should immediately inspect the urn or container to ensure that there is appropriate identification attached to the urn or container. Once the funeral home has taken possession of the cremated remains, it should only deliver the cremated remains to the recipient designated in the cremation authorization form. If the authorizing agent wishes to change the disposition or delivery instructions in the cremation authorization form, any such modification should be in writing, signed by the authorizing agent, and delivered to funeral home personnel. Funeral homes should always obtain an executed receipt when turning over possession of the cremated remains to the authorizing agent or a designated third party.

E. Insurance Review

Funeral homes should periodically have their insurance agent review their professional liability (also known as "errors and omissions") insurance to determine if it is at adequate levels and covers liabilities for independent contractors that the funeral home utilizes, such as a crematory. Funeral homes may also want to consider the purchase of an umbrella policy which could cover in the event of a catastrophic court judgment against the funeral home.

F. Due Diligence File

For every outside crematory the funeral home uses, the funeral home should have a "due diligence" file. In that file, the funeral home will place the documentation and reports that will be generated from following the other three steps outlined in this due diligence package.

Continue to Step Two: Crematory Records Request

Due Diligence for Funeral Homes Utilizing Third Party Crematories

Introduction

This package was compiled using materials provided by the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA), the Cremation Association of North America (CANA), and the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA). As part of this cooperative effort among ICCFA, CANA and NFDA, this crematory due diligence package will be available to members of each association.

Funeral homes that use outside crematories are hiring third parties to provide an intregal part of the services which they have sold to a family. As such, the funeral home has a responsibility to the family to ensure that the crematory will carry out the cremation in a legal, professional and ethical manner. The best method to obtain these assurances, and to protect the funeral homes from liability in case of a problem at the crematory, is to carry out the four-step due diligence process outlined here.

By carefully following each of the four steps, a funeral home will undertake important steps to protect the cremation families it serves and to reduce its own potential liability. In addition, crematories that offer services to funeral homes should be prepared to respond to the information and document requests set forth in this package or risk losing the business of funeral homes.

Funeral homes and crematories that have questions regarding this due diligence package should feel free to contact their respective association for guidance.

Please note: The steps outlined here attempt to cover all possible situations. As a result, many funeral homes may find that not all of the precautionary steps set forth need to be included in their review of third-party crematories. Each funeral home must decide for itself which steps are appropriate for the protections of the funeral home and the consumers it serves.
 

Continue to Step One: Internal Due Diligence for Funeral Homes

ICCFA Cremation Guidelines

Statement of Purpose

The following Cremation Guidelines have been published by the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association to voluntarily foster professional standards of care and consideration by our members. These Guidelines supplement and complement cremation-related materials previously published by the ICCFA, including "Recommended Procedures for Handling Human Remains for Cremation," two "Model Guidelines for State Laws and Regulations," "Due Diligence for Funeral Homes Utilizing Third-Party Crematories" and "Model Contracts for Funeral Homes and Cemeteries for Dealing with Third-Party Crematories."

Definitions

Authorizing agent(s): the person(s) legally entitled to order the cremation of the remains.

Certified operator: an individual formally training and duly certified in the operation of a crematory.

Crematory authority: the legal entity, such as a funeral home, cemetery, or independently owned crematory, or authorized representative of the legal entity who conducts the cremation.

Cremation chamber: the enclosed space within the crematory where the cremation process takes place.

Cremation process: the heating process that reduces human remains to bone fragments, followed by the processing that reduces bone fragments to unidentifiable dimensions.

Remains: the dead human body prior to cremation or the cremated remains.

Handling the Deceased and Identification

The remains of the deceased shall be handled in a dignified manner which shall include the following:

• Covering of Remains: Prior to cremation, the remains of the deceased shall be respectfully clothed, covered or protected at all times.
• Identification System: The crematory shall at all times be able to identify the remains of the deceased before, during and after cremation.
• Pre-Cremation Preparation: Prior to cremation, the remains of the deceased are to be properly handled in a manner consistent with generally accepted mortuary methods and any applicable governmental agency policies, laws, rules and regulations.
• Positive Identification by Authorizing Agent: Prior to cremation, the remains of the deceased shall be positively identified by the Authorizing Agent or their assignee.
• Personal Possessions: The placement or removal of any personal possessions, such as jewelry etc. to be cremated with the deceased, must be by written instruction of the Authorizing Agent.
• Foreign Material: Non-bone fragment foreign material that was part of the deceased prior to cremation and recovered with the cremated remains, such as an internal prosthesis, shall be removed prior to processing. Such material may be commingled with other material and shall be disposed of in a dignified manner, such as burial in a cemetery, in accordance with all applicable laws.

Consumer Considerations and Expectations

A certified Operator, Administrator or Counselor shall voluntarily pledge that cremation consumers shall be afforded the following courtesies and considerations as may be applicable:

• Good Faith: All interactions shall be conducted with professionalism, respect, dignity and in accordance with all applicable laws.
• Full Disclosure: A written explanation of the cremation process including any restrictions, such as metal caskets, will be provided to the Authorizing Agent prior to the performance of any cremation, and any questions related to the process or potential options of final disposition will be answered. All documents required by law, including any authorizations, will be explained and copies provided for the Authorizing Agent's retention. In the event that a consumer feels the standards outlined herein are not of consequence or unnecessary and prefers another provider, at their request, they will be respectfully assisted to find a provider that might better meet their needs.
• Witnessing: The Authorizing Agent shall be advised of his/her right to witness the placement of the deceased into the cremation chamber and shall accept or decline this offer in writing. Witnessing of any aspect of the cremation and processing procedure shall be in compliance with all applicable law and any safety regulations.
• Timing of Cremation Prior to cremation, the approximate timing of the cremation shall be disclosed in writing and acknowledged by the Authorizing Agent.
• Release of Cremated Remains Cremated remains shall only be released, delivered, mailed or disposed of in a dignified manner, in accordance with the law, and with expressed written consent of the Authorizing Agent.

The Crematory Authority

• Individual Cremation: All cremations are performed individually unless there is a specific request by the Authorizing Agent instructing to the contrary for extenuating circumstances such as the simultaneous death of a parent and child. The crematory authority shall reserve the right to agree or decline a special request by an Authorizing Agent.
• Recordkeeping: Records, logs and documentation are maintained in a clear, correct, organized and timely manner.
• Cleanliness: The crematory will be maintained in a clean, orderly manner and ready for unannounced inspection at any time.
• Recovering Cremated Remains: After each and every cremation, manual means, such as brushing, and industry-specific mechanical means, such as vacuuming, will be employed to retrieve the cremated remains.
• Disposition of Cremated Remains: 100% of the cremated remains recovered from the cremation chamber and processing equipment shall be prepared for disposition in the manner directed per the written instructions of the Authorizing Agent.
• Animals and Pets: The crematory will not cremate animals or pets in a cremation chamber used for the cremation of human remains.
• Applicable Law: The crematory authority and all assigned personnel will obey and operate in compliance with all laws, rules and regulations of any governmental authority with oversight or jurisdiction over the crematory.

For Administrators

• Use of Certified Operators: All cremations will be performed under the auspices of an operator certified by ICCFA or another recognized authority.
• Crematory Personnel: The crematory authority will only employ individuals of integrity to operate the crematory, interact with the public, maintain records and engage in the recovery, handling and delivery of cremated remains.
• Education and Training: The crematory authority is committed to provide initial training for its staff along with continuing education and certification.

If you're in Indianapolis, you don't have to go to a funeral home or cemetery to check out cremation options—just go to the mall.

This summer, Flanner & Buchanan Funeral Centers & Crematory started renting information kiosks from Simon Malls at their Castleton and Greenwood malls. The company wanted a creative way to showcase the numerous service and product options available to people who choose cremation.

The kiosks are unstaffed and brochures with reply cards were not added until the middle of August. Even so, as of the beginning of September, company Vice President Bruce Buchanan said 15-20 phone calls, three preneed sales and four cemetery placements for cremated remains had resulted from the kiosk campaign.

The company had no problem getting the mall's management to approve the idea, Buchanan said. When approached by Flanner and Buchanan staff, mall management ''had that initial reaction that anyone would have of 'this is an unusual topic,'" he said, but they quickly agreed that cremation is a topic many people are interested in, it's an important topic and there aren't a lot of places people can go for information.

In the end, Buchanan said, "instead of us having to sell the idea, they came right back to us and said it was a great idea. They really embraced it."

Flanner & Buchanan operates both funeral homes and cemeteries, so why a display focusing on cremation? "Cremation is the fastest growing service choice in the country," Buchanan said. The company installed the first crematory in the state in the early 1900s and has been a leader in cremation services ever since. ''This is just an extension of something we already provide, and have for generations."

He hopes the kiosk will spark discussions among family members "about what they want for themselves when they die," Buchanan said.

Including Service and Memorialization Options
In planning what to place in the limited space available, Flanner & Buchanan wanted to "get across some sense of the value of a service—which is hard to do in a display like that, because it's a concept," Buchanan said. "We didn't want this to be overly product-oriented, but that's kind of the outcome, because the products help make up the kiosk."

Even so, in addition to the urns and other vessels for holding cremated remains, including a clock, jewelry and wooden boxes, there are photos to help get across the point that cremation is not an alternative to a funeral or other service.

"We have pictures of a memorial service," Buchanan said, "and we show cremation gardens, some of the beautiful places in our cemeteries.

"What we're finding is that people need permission to do some of the things they would like to do but are afraid to bring up because they're afraid they're going into a very traditional environment with a set way of doing things. We want them to know what some of their options are.

"It's so hard to get information out, and there's so much misinformation about cremation. And there's a whole romantic myth that's built up around scattering.

"I try to tell people that one of the values of a cemetery is it provides tangible proof that someone in your past or someone you loved actually lived."

A computer that shows people the company's Family Legacies life tributes is also part of the kiosk. Using the touch-screen technology, people can look up their loved ones' profiles or simply see how the system works to record and preserve the life story of the deceased.

"We've had four individuals call us to make a placement of previously cremated remains in one of our cemeteries, which we think is spectacular," Buchanan said.

The LifeGem option is also included in the display, and a sale is pending as a result, Buchanan said.

The local media had just begun to take notice of the kiosk, Buchanan said at the beginning of September. "I would be surprised if we don't get more coverage."

Though they were concerned that the display would create more questions than answers, they decided not to staff the kiosks. An informational kiosk is less expensive than a selling kiosk, for one thing. For another, "often when you have someone standing there, it repels people," Buchanan said. "We wanted to let people walk up and look things over."

The kiosks are rented on a monthly basis from Simon Malls. Renting any kind of kiosk becomes very expensive as the holiday selling season heats up, so at that point Flanner & Buchanan will pull out and assess the feedback they've received. ''Then we'll start up again, probably in January or February," Buchanan said, possibly making some changes in the display at that time.

THE MEANING OF FUNERAL SERVICE

How has the work of funeral directors and cemeterians changed?
What sorts of challenges do funeral service professionals face in the future? Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks' symposium on the American way of death focused on these issues.

Three renowned scholars recently examined the American way of death at a symposium hosted by Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks in Southern California. The symposium, organized by the Forest Lawn Museum, brought together experts in the fields of history, urban planning and religion to discuss cemetery history, funeral rituals and changing attitudes toward death in the United States.

Speaking in the newly renovated Hall of Liberty at Hollywood Hills Memorial Park, David Sloane, Stephen Prothero and Gary Laderman offered historical overviews of the cultural and religious foundations of cemeteries and funeral homes, as well as insights into current and future trends that could affect funeral and cemetery services.

More than 50 people attended the symposium, including members of the funeral profession, the Neptune Society, museum professionals, historians, university students and the general public. Forest Lawn Memorial Parks offered this program as part of its continuing effort to help the community celebrate life's meaningful moments.

The Forest Lawn Museum offers a year-round calendar of free events designed to enrich, inspire and educate the community through programs about history, culture and religion.

The three scholars approached the subject from different angles and sometimes differing viewpoints.  This article offers a summary of each of the presentations.

Cemeteries: The Challenge to Stay Relevant
By: David Sloane
 
Cemeteries today face a significant challenge: Staying relevant in a rapidly changing society.

One aspect of this challenge is the growing ethnic diversity in America. As new immigrant communities embrace traditional cemeteries, they also are asking them to incorporate modifications that reflect their own beliefs, values and ways of expressing grief. By accommodating these differences, traditional cemeteries can strengthen their service to new communities.

Yet another aspect of the challenge for traditional cemeteries is a renewed sentimentality that has reshaped both public and private memorialization. By recognizing different styles of memorial expression and experimenting with new styles, cemeteries will be better equipped to serve a broader clientele.

A major example of non-traditional expression is Maya Lin's 1982 Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the starkly modem composition of which caused innovations in public memorialization in the United States. The ''Wall,'' designed not as an unchanging monument but as a moving composition to be understood as we move into and out of it, has become a living shrine owned by those who visit the site.

In similar fashion, the AIDS Memorial Quilt begun in 1987 now includes more than 44,000 panels and seems like a type of ever growing "fabric cemetery" that serves not only as a poignant memorial but also as a tool for prevention and education. It is the largest ongoing community arts project in the world, incorporating messages of remembrance, awareness and hope expressed in highly personal ways.

Rather than depending solely on traditional avenues of public relations, many new and older cemeteries are demonstrating resiliency in the face of change and challenge as they forge new relationship" with their communities.

The incorporation of "friends" groups and the addition of nature walks, historic tours, contemporary art exhibitions and public lecture programs represent renewed efforts to establish and sustain community interest in cemeteries. Roadside shrines, virtual cemeteries and video biographies are alternative modes by which Americans express themselves with regard to death, grief and memory. Through these innovations, American cemeteries are demonstrating flexibility and adaptability to changing times.

Coming from a family that for four generations has designed, landscaped and managed cemeteries in Ohio and New York, Sloane is uniquely positioned to explore the history of cemeteries in America. He holds a doctorate in American history and serves as an associate professor in the School of Policy, Planning and Development and holds a joint appointment in the Department of History at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. In 1991, he published "The Last Great Necessity: Cemeteries in American History," which traces the transition from churchyards to urban cemeteries to suburban memorial parks and explores how the landscape of the cemetery is created and altered by economics and practical needs, by institutions and powerful ideas.

Rituals Do Matter
By: Gary Laderman

Within all human societies there are questions, indeed dilemmas, regarding death that require culturally relevant answers.

Why do we die and how do we make sense of it? What should be done with the body and who should handle it? How should the living relate to their dead? What meaning does death give to the living?

Far from shunning or fearing death, 20th century Americans have been obsessed by it and the material culture surrounding it. Popular culture both reflects this behavior and attempts to make sense of death in a manner that reveals the issue's complexity and its relationship to larger societal trends and events.

Rituals matter, and most cultures place a great deal of emphasis on the disposition of the body. For many people, such rituals ultimately have a bearing not only on the living but also on the post-mortem destiny of the deceased. Herein lies the value of the American funeral.

The story of disposition in the late 19th century reflects the rise and triumph of the funeral home and the funeral director. Most of the social and cultural transformations that resulted in the modern funeral profession were complete by the 1950s. Today, the anchor and focus of the profession remains the funeral home.

Within a larger cultural context, the rise of the funeral director and the funeral home parallels the rise of the hospital and the doctor. It is significant that both gained authority over the body, removing the care of the dead from friends and family and placing it in the hands of experts. In the same manner, the funeral director and funeral home also relegated priests, ministers and other religious figures to subordinate roles. However, despite what may be seen as an increasing secularization of death, American religious values associated with death are deeply rooted and remain strong.

Examples from 20th-century popular culture that document America's fascination with death and the religious meanings circulating in the rapidly changing century include Thorton Wilder's "Our Town"; the early animated films of Walt Disney such as "Bambi," "The Skeleton Dance" and "Fantasia"; contemporary animation, including "Finding Nemo" and "The Lion King"; horror films; rock and roll, hip hop and heavy metal music; and the high-profile funerals of Rudolph Valentino, whose body was displayed in a funeral home window, and John F. Kennedy.

Tracing the stereotype of the funeral director in popular culture before Jessica Mitford's "The American Way of Death" reveals that a negative image existed long before the publication of her 1963 book. There is the corrupt, exploitative undertaker in Mark Twain's "Life on the Mississippi," the damning depiction of the mortician in Thomas Wolfe's "Look Homeward Angel" and the friendly and ridiculed undertaker Digger O'Dell in the radio show "The Life of Reilly."

The true complexity of funeral directors is only beginning to appear in the public arena, with a fuller picture finally emerging in the eyes of the media through shows such as HBO's "Six Feet Under," in which the profession is portrayed as a respectable one that supports the community's deepest needs and wishes.

In the latter half of the 20th century, numerous events shaped the funeral industry and American attitudes toward death. During the 1960s and 1970s, the Vietnam War gave rise to questions about the meaning of and necessity for death in the service of our country, questions being raised again today. In the 1970s, the Federal Trade Commission's investigations into the funeral profession led to consumer empowerment. In the 1980s, AIDS brought a number of changes, including an interest in cremation in some cases because of the condition of the body.

Also during the past few decades, new immigration patterns have brought increased populations from East Asia, Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe and Central and Southern America. They bring with them different traditions and customs surrounding the handling of the dead that they want to see continued in their new country.

Laderman is an associate professor in the Department of Religion at Emory University, where he serves as director of the Graduate Division of Religion, is associate editor of "Journal of the American Academy of Religion," is on the editorial board for the electronic-only "Journal of Southern Religion" and directs the department's Pluralism Project, which studies and documents the growing religious diversity of the United States. He wrote "Rest in Peace: A Cultural History of Death and the Funeral Home in Twentieth-Century America" as a follow-up to "The Sacred Remains: American Attitudes Toward Death, 1799-1883." Most recently, he published the three-volume "Religion and American Cultures: An Encyclopedia of Traditions, Diversity and Popular Expressions." 

Cremation: Why the Rate Has Risen -And Why It Isn't Higher
By: Stephen Prothero

How did cremation make the transition from being a radical idea to a practice that any American can comfortably choose?

Why has the cremation rate reached 27 percent in America and why is it not higher still, as in Great Britain (71 percent), Japan (98 percent) or Sweden (68 percent)?

Following a 1874 landmark article published first in Great Britain and immediately afterward in the United States, cremation gained widespread attention as a possible solution to urban epidemics. For the remainder of the 19th century, intellectuals, health practitioners, theologians, ministers and the general public debated the issue, either supporting cremation for public health reasons or opposing it based on traditional religious values.

By the end of the 19th century the practice of cremation was widespread enough that more crematoriums were being built. During this time, the handling of cremations moved from the non-profit to the profit sector, from the control of intellectuals and ideologues promoting it on principle to the purview of profit-driven business people equipped with economic strategies.

From 1945 to 1963, the growth in cremation remained flat, with the rate hovering around 4 percent. Two events in the 1960s the publication of Jessica Mitford's "The American Way of Death," which among other things promoted cremation, and the end to the Catholic Church's ban on cremation caused the cremation rate to start rising again.

The 1970s saw further growth, as direct cremation businesses developed new business models for efficiently and inexpensively making cremation available to more people, notably in the West, where cremation rates today range from 47 percent to 60 percent. The 1980s and 1990s brought cultural values such as environmentalism and simplicity into the mainstream with the aging of the baby boomers, further increasing the cremation rate. Cremation has also benefited from today's "customization" culture, in which Americans are increasingly intent on expressing their individuality, with a need to put a personal stamp on everything, including funeral rituals.

Cremation rates in the United States remain lower relative to many other countries for a couple of reasons. First, neither federal nor state laws mandate a type of disposition—the free market reigns and personal choice prevails. Second, the American public remains strongly religious. Data documents lower cremation rates in states where traditional and evangelical religions remain strong.

Cost is not the reason for the cremation boom, since data show the wealthiest people are the most likely to choose cremation, while the poorest are more likely to spend more on traditional funerals. Burial choices are not typically made for financial reasons.

More important to the cremation boom is a change in the theology of everyday life that has become increasingly evident over the past 20 years. American religious thought is migrating toward a gnostic view of the self, viewing the soul as external from rather than one with the body. Under this view, sited memorialization—which is not universal—may be seen as unnecessary. This offers a challenge to traditional funeral and cemetery practices.

Prothero is chairman of the Department of Religion at Boston University, where he teaches a popular course called "Death and Immortality." He is co-editor of "Asian Religions in America: A Documentary History" author of "The White Buddhist: The Asian Odyssey of Henry Steel Olcott" and co-author of the Encyclopedia of American Religious History. His 2001 book "Purified by Fire" is the first historical study of cremation in the United States.

Is cremation an afterthought at your funeral home? Will your business still be viable—not to mention profitable—no matter what the cremation rate is in 2010, 2015 and beyond?
The time to reconfigure your business model and how you market to cremation families is now, not when your "traditional" business has all but disappeared.

Although today I continue to operate a business my parents founded nearly 50 years ago, the business my Mom and Dad ran and the business I operate are hardly the same. One of the more significant of the many ways they differ is that today nearly 50 percent of the folks prearranging their services choose a different form of disposition, different items of service and different merchandise—if any—from what was delivered by my parents beginning in the 1950s and continuing well into the 1980s (in Pennsylvania).

Picture in your mind for a moment the funeral of President John F. Kennedy.  Now, picture the funeral of his son, JFK Jr. Those two pictures speak volumes about changing consumer attitudes and preferences with regard to funeral service.

This change in consumer preferences, the fragmentation of services selected, the reduction in merchandise purchased and increased competition have created great financial challenges for the funeral profession.

It's Time To Bury The Old Financial Model
Since the advent of "direct cremation," most of us funeral directors have based our financial model on a system that increasingly burdens the consumers who choose a traditional funeral with covering the funeral home's overhead, while treating the direct cremation financial transaction as an "add on." This model does not work, and its failure is ever more accentuated as the cremation rate rises.

Over a period of many years, our funeral service forefathers brilliantly created a system that supported the outcome of the arrangement. They introduced items of service such as embalming, the rental of funeral home facilities, coaches and limousines. They introduced various types and models of caskets and burial vaults. They developed a system that supported the outcome of the arrangement when a consumer came to them to "bury Dad."

Today, we have in place in many markets a not-so-brilliant system in which the outcome supports the arrangement. You've seen the ads: "Cremation—$595."

Personally, I cannot comprehend that anyone's primary consideration in making final arrangements for a loved is the lowest possible price, but research tells us that about 27 percent of cremation consumers make a buying decision based on price. The problem is that as an industry, we've educated the other 73 percent of cremation consumers on how to make a purchasing decision based on what that 27 percent wants.

We have made cremation a commodity. In many instances, the outcome (low price) supports the arrangement. So what's the difference in the eye of the consumer between the cremation services you offer and those offered by your competitors? The price!

By and large, a significant problem in the funeral service profession today is that this model does not support our true overhead. The answer to the problem lies in creating a model suited to today's market conditions that supports the outcome of the arrangement just as the one our forefathers created in the past. That answer lies in the system we choose to put in place for the 73 percent of cremation consumers for whom the primary purchasing decision is something other than price.

To be specific, to support "Full Price" we need to differentiate ourselves from our competition in order to give consumers a reason to call us and pay full price.

One example: having a private, consumer-friendly crematory on site, a facility with a non-threatening and non-sterile appearance operated by certified crematory operators and open for inspection at any time.

At our funeral home, we spotlight value (as opposed to price) in our ads, such as:
•    "Your Loved One Never Leaves Our Care."
•    "Where will my Loved One be Cremated?"
•    "Funeral Directors at Bean are Crematory Operators Certified by the Cremation Association of North America."
•    "There's No Doubt with Bean, our Trained Professional Funeral Directors Handle Everything."
•    "Only Bean has a Private On Site Crematory, Available for your Inspection at any Time."

In light of the events at Noble, Georgia, these messages address issues important to consumers. My friend and colleague Ernie Heffner has run an ad with the direct and thought-provoking theme: "Whose Ashes are in the Urn?"

When meeting with a family to make cremation arrangements, we conduct ourselves in the same manner as when we meet with a family who has chosen a traditional funeral. By that I mean that we make no assumptions as to their wishes.

I hope that, at a minimum, everyone in this profession today insists on an identification viewing prior to the irreversible process of cremation. This is an ethical and a legal necessity, given the litigious nature of our society.

One of the most important questions we ask a family when making cremation arrangements is if they would bring in clothing for the identification viewing. This immediately communicates a high level of respect and signals the fact that we are providing a dignified level of care for their loved one.

We need to focus on the fact that the family has just suffered the loss of a loved one. As Trust 100 President Alan Creedy says, we need to remember Mom, remember Dad.

Many families at first will say they don't want a viewing. However, we have found that after the cremation arrangements have been thoroughly explained, the date and time for the identification viewing have been set and the clothing has been gathered by the family for the viewing, many people will arrive for the ill viewing accompanied by several other family members—sometimes as many as 20 or 30—and sometimes with their minister for a short prayer service.

In fact, this occurs so regularly that we have factored this overhead into our overall pricing strategy. It is a "win-win" situation in that consumers are more satisfied and the funeral home receives a fee proportionate to the level of service provided. The outcome supports the system simply by focusing on people, not on price.

Another means of creating value is package pricing, or compressed pricing, in which you create several packages and include them in your General Price List. As an example, we have a package called "Direct Cremation with Memorial Service Including Ceremonial (Rental) Casket For Private Family Viewing with Committal Service,” which includes the following:

•    basic services of funeral director and staff and overhead,
•    transfer of remains to funeral home within 20-mile radius,
•    preparation of remains for private family viewing,
•    staff and use of facilities for private family viewing,
•    staff and use of private crematory for cremation,
•    up to three days' use of refrigeration facilities,
•    use of ceremonial casket for private family viewing,
•    staff for memorial service,
•    staff for visitation up to two hours prior to memorial service,
•    funeral coach,
•    urn ark,
•    limousine (local),
•    flower/service vehicle (local),
•    committal or other disposition service,
•    acknowledgement cards (25),
•    guest register,
•    personalized memorial tributes & prayer cards, and
•    temporary grave marker
The package includes most of the services and merchandise found in a traditional funeral service, and we price it accordingly, including a proportionate share of our true overhead. We have found that families are more than willing to pay the necessary charges because they perceive value in the many services covered by the package, even though historically the arrangement may have been thought of as "just a direct cremation."

Over the past couple of years, we have seen the introduction of memorial tributes that incorporate several photographs of the deceased along with service information, poetry and scripture or thoughts written by loved ones. These tributes can be tied into a seemingly endless array of themes, from which the family can select, such as the ocean, civil or military service, hobbies or nature.

These types of memorial tributes can be pricey and time-consuming to produce, but we have found them to be invaluable to consumer satisfaction, so we incorporate them into most of the package selections we offer.

Why are the memorial tributes so important? They give family and friends a keepsake of photographs they will treasure all their lives. Recently I met a gentleman in a social setting who could not thank me enough for the memorial tribute we had provided at the service for his best friend.
 
He told me he framed the tribute and keeps it on his desk, where he can glance at the photographs and remember his friend every day.

This type of product can differentiate your funeral home from your competitors. It can communicate that your funeral home is special and offers something valuable that, because of the cost and effort involved, few of your competitors offer.

When factored into your overall pricing strategy, these tributes will infinitely impress the people who attend services at your location, will offer something of tremendous value to the families that you serve and will differentiate your funeral home and promote your brand.

Be Brand A, Not Brand X
What do I mean by promoting your brand? A brand is a promise to fulfill a consumer's expectation of a certain level of integrity, quality and consistency. A premium brand is a recognized product for which consumers are willing to pay a premium based on their higher expectations.

We see brand recognition in everything from facial tissues to ketchup to automobiles. Recently I've noticed that hospitals and homebuilders are focusing on promoting their brands in their marketplaces by differentiating their services from those of their competitors.

Rather than focusing on the price of an arrangement, those of us in funeral service would be well advised to focus on differentiating ourselves with special products and a higher level of service—and promoting the same at every opportunity. By doing this, we are developing a special brand in our marketplace, one that leads families to expect a premium level of quality, integrity and consistency, a level that our companies deliver.

What are some specific concepts you can use to develop a brand? We develop our brand by delivering on our promise to deliver that premium level of integrity, quality and consistency. We do it by reinvesting in our facilities and in our staff, by offering special products (such as those memorial tributes) and by having a private on-site crematory that communicates a special level of care. We do it by offering a level of care and consideration that our competitors do not offer, by personalizing services with photographs and mementos that hold special meaning to those attending services.

We develop our brand by focusing on people, not on price.

You also need to communicate that brand, that level of integrity and quality of service, in all of your advertising. Develop a unique logo and brand your signage, your Web site, your newspaper and television advertising, your newspaper death notices, the memorial tribute folders and memorial folders you offer—everything you can think of.

It may seem adverse to our ingrained funeral service logic to take this contrarian approach by offering more for more. But simply by remembering "Mom," remembering "Dad," by focusing on people rather than on price, you will ensure your client family's satisfaction and your financial success as you adapt to the changing funeral service environment.

Why do people choose cremation?
What is most important to families planning a service for a loved one?
What should the funeral director's role be during the service?
A celebrant who has worked with families for several years shares with fellow funeral service professionals what she has learned.

A few years ago, I became certified as a celebrant through the Doug Manning—In-Sight Books training. I dabbled in the field for the first couple of years by doing a service now and then.  Recently, however, I have made a true career change. Now I do celebrant work full time and find it to be the most rewarding endeavor I have ever embarked on.

My experiences with families are wonderful. It is an honor and privilege to help people create a meaningful tribute to their loved one and provide a service that meets their needs.

I have been to the ocean and performed scattering services. Many ceremonies are graveside services, some at the local national cemetery. A few have been in funeral home chapels and some have been in retirement homes.

I find it interesting that the majority of my referrals come from immediate disposition companies. Much of the time someone from the firm attends, passes out folders and arranges flowers, helps with the music and performs other tasks.

The majority (86 percent) of the families I have served chose cremation. There have been many different reasons why, but not one has told me it was because it was less expensive.

One reason I've heard is that a deceased parent wanted to be placed with a predeceased spouse but the surrounding space in the cemetery had been used and the only option the survivors could think of was cremation so that the cremated remains could be placed in the existing grave site.

In several cases, those making the arrangements told me they were following the wishes of the deceased. In those cases of "following orders," scattering always seemed to be the final disposition after cremation.

In some cases, placement in niches or walls where other family members were memorialized was chosen.

Only once have I been told that the person had wasted away with disease and the person handling arrangements thought the deceased would not look good for a viewing.

Cremation, Viewings and Value
About 50 percent of the cremation families I have served have seen the body and held a viewing for family and friends. Some said that the body didn't look like their loved one, but many commented that seeing the body helped them. If the body is available, I view the deceased, too. The majority of the time, the body is beautifully prepared and presented.

I try to meet with every family I serve to gather all the stories and memories I can to create a meaningful service. Only twice have I failed to bring the family together for this purpose. Once it was because the family was out of state. (I did manage to talk to them the evening before the service.) In the other case, because of a huge family rift some of the children simply refused to be in the same room with one another... but that's another story.

Sometimes we in the profession think that folks who choose cremation for their loved ones do it because they care less about the deceased than those who opt for traditional services. This simply is not true!

In talking to cremation families, I find that they care very deeply about their loved ones. Cremation is not the enemy. These families are willing to do things that matter—things they see value in doing.

Merchandise probably is not nearly as important to the consumer as it is to the funeral service provider. To providers, it is a revenue stream, right? Well, for many consumers, it is a necessary but unwanted evil. I have officiated over many cremation services with the plastic box containing the cremated remains right up front. If it doesn't bother the family, it doesn't bother me.

When I ask, as I always do, "Will the urn be present?" usually the family says yes, they would like to have the urn present. They see value in the cremated body being at the service.

I don't ask them questions about the urn itself unless the conversation happens to go in that direction and it turns out there is a special significance to the style or color chosen. A number of people have replied to my question about the urn by saying, "Yes, the urn they provided for us will be there."

For how many years have vendors been advising funeral service providers not to "provide" the family with an urn (or container, if you will)? How many times do suppliers have to say, "Ask the family to select the container they want to use" for the message to get through?

If you glean nothing else from this article, remember this: Stop providing a temporary container for cremated remains. Instead, always ask the family to select a container. They will be happier, and so will you.

The reason is simple. Out of all the families whose loved ones' remains were in a plastic box, only one told me they didn't like anything they were shown. All the rest told me no one offered them anything else and they would have liked to have something other than the plastic box.

If you're thinking, "that can't be true," remember that a person in grief does not always understand what is being said to them. It is possible that in some cases the funeral service provider did try to offer the family a selection of containers and the family members simply didn't hear.

When you are going over the General Price List and doing the paperwork and you tell the family that the cremated remains will be returned to them in a container, why would they want to see anything else? After all, you are providing them with a free container, right? They have hundreds of decisions to make and you're making it easy for them in this one instance by not giving them a choice. But who is the loser?

Take Charge of the Service
Many times the family has chosen to contact me directly. Sometimes they are determined to be in charge of everything. They also choose to pay me directly. (And 20 percent of the time, they give me more than I charge.)

Newsflash: Personalization is not about products, it is about the person who died. Many suppliers will think this is sacrilegious. Sorry—it's true. Personalization is not about the bells and whistles of the "stuff," it is about the service, the body and the celebration.

The consumer wants something other than what they have been getting. Families want a true celebration of the deceased's life, a reception with some food and a celebrant who will tell the story of their loved one. They do not want a minister who only provides a sermon and an altar call.

It is very gratifying to have people come up to me and say, "Wow! I have never been to a service like this. Why aren't all funerals like this?" Many participants have asked for my card or for a brochure. They are truly hungry for meaningful celebrations.

When you meet with a family, even one with a church home, when discussing plans for the service, ask them, "On a scale of 1 to 10, how religious would you like this service to be?" If their answer is five or less, call a celebrant. Suggest to them that they would be better served by someone who feels the same way they do.

Yes, there are some ministers who can provide a celebration versus a sermon, but perhaps the funeral home would be better served if the event was "awesome" and the family was thrilled by a service that knocked their socks off.

Don't be put off by the family who says, "We have a minister." Ask the question! I have handled services for families in which the deceased had been a member of the same church for as long as 35 years, but the children wanted a celebration, not a sermon, despite being regular churchgoers.

I agree with author and Baptist minister Doug Manning: Funeral directors gave the service away to the clergy, and that has hurt the profession. How many times have you, the funeral director, stood outside the door of the chapel and heard people say as they left, "Don't you do anything like that for me! I don't want a funeral!" How many times did you yourself feel the same way about what you had just heard?

It must be frustrating, especially when the problem wasn't something you did as the funeral director. You worked hard to do everything right for the family, made sure there would be no mistakes, no glitches. But then you handed over the service—and the limelight—to a minister who got up in front of everyone and, in less than two minutes, ruined the experience for the family.

The solution: Take back the service!

For me, it is wonderful to work with a funeral director who acts as master of ceremonies. Please, get up in front, introduce the celebrant or minister, tell folks who are singing and what the music will be and why those particular songs were chosen. Tell people how to get to the cemetery and invite them to the reception afterward.

YOU do it—don't turn that over to the officiant. That is your time to shine, to make sure everyone there knows who did the work. Don't stand in the back with your hands folded and your mouth shut. You have worked hard to provide a meaningful experience for the family—take credit for it. Be seen and be heard.

If you don't get up front and everything you do is behind the scenes, when the minister blows it, what do the attendees think? They think what they just saw is what a funeral is. If you get up front and are visible and then the minister blows his portion of the service, they know it was the minister, not the funeral director, who didn't do his or her job.

******

I love the families we serve. I love funeral directors for their hearts of gold and their tireless dedication to families, and I love feeling like my life matters. Helping a family create a meaningful tribute to someone they dearly loved is an honor and a privilege. I love being part of funeral service, and I hope I will be for many more years.

Note: This is part 2 of a 2-part discussion of cremation.

WHAT: Spring Grove would like 100 percent of the people who make use of its crematory to stay at Spring Grove. That's not happening yet, but we've been changing our strategies for working with cremation families and our retention rate is climbing rapidly. We also find cremation memorialization areas can provide good income for the cemetery, and often are a lot of fun to plan, involving creativity and imagination.

At Cremation Association of North America training seminars, we've talked to some of the East Coast "big boys" as far as crematory operations, places where they're handing 2,000 or more cremations a year, compared with Spring Grove's 200. But up to 90 percent of those cremated remains are being returned to a funeral director, final disposition unknown. At Spring Grove, we're retaining 50 to 60 percent at the cemetery.

WHY: When we look at what it costs to run our crematorium properly and what we're charging for cremation—especially to families who bought cremation certificates from Spring Grove preneed at prices set 30 or 40 years ago—it's a concern.

Looking at the numbers, it's obvious that memorialization is crucial in terms of the dollars the cemetery receives. We also believe it's of real and lasting value to the family.

HOW: "I want to keep my husband (or Dad, or Mom) on the mantel." How often do you hear that? That does seem to be the very first comment from a lot of survivors. In fact, some people perceive this as one of the advantages of cremation: "I can bring my spouse home; I haven't lost my loved one entirely."

It's understandable, and we in the business need to be sympathetic to this impulse grieving people have to try to hang on their deceased loved one. Our job is to help them see a bit beyond that and realize the benefits to themselves, other survivors and future generations of a final resting place—and to provide some great options.

It's your job as a cemeterian to show these families something that will make them say, "You know what, I think this would be a better place for Dad than sitting on my mantel."

Good family service follow-up can really make a difference here. Just as cremation gives people the option of scheduling a memorial service at any time, rather than within days of the death, so the cremated remains allow people to decide two months, four months, six months down the road to select memorialization in a cemetery.

Just make sure your family counselors will be able to show families the right spot when they ask themselves, "What would Dad have liked?"

Our options
We think everyone deserves a "footprint," so one thing we don’t offer is a scattering garden, even though we know it's a popular option today. We promote property instead of scattering, though who knows, someday we may change our minds.

So, what do we offer families?

• Interment in existing family lots, of course. We've thought this through to incredible detail. For decades now—possibly 50 years—our rules and regulations have allowed for two sets of human remains in one space, as long as at least one is cremated remains. So you can have one full-body casket and a set of cremated remains or two sets of cremated remains. (We only allow two full-body caskets in our lawn areas specifically constructed for double-depth burials.)

We diagram with scientific accuracy exactly where the remains must be placed, so that when the second interment takes place we know exactly where the first one is located. You don't want confusion, you don't want people bumbling around, saying, "Wait a minute, there's something down here already."

• Cremation areas within sections. We developed our first one in 1967 when we opened our Johnny Appleseed section. The feature is a bronze statue of John "Johnny Appleseed" Chapman by a Dayton, Ohio, sculptor. We didn't have many cremations back then, so the garden got off to a slow start, but the popularity eventually took off exponentially and by the '90s we were sold out.

People were still asking for space in that garden, so we took a look at some land nearby that had been left vacant. (The Grove tries to incorporate some undeveloped land in its designs rather than designing areas so that there's no room for changes in the future.) We were able to put in another 30-40 spaces, but within three years those were gone.

Last fall, we opened an area on the other side of a small roadway from the original Johnny Appleseed area, with hundreds of new in-ground cremation spaces. It ties together beautifully with the original area.

We have several areas throughout our historic sections designated for cremation. 

• Cremation interment areas with more room for personalized markers. Sometimes people want the opportunity to memorialize with a large marker. The perception probably is that cremation automatically means a small marker.

The typical size in cremation gardens seems to be 12 inches by 24 inches, and in some gardens it's even smaller. Why? Because it's always been like that?

We decided to create what we call our ledger area, where we allow larger memorials—30 inches by 48 inches. That provides people with a lot more surface area for etchings, photographs, Biblical verses, favorite poetry. It's very, very popular.

Ledger lots are created by taking our typical full-casket grave size, which is 40 inches by 9 feet, and splitting it in half.

We understand that some cemeteries have limited land available, so some of the cemeterians out there are probably shaking in their boots as they read this. Even at Spring Grove, where we don't face that kind of pressure, we wrestled with whether it was good stewardship to create lots that, technically speaking, are larger than we need for interment, larger than we need for an urn vault.

Down the road, we may revisit the issue, but at this point, we have thousands of old family lots that still have space remaining. As the cremation rate increased, we'd get more and more calls that went something like this:

"I have a right of burial in my great-great-great-grandfather's lot, and I noticed on the lot there's this little wedge of land that's about 14 inches wide and 16 inches long, and I'd like to have my cremated remains interred there."

That would mean another marker for the landscape crew to maintain and trim around, and the return to the cemetery was minimal, since this was not a new sale. And that's just a small sample of what was happening. We were getting calls from people saying, "We want to put three sets of cremated remains... five sets of cremated remains...."

We decided we needed to define the amount of land required for interment of cremated remains. Once we did that, the whole question of "Can I use that little space there to slip in some cremated remains?" no longer existed.

The issue also comes up with family mausoleums with only one crypt space left. We define how much space is required for a niche and if the family requests it, we'll have a contractor turn that last crypt space into several niches.

• A columbarium to give people a new option with a traditional flavor. In one of our newer sections we're designing an above-ground, granite columbarium we hope will do two things for us.

One, it will give us our first aboveground opportunity for cremation memorialization in our newest area.

Two, even though it will be a new structure in a new section, it's going to look a lot like one of the family monuments in our historic sections. This will remind people who would like a family monument but think that they are a thing of the past that we still have the technology and craftsmanship to offer them today.

Spring Grove still has family lots, and a family monument is still an option.

• Cenotaphs. We don't have a separate cenotaph area or feature (though we track them separately in our computer system), but we definitely encourage them. We think everyone should have a footprint, a marker, in a cemetery.
• Mausoleum niches. We include plenty of niche opportunities in our mausoleums, whether they are indoor or garden types. We offer wood, bronze and glass fronts.

Niches are low-maintenance items and very cost-effective for the cemetery any way you look at it, so including as much niche space as possible in your mausoleums should be a no-brainer.

If you've got a mausoleum that you're heating and cooling, operational costs just keep going up. Our heating and cooling bill for one building is $40,000 a year! When you're spending that kind of money on energy on a building where most of the full casket entombment has been sold, you need to look at ways to bring in more income, and finding spots where you can add niches is key.

When glass-fronted niches are done correctly, they become a sort of artwork feature for the cemetery. We recommend you deal with a lot of different vendors, because there are so many different materials and styles available, and that's what makes the niches so interesting.

Turn a problem into an opportunity
Cremation memorialization can sometimes provide an opportunity to create some extraordinary inventory that you wouldn't have otherwise. Two examples from Spring Grove:

• In the early '80s, we were faced with a problem landscape in a grotto by a waterfall. It was ugly and covered with poison ivy. The rocky landscape was interesting, though.

We started removing the weeds and as we looked at the topography—this was when the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC, was being built, and it inspired us—the idea came to us of how we could use the terrain.

We placed niches in the grotto and built a bridge over the water and alongside the niches, creating a garden where people could enjoy the quiet solitude of the area, really the ultimate in inventory at that time. As the first niches sold out, we added more.

• Just this year we were faced with a maintenance problem in a mausoleum. The slate on the fountain feature in the solarium had started to degrade with salt-like deposits on it.

We had decided the fountain was too loud anyway for the quiet ambiance of a mausoleum—sometimes we had to turn it off when services were being held nearby. So our capital improvements plan called for redoing the fountain. Management said heck, if we're designing a new fountain, why not design one containing niches?

This is a beautiful area, very popular. It's typically our highest-priced interior space for cremated remains, but people just love it, and all the existing niche banks were sold out.

We had a new fountain professionally designed. It features intricate, hand-cut tile with the water very quietly trickling out onto a black granite plate—first class to the max! So this was a way to make 48 more spaces available to our customers in a premium area.

The first day we made the area available for purchase, we had beautiful, professionally designed placards placed at the entry to all our buildings to let people know about it. On that very first day, we sold two! The reaction was just what you hope for: "This is absolutely perfect, exactly what Mom would have wanted."

We realize some people look at the increase in cremation as a bad thing for cemeteries, but we think this is an exciting time to be a cemeterian. There's no question that cremation memorialization offers some exciting opportunities for developing options that wouldn't be possible for full casket burials.

With full-casket burials, we can only handle an incline of 20 to 22 percent, but we can certainly go beyond that with columbariums—even with in-ground cremation burials, because we don't have to get the larger-sized equipment in to handle the interments.

In areas that would be difficult to mow, we'll use low-growing ground covers, create naturalized areas or leave the section wooded and place columbariums in it.

In fact, in our newest section, we continued our tradition of leaving some land undeveloped for the future. In this case, we left a half-acre of woods untouched.

Who knows what Spring Grove will decide to do with it in the future. Develop a nature trail? A scattering garden? Some subtle, natural in-ground memorialization areas? A granite columbarium designed to fit right in?

Like Will Rogers said, "Land—they ain't making any more of the stuff." If you can, leave some for the future stewards of your park to use to respond to the changing needs and desires of your families.

At the Grove, we look at our hills and the incline of some of the undeveloped land we have and we feel blessed, even though the topography of what's left makes dealing with our developed hills and valleys look like a walk in the park.

There are some steep, ravine-like areas in our future that we'll be able to turn into cremation areas with spectacular vistas our customers are going to love!

Lobbying isn't just about about fighting bad legislation, it's also about promoting the good. The Wisconsin Cemetery Association saw a need for some degree of regulatory oversight and successfully worked to get it.

A recent flurry of legislative activity has dramatically altered the regulatory landscape for Wisconsin cemeteries and crematories. Fortunately, the changes are positive and serve the best interests of both our profession and the families we serve.

Once an unregulated wilderness ripe for potential scandal—where less than 75 of an estimated 5,000 cemeteries had any government oversight whatsoever—Wisconsin now has an environment where cemeteries can operate with simple yet effective guidelines and consumers have a much greater degree of security.

The Wisconsin Cemetery Association has understood the need for greater regulation for years and has advocated for an independent state board to oversee cemetery operations since our inception.

The state legislature has finally listened.

After an intense lobbying and grassroots effort by the association, the legislature created the Wisconsin Cemetery Board in the 2005-07 state budget bill. The provision was subsequently signed into law by Gov. Jim Doyle.

The six-member board will regulate all non-religious, non-municipal cemeteries, as well as cemetery salespeople and preneed sellers doing business in the state.

The board has the ability to develop rules governing the regulation of the profession and is responsible for the licensure of all cemeteries and salespeople under its jurisdiction. In addition, the board has the authority to investigate and impose disciplinary actions against errant cemeteries and their employees.

While 99 percent of Wisconsin's cemeteries are operated by trustworthy, reputable business people who offer a vital service to their communities, as with any profession, there are a small handful of individuals who may seek to profit at the expense of consumers. Our new regulations should significantly reduce these rare, yet very real threats to our businesses and our customers.

Crematories now also regulated
While state oversight of Wisconsin cemeteries was clearing lacking, the situation for crematories operating in the state was infinitely worse. Wisconsin law provided absolutely no regulation over crematories.

In an effort to address this issue, the Wisconsin Cemetery Association worked closely with the state's two largest funeral director groups to pass a sweeping crematory reform bill. The law requires Wisconsin crematories to operate under a regulated framework and sets clear-cut standards for the cremation of human remains.

The bill, which Gov. Doyle signed in August, also creates a Crematory Authority Council in the Department of Regulation and Licensing to register crematories and help oversee the industry.

With cremation quickly growing in popularity as a choice of disposition, it's essential for state government to provide guiding principles for crematories. The new law clarifies many questions regarding the cremation process and provides consumers with the assurance that cremation services are provided only by registered, authorized agents.

We are fortunate that Wisconsin has not been touched by the cremation scandals that have devastated families in other states such as Georgia and Connecticut. Now we have the protections in place to help ensure they don't happen here in the future.

It's been a busy year for the Wisconsin Cemetery Association, but also a very successful one. We have seen drastic regulatory changes in our profession, but they're changes that benefit our businesses as well as the Wisconsin families who depend on our services.

Having a crematory gives you a chance to talk to cremation families about services and memorialization, which is what funeral directors and cemeterians are really interested in.  But first thing first: Make sure you do it right.

WHAT: Whether you operate a cemetery or a funeral home, whether you've been in business for a year, 50 years or 150 years, whether the cremation rate in your area is 5 percent or 55 percent, you should be thinking about how to serve cremation families.

WHY: For years, the Cremation Association of North America has been compiling statistics and making projections showing that the cremation rates across North America will continue to climb. They still vary a lot from one area to another, but no matter where you are, you can count on serving more cremation families every year-if you want to stay in business.

The most recent Wirthlin Report found that 46 percent of Americans surveyed plan to choose cremation, and CANA predicts the cremation rate will be 43 percent by 2025.

In Ohio, the cremation rate in 2002 was 22 percent; by 2010, the Ohio rate is supposed to be 31 percent. There's no stopping this.

HOW: If you don't already have a crematorium, think about adding one. If you do, make sure you operate it with due diligence. If you're a cemeterian, you need to be constantly thinking of what to offer cremation families.

Spring Grove added a crematory in 1967, placing it in the Memorial Mausoleum, built in 1963 with plans for adding the retorts. We have two retorts. The cremation rate was still very low all across the United States—the national average was 3.5 percent in 1959, but Spring Grove was thinking ahead.

Fife wasn't here yet, but Smitty was working as a student: "I remember being called over by the operators to look at it, and I remember thinking 'This place is full service all the way around."

The sales manager for the mausoleum, Leo Mistak, who served as CANA president in the late '60s, was certainly aware of the need to plan for a rising cremation rate.

He was undoubtedly one of the people making sure Spring Grove added the planned-for retorts sooner rather than later. (Spring Grove has continued its affiliation with CANA; Spring Grove Chief Financial Officer Chris Krabbe is currently second vice president of the association.)

There was one other crematory in the area when Spring Grove added its retorts; today there are many more in Cincinnati and in nearby Dayton, as well. Most are affiliated with a funeral home or cemetery; one is affiliated with a burial vault company.

By the early '70s, we were handling 300 or more cremations a year, though only about 7 percent of our cemetery business involved cremation. Today, with all the competition out there, we're doing more like 200, but 21 percent of our cemetery business involves cremation.

We also sold thousands of cremation certificates years ago. These preneed certificates were a great deal for people, because when they're redeemed, people are getting a cremation performed for a 30- or 40-year-old price!

Even so, it's good for Spring Grove, too. Several people come in every week to redeem these certificates, or funeral directors send along an order that includes contact information.

We make sure we call people and ask if they can come to the cemetery so we can share with them the wonderful cremation memorialization opportunities we have here—a lot more than we had in 1967! (And which we'll describe in detail in the next issue.)

Training and maintenance
We keep four or five staff members trained as cremation technicians; they take turns working on Saturdays. All have gone through CANA training and been CANA certified.

All the cremation technicians spend time learning from James King, our main cremation tech, who also takes care of the building. We then send them through the training program CANA runs down in Orlando, Florida.

Because we're only doing about 200 cremations annually, our cremation technicians are doing other things most of the time. They probably only spend 20 percent of their time on processing and doing cremations. They are also responsible for handling inurnments and shipping cremated remains.

Even though we're not a high-volume operation as far as our crematory, we make sure the crematory is run according to the same high standards people expect from anything associated with Spring Grove.

Periodically a crematory operation somewhere receives a "black eye" that gets in the press. You want to make sure your facility is above reproach. If your operation is not CANA certified, you probably need to be.

Most of the training revolves around paperwork, making sure everything is documented correctly and proper signatures are gathered. Every "i" has to be dotted and every "t" has to be crossed.

In addition to that initial training, we routinely schedule training meetings for the cremation technicians, usually each quarter.

Someone different from the staff runs through the entire procedure of processing a cremation, from start to finish. We just want to make sure every technician is handling cremations the same way.

Even though we're training four people to handle about 200 cremations, because of the repercussions that would be involved if we didn't do everything exactly right, we believe proper training is very cost effective.

You simply cannot run a crematory and take the attitude that it costs too much to send people to CANA for training or to have periodic procedure review sessions.

You also have to budget for maintenance. When you're talking about something where the temperature is 1,800 degrees every time you do a cremation, there are going to be maintenance and repair costs. Periodically you have to rebuild and reline the inside of the retort, and occasionally the stack will require repair.

Of course, Spring Grove's crematory is old. If you install a new unit, you'll be getting something much more efficient. The people who sell and install your crematory should be able to give you guidance on maintenance schedules.

When you have a cemetery, one of the ways you hope to balance out the cost of running and maintaining a crematory is by providing memorialization options that are so exciting and compelling that people are choosing inurnment or interment at your property.

The fact is, when you look at the charge for simply performing a cremation, it's a wonderful service for the customer, but for the cemetery the dollars are pretty low when you consider the training and professionalism involved in providing the service.

Capturing a big percentage of your cremation customers on the memorialization side is how you generate income that makes cremation a win-win situation for families and for the cemetery.

Next month we'll talk about how cremation memorialization has evolved at the Grove and how we make sure we leave options for future generations.

Next: Cremation memorialization, past, present and future.

Several years ago our sales team came to a startling conclusion: We probably were losing more sales to the decision to scatter cremated remains than to any other cemetery. But what could we do to stop this alarming trend?

We decided the best tactic would be to create a cremation burial area that simulated the natural areas where people might choose to scatter. With 85 acres of forest and meadow, we had a great natural resource to begin with. And, as a fully certified member of the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary System, we were already committed to trying to preserve the forest and the wildlife it supports.

But what would we use for memorialization? How would we mark out individual gravesites? (We do not perform the service of scattering.) Would the trail need to be accessible? What if families wanted to hold a committal service in this area?

Over the years, we considered a variety of answers to each of these questions. Finally, it all came together when we discovered some wonderful artificial rocks that hold bronze plaques in a specially formed recess.

We saw them first in an ad for Rock and Water Creations light here in International Cemetery & Funeral Management magazine. Then we saw an exhibit by another ICFA member supplier, Valley Monuments, at the ICFA trade show last spring in Las Vegas.

Even though the rocks are artificial, they look natural and have several practical advantages over real rocks. They are made of construction-grade GFRC cast stone and are hollow, making them much easier to move around. It is also much easier to install the bronze plaque in the recess provided than to find a real rock with a flat enough space to accommodate a plaque.

With these rocks and some small, "woodsy” bronze memorial designs provided by Matthews International, we felt we could create just the right look for our trial area.

The main criterion was that it NOT look like a cemetery.  So we avoided straight lines and regular rows and even decided not to allow standard cemetery decorations such as floral vases and bouquets. We took an existing grove of mature pine trees and added a pond and waterfall and some native plantings to create a peaceful, woodland setting.

We started the trail in an existing burial section so it would be very visible, with roads and parking options nearby. Near the entrance to our nature trail sits a large, white gazebo, which has turned out to be a very appropriate place to conduct a "graveside" service for nature trail burials. We decided to pave the initial phase of the trail to make it fully accessible.

A thick bed of mulch borders each side of the paved trail. Since all of the rocks and memorials are surrounded by mulch rather than grass, we created not only a very natural setting, but also a low maintenance one—a tremendous benefit to the cemetery!

In a similar vein, we also offer very simple burial options, from putting the cremated remains directly into the soil to burying them in a standard or biodegradable urn. These burials can all be made using just a shovel or post-hole digger, so we do not have to take a backhoe or other equipment out onto the trail. We also do not make traditional burial setups, with lowering devices and greens, saving additional employee hours and use of equipment.

The bottom line is that our "natural solution" is a winner on all counts. Our customers have welcomed it as a "brilliant idea" and "just what we always wanted but never knew existed."

Many of them have a spouse or other family member who would not even discuss the possibility of burial in a cemetery until the nature trail option was presented to them. Once they saw the trail, they knew immediately it was what they wanted.

Without us even pointing it out to them, many people instantly grasped a key concept: ''Now there will be a permanent place for the family to come and visit."

For the first time in many years our grave sales have increased over the prior year. Sales of crypts and niches have remained constant, so we know we are not taking sales away from our mausoleums; we are selling graves to people who had planned on scattering their cremated remains.

We are fortunate to have 85 acres of beautiful forest and meadow waiting to welcome additions to the trail. Using at least parts of this forest and its mile long overlook of Irondequoit Creek for cremation burials will help us put to good use many hard-to develop banks and ravines. And best of all, it will save us from clear-cutting the forest and turning it into more hard-to-maintain lawn areas.

We at White Haven, as well as the people who purchase property in our nature trail, feel great joy in knowing we are being good stewards of this land. Truly, this is a natural solution that works for the wildlife, for the cemetery, for our community and for the many families who planned to scatter a loved one's cremated remains.

How is the rising cremation rate changing the way you deal with your funeral home's customers and the community?

Funeral service professionals may not be able to change the rising cremation rate, but ignoring it won't make it go away. From California to New York and everywhere in between, funeral homes are experiencing increases in their cremation numbers and changing how they do business accordingly.

"We're definitely seeing a lot more cremations," said Rick Williams, president of Williams Funeral Home in Milledgeville, Georgia. "I can remember back in the '60s when my dad first opened the funeral home, we would have one or two cremations a year. Very, very few. And now it's certainly grown quite a bit.

"We're trying to be responsive to the public's requests by providing the services they want and finding unique ways to help them memorialize their loved ones."

Williams is not alone; more and more funeral directors are changing their approach to cremation, perceiving it less as the enemy and more as an opportunity to provide new levels of service to their families.

They are learning that cremation does not have to mean a minimal service—or no service at all. There are a number of ways funeral directors can ensure that more cremations do not lead to disappearing profits.

Providing even more cremation options can help bring in more business and help your firm gain a competitive edge over others in the area. The important thing is to keep families informed of their options. People can only purchase a product or service if they know it is available.

To better assist their families, many funeral homes are creating entire selection rooms devoted to cremation, expanding their selection of cremation products and building their own crematories.

ICFM talked to eight funeral service professionals across the country about how they are responding to cremation.

SUSAN BRING, president of Bring Funeral Home Inc., Tucson, Arizona, and STANLEY STOBIERSKI, owner and president of Heritage Memory Mortuary, Prescott, Arizona, are no strangers to cremation. With a statewide cremation rate close to 65 percent, neither feels threatened by the high numbers.

''I think that one of the big mistakes people make with cremation is just talking about it like it is negative," Bring said. ''Too many people approach it from the standpoint that it is in lieu of burial, but it doesn't have to be. The important thing is to keep families informed of their options."

Bring does that by getting involved in her community with a program she calls "Necessary Conversations." She and her staff visit local organizations such as hospices, churches, schools, mobile home parks and businesses. They explain the options available and encourage people to make their wishes known to their families.

Stobierski owns several funeral homes in Arizona and is in the process of building a crematory which should be completed early in 2006. He agrees with the philosophy that cremation should not limit choices.

"Our feeling is that cremation has to be taken just as earth burial or entombment would be, and it's a matter of us creating different types of funerals with cremation." 

To better assist cremation families and make them aware of all their options, Stobierski and his staff have created a cremation room with cremation caskets and other products, including a larger selection of urns and keepsakes.

NATHAN BITNER, president of Hetrick Funeral Home Inc., Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, is another strong believer in the importance of keeping families informed and making quality service the first priority.

"There have been times when the family didn't want a memorial service, but still wanted a two hour time when people could come and express their sympathies and condolences to the families," Bitner said. ''We try to accommodate all requests."

Making more services available to cremation families and being receptive to their specific needs has helped Hetrick Funeral Home maintain a very low direct cremation rate. In recent years, Hetrick has expanded its selection room to include a wider selection of cremation caskets and urns and keepsake items such as necklaces, bracelets and fingerprint jewelry.

Families who come to Moloney's Lake Funeral Home in Lake Ronkonkoma, New York, are attracted to the beautiful setting of the funeral home as well as the many options that are available to them.

F. DANIEL MOLONEY JR., owner and funeral director, works hard to bring in more cremation families, in spite of some unique challenges created by New York state law, which prohibits funeral directors from owning their own crematories. Because Moloney owned a crematory before the law went into effect, Moloney's Lake Funeral Home is one of only a handful of firms in New York that have one, yet he is not permitted to advertise this fact.

Instead, his ads emphasize other qualities that would appeal to cremation families, such as the Mother Teresa Tribute Center, a stand-alone building on the grounds of one of their funeral homes that can hold up to 100 people. This tribute center, where food and drink can be served, can be used for committal services, group meetings and more, but its primary function is to offer families a more comfortable setting to say goodbye to their loved ones.

All five of the Moloney funeral homes have memorialization centers with a variety of products, including urns, jewelry, candles, religious items and cremation casket units, set up in such a way as to make families feel less intimidated.

These efforts seem to be paying off. "Our direct cremation rate has actually gone down over the past five years, though the cremation rate has gone up," Moloney said. "So we think that the things we're doing are putting us in the right direction and attracting those families that are looking for innovative ways to memorialize."

Williams Funeral Home in Milledgeville, Georgia, is the first and only funeral home in its county to have a crematory. RICK WILLIAMS, president, saw the need for one just over three years ago. In addition to handling their own cremations, they perform cremations for other local funeral homes.

Williams also stresses the need to educate families about all of their options. By spending time talking to families about cremation, he has found that more people are opting for embalming, viewing in a rental casket and funeral services in the chapel followed by cremation the next day.
"As things keep evolving and society keeps changing, people want to know their options," Williams said. 'The more options that are out there for them, the more they can take advantage of them."

In the past, Williams said, it was rare to see older people choosing cremation, but that is not so much the case today. Cremation is growing among people of all generations. ''I guess people are looking for the simplicity and the ecology," he said. ''People get warm and fuzzy feelings for different reasons. We're definitely seeing a lot more cremations."

When MARC BURR, a fifth-generation funeral director and president of Burr Funeral Home and Cremation in Chardon, Ohio, started offering LifeGem more than two years ago, the concept of turning cremated remains into diamonds was a new, exotic option. His own mother left the room in disgust in the middle of Burt's local television interview about the new service.

Since then, the concept has caught on and Burr has sold four LifeGems in the past two years, each costing as much as $10,000.  One family in particular stands out in his memory because he can still recall the smiles on their faces the day they picked up the diamond. To them it was a perfect and permanent remembrance of their loved one.

“There are many other folks who probably wouldn't think it is appropriate, but isn't that what we're here for?" Burr said. "To help every family do what has meaning to them, not to their neighbors."
The first cremation at Burr Funeral Home was in 1912, and they have continued ever since. Geauga County, where Burr Funeral Home is located, has always been one of the highest per capita income counties in Ohio, and they are used to dealing with cremation-oriented consumers.

Burr's philosophy is to embrace change and be open to new ideas. "If a family wants to do something, and it's legal, we're going to make it happen."

In one of the more unusual services Burr remembers, the deceased's cremated remains were divided into four separate urns, each of which was given to one of the man's four siblings. They brought the urns up to the altar at a Catholic Mass, where the priest accepted them.

''You want to talk about a change," Burr said, "talk about the changes going on in the church. Specifically the Catholic Church where, in the past, the body had to be present and cremation was considered a negative, and now the priest is allowing four individual containers to be brought up front during the Mass."

Under the leadership of operations manager BRADLEY BISHOP, Allnut Funeral Homes in Fort Collins, Colorado, differentiates itself from surrounding funeral homes by incorporating innovative technology and personalization in all of its services and merchandise.

One of the products offered at Allnut Funeral Homes is software which allows families to scan photographs to their computer and personalize a scrapbook of the person's life. They also offer people the option of purchasing a package that includes video presentations, flowers, personalized folders and use of reception facilities.

Cremation families can choose from a variety of products, including jewelry, urns, sandstone benches and pillar stones, which can be personalized and placed in gardens. ''With regards to personalization, we've even transformed one of our casket selection rooms into what we call a 'celebrate life room.' We decided to take the 22 caskets out and make the space more suitable for every family, not just burial families, so that they can see all the options available," Bishop explained.

''Personalization makes the service so much better." Bishop said he always tries to honor the families' requests no matter how odd they may seem to others. He recalls one family with an apparent sense of humor who asked for tin cans to be placed at the back of a funeral coach with a sign saying "Just Buried," instead of "Just Married." He obliged, of course.

To RAY VISOTSKI, CFSP, owner and manager of George Funeral Homes in Charleston, South Carolina, quality service means doing things right the first time and focusing more on what you can do for people rather than what you can sell them.

Visotski said he does not believe in investing in a huge inventory of merchandise. Instead, he instills in his staff the importance of paying attention to details and being perceptive to the needs of families.

"We started a long time ago readjusting our prices to reflect the value of our licenses, our background and our experiences, as opposed to just trying to sell lots of stuff to make up for our profit. We don't have a big emphasis on merchandise here. Never had, and probably never will. There are so many things you can be doing for people. They need to perceive value in what you charge."

Visotski believes it is this philosophy that has helped his company increase its market share from 35 to 52 percent in the past six years.

One combination of service and merchandise they have added to increase value to families is memorial videos and DVDs. Because they are included in the basic services package, they are produced at no extra charge and have proven to be a great success.

In addition to owning two funeral homes, Visotski also owns the South Carolina Cremation & Memorial Society, a direct disposition service which rents space, staff and use of the crematory from George Funeral Home. Because of the society's low fixed expenses, it is able to offer simple cremation at discounted prices.

Since much of the society's business is done via phone, fax and e-mail, it is not uncommon for Visotski and his staff never to meet the families with whom they deal Visotski advertises the society's services by placing ads in newspapers around the state, excluding his own market, and also informs people of this option through his work with hospice programs.

"I'm going to have my ashes thrown into the ocean," my cousin said. My stomach began to twist, and I said, "Don't you want a monument where you will be remembered?"

Something just does not seem right about spreading ashes without a permanent location for memorialization. Cremation has taken off, but that doesn't mean we can't include in our preneed plan a good monument that memorializes our lives.

When I informed my mother that I wished to be cremated when I die, she responded with, "Oh, don't do that!" She would rather that her corpse decompose in a casket and vault, and if that is what she wants, I support her wish.

As for me, I already have my $200 urn for my cremated remains. Then, there is $595 for the lower-priced cremation services. That's $795 so far, leaving a lot of money for a nice memorial that will last through the ages.

I will spend a couple thousand dollars retail for an attractive cremation bench (with porcelain photographs) with an internal chamber to hold the cremated remains of myself and my former housekeeper, for whom I am the caregiver as she now suffers from dementia. We have extra room inside the chamber beneath the bench, so we will also rest with the cremated remains of our family dog, who has been our faithful companion for many years.

With the cremation, urn and bench totaling $3,000, there will be money left over for a commercial grade flagpole, and I still have money to spend on a nice monument with three bronze plaques.

I love my nieces and nephews, but I'm going to treat myself right and give myself the kind of memorial I deserve.

Wanting to be remembered is a normal human emotion, and that need is satisfied best by the memorialist who takes the time to turn a monument into a fitting memorial.

Preneed planning is the right way to prepare for the inevitable. I trust others, but I trust myself more when it comes to doing things my way.

How about you?

How star Ann Sheridan's cremated remains were rescued from storage and laid to rest 38 years after her death

 
When Karen McHale began research on a biography of Ann Sheridan last fall, she quickly found herself in the unusual position of literally writing the last chapter of the actress' life story before typing one word of the manuscript.

Thirty-eight years after the classic film star's death, McHale helped bring about the inurnment Sheridan had requested but that had been forgotten.

McHale, who is also a Hollywood cemetery history buff, knew that Sheridan's cremated remains had been kept at Los Angeles' oldest crematorium, Pierce Brothers Chapel of the Pines, since her 1967 death from esophageal cancer at age 51.

What she wasn't aware of until she obtained a copy of Sheridan's last will and testament was that the screen beauty had never intended to spend eternity in a private drawer.

According to the public document, which was probated in Los Angeles under her married name, Clara Lou McKay, the Texas native stated that she wanted her executor to place her cremated remains in a niche at a Los Angeles columbarium of his choice.

"As her biographer, I needed to find out why Ann's cremains were left in storage against her wishes, but I also felt an equal responsibility toward her as a human being to correct the situation if I could," said McHale, a first-time author who lives in Whittier, California.

McHale's sense of duty resulted in several months of legwork that led to Sheridan being laid to rest in proper fashion at Hollywood Forever Cemetery's Chapel Columbarium during a celebratory memorial service on the day that would have been her 90th birthday, February 21, 2005.

Step 1: Locate a survivor
First, McHale first needed to locate a Sheridan survivor, no small task considering she had already established that Sheridan's husband, actor Scott McKay, died in 1987; she never had children; and her immediate family, including five siblings, were also all deceased.

McHale got the break she needed after following leads on a genealogy Web site. In short order she was in contact with the Rev. Sallie Watson of Beaumont, Texas, whose late mother was Sheridan's first cousin.
Watson was surprised and delighted to learn of McHale's book proposal, as well as her interest in the unresolved state of her famous relative's cremated remains.

The Presbyterian minister explained to McHale that somewhere along the line Sheridan had become estranged from her family for reasons unknown to the current generation. Watson was only 10 when Sheridan died and never had the opportunity to know cousin Clara Lou ("Loudie," she was called), but agreed with McHale that claiming her cremated remains and interring them as directed in the will was the right thing to do.

Step 2: Find a columbarium
By comparison with finding a relative, locating an appropriate columbarium niche was "a no-brainer," according to McHale. Now acting as an authorized family representative, she brought Sheridan's case to Tyler Cassity, owner and president of Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles.

The historic 60-acre site is not only the burial place of hundreds of movie industry workers, including notables such as Rudolph Valentino, Douglas Fairbanks Sr. and Jr. and Cecil B. DeMille, it's also located next door to Paramount Studios in Hollywood, where Sheridan began her film career in 1933.

"We're deeply honored that Ann Sheridan's family chose our cemetery as her final resting place," said Cassity, who knows a lot about rescuing human remains from obscurity. He saved the former Hollywood Memorial Cemetery when it was in danger of permanent closure by purchasing it for $375,000 at a bankruptcy court auction in 1998.

Since then, his family's company has restored the once-neglected property, revitalized it with added mausoleum space and started offering families video biography memorial production services.

Meanwhile, McHale discovered that Sheridan's executor, her business manager Bart Hackly, lived near Los Angeles. She spoke with him by phone and he recalled that Sheridan's husband (her third, to whom she was married less than a year) handled all the mortuary details, and he chose not to interfere.

Once Sheridan's debts were settled, there wasn't a lot of money left over, Hackly said, so he didn't pursue the matter of interment. In retrospect, he expressed regret for not having done so and gave McHale his blessing for the relocation.

Step 3: Handle the paperwork
Verbal permission from Sheridan's family and estate executor notwithstanding, a three-step county and cemetery documentation process also was required:

First, McHale, again serving as family representative, signed a Los Angeles County Department of Health application for disposition of human remains that authorized a permit for the disinterment and removal of Sheridan's cremated remains from Chapel of the Pines.

Next, a Chapel of the Pines form was signed by both Watson and her aunt, Sheridan's last remaining first cousin, notarized and returned along with a certified copy of McKay's death certificate. These documents served to legally verify the two women as Sheridan's closet living survivors and to grant Chapel of the Pines permission to release her cremated remains to Hollywood Forever.

Third, McHale signed a Los Angeles County burial permit and a Hollywood Forever interment order that authorized placement of Sheridan's remains in a specific niche.

"It was a very uncomplicated process that was made all the more efficient by the friendly and cooperative efforts of the staff at Chapel of the Pines," McHale said.

With the paperwork in order, McHale accompanied Hollywood Forever's celebrity funeral care liaison Michael Roman, who had been assigned to the case he calls "a labor of love," on a weekday afternoon drive to nearby Chapel of the Pines. There she witnessed the simple copper box holding Sheridan's cremated remains changing hands, an experience she described as being "unceremonious yet historically and emotionally momentous for everyone involved."

Step 4: Create a personalized niche
Once the remains were secured in a vault on Hollywood Forever premises, McHale put on her "niche stylist" hat to spearhead the design of Sheridan's new memorial.

With Roman's assistance, she had already chosen a 35-by-30-by-12-inch glass-fronted, brass-toned metal niche specifically for its location on the airy, windowed second floor of the cemetery's Chapel Columbarium. She had learned that Sheridan was claustrophobic. "I couldn't bear to think of her in a dark enclosure knowing that she hated that when she was alive," said McHale.

McHale's friend Mike Steen, "Funeral Director to the Stars" and author of "Celebrity Death Certificates" of Woodlawn Cemetery in Santa Monica, California, donated an elegant l0-inch white marble urn featuring deep green and caramel brown art deco inlays finely outlined in brass.

Drawing inspiration from the urn colors and Sheridan's earthy femininity, McHale found coordinating brass-toned and green satins and a shimmering copper-colored sheer for the overall backdrop, deftly styled by a cemetery employee who has a background in movie set decorating.

Her father, a woodworking hobbyist, custom cut boards to fit the back wall and used them to anchor the fabrics and support a hanging framed portrait.

Opting to decorate the niche in a less-is-more fashion that would still represent Sheridan's life and 35-year career, McHale found it a challenge to select a single headshot for the back wall—there were dozens of possibilities to choose from. "Ann was extremely photogenic, and from what I've seen she never took a bad picture," McHale said.

McHale decided on a 1939 portrait by famed Hollywood photographer George Hurrell because it matched the niche's overall theme and encapsulated Sheridan's smoldering sensuality. Hurrell's former student and Hollywood historian Mark Vieira donated the print, which he struck from the original negative using Hurrell's darkroom techniques.

Sheridan was one of the first movie stars to appear on the cover of Life magazine. Roman, a knowledgeable classic film enthusiast, tracked down an original copy that he framed to match the Hurrell portrait. It was placed on the shelf to the right of the urn.

To the left is a smaller candid pose, from McHale's research collection, which she put in a pearled frame. It shows Sheridan standing with Air Force personnel in front a World War II fighter plane that bears her face and name on the nose art in tribute to her tireless patriotic volunteer efforts cheering the troops and selling war bonds.

By far the most personal items in the display are Sheridan's wedding band, inscribed "Ann Scott 66," and a pair of gold hoop earrings. Both were discovered in an envelope inside the original storage box when her cremated remains were transferred to the urn, indicating that most likely she was wearing them when she died.

"Michael called me as soon as they found the jewelry, which is not expensive but highly sentimental. It was an overwhelmingly exciting moment for us both, because until that point we were concerned about not having anything that had belonged to Ann to leave with her inside the niche," McHale said.

The display was completed with an engraved plaque placed in front of the urn which reads "Clara Lou Sheridan McKay Ann Sheridan - February 21, 1915 January 21, 1967 - Star of Stage and Screen."  

Step 5: Hold a memorial service
Atypical stormy weather on the day of the memorial did not keep the Sheridan faithful away from the service orchestrated by McHale and Roman. Approximately 100 family, friends and fans gathered in the chapel amid torrential rains, thunder, lightning and a few moments of hail.

Referring to Sheridan's fondness for pulling pranks, Hollywood's Honorary Mayor Johnny Grant quipped during the ceremony that he had no doubt his friend was "right now looking down from heaven and smiling because she's got her hand on the water faucet."

Roman hosted the service on behalf of Cassity, who was out of town on business. He noted that it had been only four months earlier that he had begun working with an enthusiastic McHale on "springing Ann Sheridan from storage," and that she could now be crossed off the list of silent and Golden Age film actors whose remains are unclaimed.

On a personal note, he expressed his belief that the entire process, one of the most non-problematic and joyful in his experience, was due in large part to the presence of Sheridan's spirit, an energy that undoubtedly had been the source of her reputation for being easy to work with in life.
The Rev. Watson, who flew in from Texas with four friends, spoke on behalf of the family and gave the opening and closing prayers. She thanked Cassity and the Hollywood Forever staff for their sensitivity and their hospitality in providing her cousin a "beautiful resting place," and to McHale for her hard work, good humor and sleuthing skills.

Watson told the gathering that despite past family differences that she does not understand, "being here today we have come full circle," and added, ''To paraphrase a saying we have in Texas, Ann may not have been originally buried here but she got here as fast as she could."

Grant, a longtime friend of Sheridan's, regaled the attendees with humorous stories from their halcyon days. He said that back then it was not politically incorrect to define Sheridan as "the greatest broad I ever knew," and that she loved being known as "a gorgeous babe and one of the guys."

Sheridan's language could be colorful, Grand said. "More than once she told me where to go and made it sound eloquent." But more important, he remembered the kindness and generosity she showed him and everyone she met, especially her fans.

In line with the cemetery's offering of video memorials to their clients, Hollywood Forever's celebrity biographer, Annette Lloyd, introduced the tribute she produced around Sheridan singing the song ''Love is Born, Not Made" from the film ''Thank Your Lucky Stars." It also included various photos, magazine covers, print ads and other movie clips. After its premiere at the service, the video was uploaded to Sheridan's archive on the cemetery's interactive "Library of Lives" Web site at www.ForeverNetwork.com.

Following the video, veteran Paramount producer A.C. Lyles spoke of Sheridan's early days at his studio as a contract player after she won its "Search For Beauty" talent contest at age 18 and her subsequent rise to stardom with Warner Bros.

He echoed Grant's recollections of her, saying, "She could take a four-letter word and make it sound like a phrase from a church hymnal."

The four words he used to describe her that he believed she would agree with were sassy, saucy, sexy and sensuous, he said, adding, "she could be your best friend,"

Actress Carole Wells, who portrayed Sheridan's daughter on the CBS primetime series "Pistols 'N' Petticoats," the project she worked on until three days before her death, came from New York to speak about Sheridan's positive spirit and her courage in the face of death.
 
"I saw the suffering in her eyes, but she never complained," said Wells, who also said that knowing Sheridan changed her life for the better.

Quoting an anonymous poet who wrote that one never dies as long as one's memory is not forgotten, Wells expressed gratitude that now Sheridan would not be forgotten, thanks to her new permanent resting place.

Before Watson's dosing prayer, McHale read a letter from Vincent Sherman, unable to attend due to health concerns. He directed Sheridan in the films "Nora Prentiss" and "The Unfaithful," and paid tribute to her as a talented actress and fun-loving woman, writing, "I can hear her hearty laugh as I write these lines."

Following the ceremony, guests were invited up to the second floor columbarium above the chapel to see Sheridan's new niche and pay respects that were long overdue.

Because the event was also a birthday celebration, the viewing was followed by a coffee and cake reception in the chapel foyer.
 
With Sheridan now interred as she had originally requested, McHale has turned her attention back to researching the movie star's short but very full life.

"The past few months have been a uniquely rewarding and educational experience that has helped to make me a better biographer than I would have become otherwise. But more important, Annie's story is finally complete," McHale said.

Adapted from a presentation at the 2005 ICFA Annual Convention

A conflict has arisen between the deathcare profession and the consumer.
It is a battle between tradition and change, with one side tied to "the way we've always done it" and the other consistently rejecting it.
You need to understand the dramatic changes that have taken place and what they mean for funeral and cemetery services. Your livelihood is at stake.

Society has gone through drastic changes over recent years, affecting the way businesses run and consumers buy. The type of change of which I speak is not a gradual change; it is the dramatic change that occurs in a business and stretches that business like a rubber band to the point where it can never go back to the way it was. At that point, that business, society or institution has been changed forever.

Stretching the rubber band creates a new way of thinking, or what we call a generic strategic breakthrough. Two conditions must exit simultaneously for this type of change to occur.

First, there has to be a change in the way something is done or in the product that is used to do it. Secondly, there must be a change in the environment. For an innovation to be accepted into the marketplace, the market has to be ready for it.

An example that illustrates this phenomenon is the creation of food supermarkets in the 1920s and '30s. During the Great Depression two men noticed an old warehouse in New Jersey selling wholesale products. They took this idea back to Columbus, Ohio, where they started the first supermarket in the United States, called "The Big Bear."

This store still exists today as an affiliate of IGA. The store got its name after a bear that was trained to walk down the aisles of the store taking cans off shelves and placing them in a shopping basket. The idea was that if a bear can do it, anyone can.

For the time period, the creation of Big Bear was a generic strategic breakthrough because once the idea of a supermarket was born; businesses were never the same again. For the supermarket innovation to be successful, there were two external conditions that had to exist: refrigeration and automobiles. Before the 1920s, the idea of a supermarket might have existed in someone’s head, but the environment did not allow it to flourish.

Before refrigeration, people did not have the means to store perishable food, nor effective transportation to bring it home from the store. After the 1920s the icebox allowed every family to have refrigeration, and private vehicles eliminated the need for delivery trucks. Without refrigeration and private vehicles, the idea would never have succeeded.

Today, the traditional supermarket is under siege. People are now rejecting the old supermarket in favor of stores such as Wal-Mart where everything is under one roof.
Innovation and changing consumer expectations are the elements that drive change. The purpose of a business is to create a satisfied customer, so it is the company's responsibility to adapt to the trends and ideas of the marketplace. If a business ignores these trends, it cannot survive.

How consumers buy today
The first step to adapting your business to the evolving market is to understand who your consumers are and how they buy. Wal-Mart has become the largest corporation that ever existed in the world, each year bringing in hundreds of billions of dollars in sales.

The principal motivating factor that brings people to Wal-Mart is not its service (or lack of) or even its price, it is convenience. The people who choose to shop at Wal-Mart do not expect front door service, nor do they want it. They come because they can find everything they need in one store.

More and more, the consumer preference is leaning toward self-serve businesses. Consumers no longer want to be bothered while they shop. They like to know that someone is there if they have questions, but they do not need someone following them around the store asking if they can help. In fact, women's universal response to the question, "Can I help you?" is "No thanks, I'm just looking."

People have adapted to the "I'm just looking" mentality, because stores are now set up to make it easy for consumers to find what they are looking for on their own.

What do food chains such as McDonalds, Subway, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell have in common? They offer consistent and predictable service. People like walking into stores and making their own decisions.

Fast food restaurants have evolved from single brands into multi-brands, which I refer to as "KenTaco Hut." This is where you have Kentucky Fried Chicken, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Exxon gas under one roof. These complexes have spread all across the country, strategically placed right off of freeway exits. KenTaco Huts are good for the gas stations because they get some of the people who normally pay at the pump back into their stores.

Fast food restaurants are constantly adapting their menus to meet the changing demands of consumers and the latest diet trends. Subway, which used to talk about fat, has evolved its entire menu to focus on carbohydrates. Hardee's offers a burger without a bun.

McDonald's has created a happy meal for adults including a salad, a bottle of water, and a pedometer so that after you eat your salad and drink your water you can walk and measure how far you have gone.

Has the price list for your cemetery or funeral home evolved in the same way that these food businesses have?

Funeral service stuck in the past
Our offers just have not changed much. What would your offer be today if you knew that everyone walking through your door was going to spend $20,000? Although they are not spending that much now, maybe they would if we let them.

This has nothing to do with money. If you are ready to sell your products, people will be ready to buy, but you need to have these products and services available. We have to be better prepared to allow our consumer to say yes to something bigger and better.

Our profession is stuck back in 1962. It is the only profession that has not evolved
to meet the changing needs of the consumer. The same consumers who have been brought up on Wal-Mart, Home Depot and McDonald's are the consumers who walk into our funeral homes or cemetery offices.

We take those people and immediately assume it is a good idea to teach them a new way to shop. We make them sit silently across the table from us and listen as we tell them how and what they should buy.

People do not buy like this anywhere else in the world except possibly a timeshare sale. Do you like being compared to that? Research has consistently shown that people are not happy with the funeral selection process. The response to you is positive, but the response to our process is embarrassing.

The most difficult paradox for us to understand as a profession is that people like not being waited on. We grew up with the notion that personal service meant personal attention and lots of it.

Now the definition of personal service is changing to a point where, ironically, one-on-one service across a table is actually considered impersonal. People prefer to be let loose and look on their own.

So how can we help our businesses to evolve and better meet the needs of consumers? First of all, we need industrial strength training of employees.

We are the only profession I have ever seen that will allow people to work for us who we know are screwing up. They may be nice people, but they do not belong face-to-face with your customers.

Too often we have the attitude, "Well, he's never wrecked a hearse, and he's worked here 27 years, so he's got to be a nice guy." You have to remember that he is the one in the selection room with your families.
No other business does that. Other businesses go to great lengths to make sure their employees understand the company strategy. Their employees also know that if they mess up, they can lose their job.

What about cemeteries?
Some of us cemeterians still have books of rules as if we are in such high demand that we can make all our future neighbors accede to our requirements. If they don't, we will not even let them through the gates. I am not sure that any of our cemeteries are in a strong enough position to be so demanding.

Even if your cemetery is the only one in town, if your demands get too far out of line, families can just turn away. What are they turning away to? Cremation. Our entire profession can literally go up in smoke.

People thinking about cremation generally do not think about cemeteries. A cemetery's value proposition is the one most challenged by cremation because it is the least recognized.

Our mobile society itself is putting your cemetery offer under siege. An example is a woman who wishes she had kept her parents' urn with her because she lives in Florida and they are in a niche in Pennsylvania.
 
Our challenge as a profession is to find out who we are and what we are about. Are people venerating the memory or are they venerating the remains?

The only way to find out what people really want is to set up interviews conducted by an independent source (someone other than you) and ask them for their thoughts. Afterward, you need to follow up on their responses and make the necessary changes.

To change our image, we must change what we do
There are not a lot of positive things being said about our profession, and it is not going away until we change our system. We can no longer afford to be just "not bad" to offset the negativity about us in the marketplace.

In 1963, Jessica Mitford wrote a book called "The American Way of Death" which impacted us all and led to the implementation of the 1984 FTC rule. Between 50,000 and 100,000 copies of her book were sold.

Today, over 15 million people each week watch the television show "Six Feet Under," and like it or not, these viewers are comparing the selling process in the show with your process.

We also are compared to others in our profession. We are judged and convicted by the sins of others, by the least among us. The responsibility for change is not on the people screwing it up, it is on you. It is on those of us who know better and are passionate enough about the business to want to make a difference.
We need to start innovating and leading by example. Bring people with you to meetings or show them relevant articles. Take any opportunity to be a leader and go to those people in your neighborhood to share what you have learned. Without you, they may never hear it.

Think of the most memorable funeral you directed or were a part of and identify the elements that made it so memorable. Figure out a way to make your funerals memorable on a daily basis, because ultimately that is what will drive people to you.

If we don't do it, someone outside of our profession is going to do it for us.

This is your consumer and your business to win or lose, and I believe that we all have the power necessary to make this business last far into the future.

How can you influence people who choose cremation not to automatically link it with scattering or keeping an urn on the mantle piece? The cemeteries in one Catholic diocese worked with its local association and suppliers on a creative advertising campaign to remind people of the importance of cemeteries.

The Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis has six cemeteries, one of which is 150 years old and has over 100,000 interments. So we have a long tradition of taking care of Catholic families at their time of need.

After several years of having almost the same number of burials each year, in 2003 there was a noticeable drop in interments despite the fact that the death rate remained virtually the same.

Over that same period of time, the cremation rate in The Catholic Cemeteries went from 18 percent to 21 percent, and the overall cremation rate in the Twin Cities market went from 22 percent to 30 percent. As we all know, these are numbers that will continue to go up.

My assistant Judy Fletcher and I did some research by monitoring the obituary pages. We found that 43 percent of the obituaries listed no cemetery for an interment. This of course raised a red flag. Those people are either keeping an urn on the mantel or scattering the remains.

The idea and the funding
We wondered: How could we educate the increasingly cremation-minded public about the continuing importance of cemeteries, regardless of the method of disposition?

I proposed to John Cherek, director of The Catholic Cemeteries, that we present an advertising plan to the Twin Cities Cemetery Association, a local association with a number of participating cemeteries.

The ad campaign would be designed to stress the importance of using a cemetery. In other words, to create a demand for our product. Of course we advertise to get sales, but we didn't expect this particular program to generate sales immediately. Our goal was to do something about the fact that the death rate has not gone down, but the burial rate has.

In February 2004, with our TV representative and a radio representative, I made a presentation to the Twin Cities Cemetery Association.

I told them that our real competitors were not each other but the ideas that caused people to take urns home or to scatter remains who knows where.

Association members approved the campaign almost unanimously. The next question was where would the money come from to pay for the campaign. We decided the cemeteries would do it.

When you're dealing with a group, there will always be some people who don't go along with an idea. Some cemeteries did not participate financially, in effect getting a free ride, since the ads try to sell the idea of cemeteries rather than a particular cemetery.

We made presentations to suppliers, who we felt also had a vested interest in our success. Most of them embraced the idea and agreed to participate financially in the project.

Action!
I then wrote several possible commercials and presented them to the Twin Cities Cemetery Association members. They selected the ad, which would feature a young mother and her 12-year old daughter, called "Where's Grandpa now?"

Our local television station, WCCO-TV, produced the commercial at no cost to us in consideration of the amount we spend on running ads every year. The child, an aspiring actress, performed for free in order to build up her resume.

We decided that our first campaign involving radio and television commercials would air the week after Memorial Day at a cost of $22,000.

The first year would be the most difficult financially, as none of the cemeteries or vendors had budgeted advertising dollars for this type of awareness campaign.

The association plans to continue running the ad campaigns. We have several 30-second television and 60-second radio ad scripts prepared.

Funeral celebrants are trained laypeople available to work with a deceased person's family to plan and conduct a funeral service that celebrates the person's life. They are used most often when the deceased was not religious or had no relationship with a local minister or house of faith.
Celebrants are more widely used in Australia and New Zealand, where church attendance rates are low and cremation rates high, but they are becoming more common in North America. This is the story of how one celebrant provides a caring service to a Calgary funeral home and its families.

Bonnie Roddis operated veterinary clinics for 30 years and regularly takes animals to visit schools and nursing homes, but it is her role as a funeral celebrant that this resident of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, considers her life's calling.

Since attending celebrant training two years ago, Roddis has led approximately 200 services through Foster's Garden Chapel of Calgary. She considers a personalized service that enables even family members to learn more about the deceased to be "The last gift we can give. I just help the family find the right wrapping paper."

Several of the earliest services Roddis conducted were for indigents who had no money for funerals.

"I feel very strongly that everyone should have appropriate words said over them," Roddis said. While she received no money for these services, she described "the greatest payment I've ever received" as eight photographs of scenery around Banff in the Canadian Rockies taken by a man who died a pauper.

Learning about the person
Roddis' work begins when a funeral home contacts her to let her know it is serving a family that may be interested in her services.

She calls a family member, expresses condolence for their loss and arranges a time to meet at their home or at the funeral home. She then outlines what her role would be and what would be involved in preparing for the service.

If the family decides to engage her as celebrant, Roddis begins with a list of questions designed to obtain the family history and biographical facts about the deceased.

She then moves to a more open-ended approach and may say something like, "Give me five words that describe your dad," or "What was your mom like on holidays?"
During the interview, Roddis draws out information about pets, athletic pursuits, hobbies and anything else a family member thinks is important.

A young child once asked Roddis if she was going to speak about her grandmother and Roddis immediately asked the child if she had something she wanted to share.

"She could take her teeth out," the child replied. Roddis carefully crafted a way to use the story and drew smiles from family members in the process.

In another instance, Roddis worked with the family of a 37-yearold woman who had died of cancer. During the family meeting, Roddis learned the woman was an alcoholic who had joined Alcoholics Anonymous and stopped drinking three years earlier.

At her service, "we focused on what a fabulous thing she did when she joined AA and helped others at the same time," Roddis said.

"I speak for the immediate family about what they want people to know about their loved one," she said. "They want someone to talk about their love for the person. They want it put right."

Writing a good eulogy takes time
To get it right, Roddis spends two to six hours in the family meeting and then three to six hours putting the service together. As she writes a eulogy, she imagines one person in the service who never met the deceased. By the end of the service she wants that person to feel as though he or she did know the deceased.

For the family, Roddis wants "to give them a mental picture that's not as sad as the one they saw in the casket or at the hospital. You have to give them something good."

Roddis also works with the family to decide where the service should be held. She has officiated at services in funeral homes, private homes, yards, parks and a historic building.

"Not everyone's cathedral is made of brick or wood. It may be on a river bank or on a mountainside," she said.

Roddis, who is 56 and has multiple health problems, believes being a celebrant may be her last vocation. She also doesn't believe she could have done it at a younger age. "There is a wisdom that comes to a woman in her 50s," she said.

She is sometimes asked why she has chosen to be involved in such a "sad" line of work.

"I don't hear about sadness," she said. "I hear about courage, selflessness, love and many other human traits. I'm not making a fortune, but I'm making a difference."

Communities evolve. Their economies experience boom and bust.
Immigration alters their demographics. Cemeteries must find ways to adapt while staying true to their mission to honor those who have gone before.

Evergreen Cemetery Association was founded in 1848, when New Haven, Connecticut, was on an upward spiral. Governors, industry magnates and Yale graduates were buried within its walls.

Evergreen Cemetery, like New Haven, was new and growing and pulsing with the vibrancy of business and industry and the escalating fortunes of the city's moguls. New Haven, like similar cities around the country, rose and fell with the tides of historic events.

Fallen soldiers of the Civil War—black and white, Northern and Southern—were brought to Evergreen to rest in peace. Over the years, the cemetery welcomed soldiers and sailors from 20th century wars and erected memorials to fallen firemen and policemen.

New Haven was changing, reflecting the new Middle America. Men and women who were important within the spheres of their own families, neighborhoods, churches and communities were remembered.

Evergreen continued to grow, filled with memorials placed in loving memory of fathers, husbands, sons, brothers, mothers, wives, daughters and sisters. Memorials to loved ones were smaller than in New Haven's heyday but no less important. Edward Bouché, the first black man to graduate from Yale, is buried in Evergreen Cemetery.

In 1956, a crematory was built, adding a new dimension to the "cemetery" business. Evergreen now offered two services, both marketed to funeral directors. They were similar in some ways but different in others. Cremation was not the preservation of the body as we had known it.

Cremation meant human remains could be scattered in the wind or over the sea, or preserved in an urn kept on a mantle. But eventually, cremation families returned to memorialization at Evergreen in one form or another. It is easier to bring a grandchild to a place where they can look upon a stone or a memorial tree to discuss the people who have gone before them. Evergreen offers families scattering gardens, urns, niches and vases to decorate niches.

New Haven is more diverse than it used to be and therefore so is Evergreen Cemetery. We advertise in Spanish as well as English. We have memorials written in the languages of China and Japan.

Singing in many languages and flowers of many colors fill the cemetery. Our memorial stones have jazz saxophones, pictures of young men cut down in their prime and letters written in Spanish to a beloved family member.

Evergreen Cemetery is still as beautiful as when it was created in 1848, with flowers and trees that grace its park-like grounds. We have Canada geese and ducks; we have seagulls on some days and blackbirds on others. People walk, run and ride bikes in the cemetery.

We conduct our business with pride and purpose and, above all, dignity and respect for the dead that lie within these walls. We are the keepers of history. We are the voices of time.

Everything has changed and nothing has changed. We are marketing a cemetery and we are preserving the memory of loved ones and a community.

CREMATION
How can a cemetery appeal to people whose first inclination is to cremate and scatter? Forest Lawn, known for pioneering the memorial park concept in the early 20th century, was inspired by national parks to design a 21st century cremation garden that combines the appeal of nature with the comfort of memorialization.

It's hard to believe The Woodlands is in Los Angeles—Hollywood Hills, no less. There are no freeways in sight, only greenery and rocks, and in the distance a church spire and a backdrop of mountains and trees.

It's a place where visitors can listen to birds singing and the soft rustling of leaves while remembering their departed loved ones or simply lost in thought and the beauty of the moment.

It's a cremation garden created to appeal to nature lovers and to those inclined toward cremation for environmental reasons.

It's a place for permanent memorialization designed to appeal to those who might otherwise scatter a loved one's cremated remains to the winds somewhere in the great outdoors, only to regret later having done so.

''Memorialization is really important, and many people will regret not doing it,” said John M. Warren, senior vice president marketing for Forest Lawn Memorial Parks & Mortuaries as he talked about The Woodlands.

Forest Lawn's market research told the company that today more people like the idea of being "one with the earth" and that this feeling is feeding the inclination to scatter in natural parks or similar areas.

Many traditional cemeteries and memorial parks have cremation gardens, but they are designed along a traditional, English garden plan. Forest Lawn officials wanted a garden that would feel as if it had been designed by nature.

They chose about an acre in their Hollywood Hills location that adjoins a section of the park protected by a preservation easement, Sennet Creek Canyon. The first phase of the project covers about one-third of an acre.

Existing trees set the design
Dallas, Texas, architecture firm J. Stuart Todd Inc. gave Forest Lawn some ideas and sketches, "and helped us develop some concepts," Warren said. The bulk of the design was then done in-house.

"We left the trees as they were and developed interment property around the trees and put in a meandering path," Warren said. The path is of decomposed granite, so it is not as hard as concrete but not as loose as sand or gravel. Where steps were necessary, flagstone was used.

"Everything flows with what was growing there already," Warren said of the design. " A lot of it was hard work, because you can't get backhoes in there."

By starting in an area with mature trees, Forest Lawn was able to end up with a garden canopy of 30 to 40 foot pines, accented with some cedars.

Made-to-order rocks
Forest Lawn ordered products from Rock & Water Creations, Fillmore, California, with some adjustments to the standard product lines.

The company's faux rocks and boulders that mark the location of the cremated remains come with a flat indentation where a bronze plaque can be attached. "We didn't want our rocks to have flat spots, so we asked Rock & Water to cast extra thickness in some spots, and then when someone orders a plaque, we ground it down at that time, so you don't see flat spots."

Forest Lawn also wanted additional security to give families the assurance that the cremated remains containers would remain in place, so they designed a system whereby the rocks are bolted to in-ground concrete vaults.

The interment spots are on a grid so they can be easily mapped. The question was, Warren said, "How do you have a grid and make it look random?"

The answer: "You skip a lot of the spaces and orient the rocks different ways, and use about every style rock they make."

Each rock has a capacity of up to four urns. Phase 1 includes 526 rocks. Two earth-tone columbaria with granite niches provide 212 above-ground interment spaces, as do granite benches that can hold the cremated remains of up to eight persons.

Because of the multi-urn capacity of the rocks and niches, Phase 1 has a total capacity of 3,000 interments. Additional phases will add an estimated 700- 800 rocks and niches to The Woodlands.

People who prefer a more traditional columbarium niche but like the location can choose one of two small columbariums, only two or three niches high—the height of a rock wall.

The soft ground cover, plants and trees absorb sound. "It's very quiet; you can really hear nature," Warren said.

Visitors can enjoy the solitude, the sights and sounds of nature, while remembering their loved ones. The benches provide seating, though some people choose to sit on a rock or boulder, as they might anywhere else outdoors.

Acceptance and expansion
Construction on The Woodlands started in April 2004. Interments were accepted beginning in December. "So far, we've had a great reception," Warren said. "We had some people waiting for us to finish the garden." Sales of rock memorials are on target and interest is growing as more families learn about The Woodlands.

"We're getting people who normally would take the urn home. We don't know if they would have chosen to scatter or to keep the cremated remains at home."

Now, they're choosing the option cemeterians believe in—permanent memorialization in a spot that will be available for generations to come.

In addition to developing additional phases at The Woodlands, Forest Lawn plans to add similar areas at other locations. The next one is planned for Covina Hills.

During the 2005 ICFA Convention in Las Vegas, I hit a different kind of jackpot, winning a guided tour of the major cemeteries in Australia. Of the hundreds of attendees, I was blessed to have my name drawn by Anne and John Field of Axiom Business Systems for this extraordinary opportunity to visit the premier properties in their homeland.

The best time for me to take time off from my job as general manager is winter. On January 17, 2006, I left my family—two children and an understanding wife—in snowy Omaha and headed for Australia and sunny, summer weather.

After enduring the l4-hour flight from Los Angeles, I quickly adjusted to the time change and started on what I would describe as a student exchange program for an industry executive. Before embarking on the three-city, four-cemetery tour, my hosts, the Fields, gave me a chance to unwind and stretch my legs after the hours of being confined to a standard airline seat by visiting the famed Opera house and bay bridge at The Rocks at Sydney's harbor.

Macquarie Park Cemetery
www.maccem.com.au

Sightseeing over, we began our tour in Sydney at Macquarie Park Cemetery and
Crematorium, named after the first governor of the state of New Wales. Before leaving the United States, I had pulled up the cemetery's Web site, and immediately knew I had a lot to learn from these professionals. Their Web site incorporated all the ideas I had been envisioning for our own site.

Macquarie Park's Web site includes the park's history, contact information, site maps, burial locator, virtual tours, past newsletters, online brochures, funeral catering details and fee listings. What the Web site doesn't mention is the exciting monumental change—excuse the pun—and activity occurring within the park's boundaries.

While Macquarie's mission since its first burial in 1922 has been to celebrate and honor the lives of those gone before, the park has been on top of the trend toward cremation. Macquarie has opened three integrated chapels connected to a state-of-the art crematorium, capturing 20 percent of the market in 18 short months.

It was obvious they accomplished this by going to great lengths to address every detail involved in serving customers' needs. The families visiting Macquarie Park cannot help but have a superior experience without necessarily knowing why. Some of the answers lie with subtleties such as the flower theme carried throughout each facility. The names of the chapels (Magnolia, Palm and Camelia) are reflected in the flower mural on the one-way glass of the family viewing room and the LCD screens discreetly mounted both inside and outside the chapel to accommodate overflow attendance.

During my tour, both adjacent condolence lounges were filled with family members and friends who had stayed for receptions catered onsite following committal services. This was all going on while a band played the tango in one room, cremations were being conducted in one of three crematoriums hidden in the back of the complex and, outside, construction workers and cement trucks were busy pouring the foundation for two more reception halls.

Cemetery officials originally estimated the crematorium would serve 500 families during its first year. The actual number was 1,000, and the number of families served continues to grow. The cemetery built the chapels and crematorium not only to add an immediate revenue stream but also to generate funds for the perpetual care of this city cemetery long after it has reached capacity for interments.

The grounds are laid out in sections, including ones specifically for many different faiths (Anglican, Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist, Congregational, Roman Catholic, Salvation Army, Jewish) or ethnic groups (Chinese, Armenian). All rows are established toe to toe to save valuable inches.

It surprised me to see that all memorials, both flat and upright, are placed on a "beam." The beam is a ribbon of concrete reinforced with rebar and scored to delineate the width of each space. Speaking again of attention to detail: They even sprinkle an oxide powder over the top of the concrete during finishing to create a patina color to blend in with the lawn.

For flat marker sections, the beam is peaked, sloping down toward each grave. After an interment occurs, a bronze plaque is affixed to the concrete, and plastic vases can be purchased and glued on either side of the plaque. For monument areas, the concrete was flat for the base and the stones were placed back to back, facing their respective graves.

The beams are all about efficiency. They are put in place when the section is first developed to protect the memorials and provide efficiencies. Trimming time is significantly reduced, since there are no individual markers to trim around—just the beams. With graves arranged toe to toe, large mowers can effectively be guided down one beam and back along a facing beam.

In developing one of the newest Macquarie sections, managers faced the challenges presented by being next to a fence and underneath a power grid. These barriers were overcome with a combination of art and inspiration.

Starting at one end of the rectangular section, you stand in the middle of multiple circles of cremation space bordered with plantings, with a path leading to the other end of the section. In the middle of the first circle is a plaque describing how you will embark on a journey that follows Jesus' final hours, concluding at the other end of the section.

The path is lined with one-of-a-kind sculptures depicting each Station of the Cross, accompanied by a bronze marker narrating the scene. This path does not end with Jesus on the cross as do many. On the ground beyond the crucifixion scene lies a broken cross, sending a powerful message to any Christian visitor.

Everything about the cemetery is branded, from the six-passenger golf carts to the nametags each administrator wears. By the way, the golf carts were introduced after Macquarie had to enlarge the parking lot to accommodate the crowds it was drawing. Cemetery officials got the golf carts to provide relief for visitors who would find the longer distances too great to walk.

Operations personnel all wear lightweight, short-sleeved polo shirts made of a neon green material similar to that worn by cyclists or other athletes that provide protection from the sun while being "breathable" in the summer heat. Everyone, including funeral directors and clergy, wears brimmed hats that circle the entire head to protect them from the sun.

Macquarie also provides visitors with a state-of-the-art touch-screen location finder. Almost a piece of art itself, the stainless steel kiosk provides not only a screen with maps, but also a second screen that shows picturesque cemetery scenes. CEO Ross Davis and his staff are driving innovation and inspiration for the families they serve.

On to Adelaide
Leaving Macquarie Park, we were off to the airport on our way to Adelaide.  The city, another coastal community with a population of over 1 million, was the first to be settled by free persons. (Other Australian capital cities started as English penal colonies.) As in Palm Springs in the United States, the temperature in Adelaide is often 100 degrees or more with little humidity, and this was the case during my stay.

The valley is bordered by hills of vineyards such as Rosemont, Chapel Hill and d' Arenberg. Personal inspection of these establishments was required, followed by a walk along the seawall dotted with Norwegian pines originally planted to supply timber for sailing masts.

Sunday started with Mass at Adelaide's St. Francis Xavier Catholic Cathedral, celebrated by Archbishop Philip Wilson. We then set off east to Handorf and toured the home and gallery of Australia's premier artist, Sir Hans Heysen. The wonderful day concluded with conversation and dinner at the ranch of Kevin Crowden, retired CEO of Enfield Memorial Park and past president of the Australian Cemeteries and Crematoria Association.

Enfield Memorial Park
Early Monday, it was back to work, with an all-day tour of Enfield Memorial Park, which performs 1,000 body burials and 1,200 cremations annually. We first passed a touch-screen directory for burial and memorial site locations. This was followed by meticulously manicured rose gardens where the individual roses were incorporated on either side of a wedge of granite as part of the memorial package. The wedges either were engraved or held bronze.

Enfield CEO Eric Heapy, along with Manager of Business Development Darren Leuders and Operations Manager Mark Ruthven, led the morning tour through all the gardens and phase one of their newly constructed mausoleum.

Three areas take your breath away. First is the Campbell Memorial Garden, which is bisected by a linear path of water leading up to a stone cremation wall. On either side of the running water are cremation memorials. On the other side of the wall, the water continues into a pond over which stands a fully enclosed glass gazebo.

The stunning aspect is the 100+ birch trees surrounding the gazebo. Cremation memorials circle the base of each birch. The feeling created is similar to the serenity you feel when walking through the birch forests of the Colorado Rockies. Pictures cannot convey the environment these cemeterians have brought to life.

Next came the Western Rose Garden, which is laid out in a semicircle. The zoysia grass is green and lush, providing a perfect background to accentuate the white, red and pink rose bushes separating each wedge marker identifying full body burial graves. While private plantings are not allowed, visitors can use shared plastic vases supplied by the cemetery to leave fresh flowers. The care of this area is reminiscent of the gardens of Hampton Court in England or the Palace of Versailles in France.

Finally, the Pavilion Garden was the most impressive for its simple brilliance and the fact that it could easily be adopted by any other cemetery wanting to incorporate trees. This section of 830 burial spaces feels like a secluded back yard due to the stone wall border. Leaving no space unused, the walls held memorial plates to identify the deceased in lawn crypts below. On either side of each wall memorial, the mason incorporated a planting urn that held a variety of greenery.

Within the confines of the walls, the area was laid out like rows of pinwheels, each with eight graves surrounding a tree. Twelve specially formed concrete pieces placed in the shape of a square lay approximately four feet from the base of the tree to hold bronze memorial plates. The formed concrete was processed to emulate sandstone.

I felt like I was walking, on a crisp fall day, through one of the many family owned apple orchards that dot the two lane road leading from Omaha to Nebraska City. I could not stop thinking how the families of the deceased are comforted here, as one could only conjure up sweet recollections in this setting.

The section tapered to an open-air gazebo with a granite pedestal, providing a quiet location for committals. At that point, I knew this trip was giving me a gift of ideas that I could share with colleagues and potentially develop for my own Catholic families in Omaha.

Centennial Park
 www.centenniaipark.org
The journey continued the next day with a tour of Centennial Park, also in Adelaide. Our host and tour guide was CEO Bryan Elliott. This cemetery planning showed the same elegance and detail as Macquarie and Enfield. Centennial is so named because it was opened in 1936, 100 years after the establishment of South Australia. The staff of 55 includes 18 gardeners, six crematorium staff, a digging crew of five, five in facilities maintenance and 16 in sales and administration.

Like the other two, Centennial is primarily a lawn beam cemetery. Each grave has a license term of 50 years that can be perpetually renewed by the family. If the family does not renew the license, the cemetery has the right to reuse the space. (See "Reclaiming burial space after the 50-year license expires" for details) One burial space can hold up to three people at three depths. The minimum depth of burial is one meter. 

To inter multiple people, you must wait a minimum of three years before you can "lift and deepen." This process involves disinterring the remains of the person in depth one or two (vaults are not used), digging to level two or three and re-interring the skeletal remains. I later found out that this practice is not universal to all of Australia. Each state or municipality has its own legislation allowing or prohibiting the practice.

The cemetery currently holds 120,000 burials, with 65,000 active licenses averaging two deceased per space.

Centennial Park opened its first crematorium in 1953 and added a complex of three chapels, gathering areas and lounges in 1986. As a side note, the first crematorium in the Southern Hemisphere was operating in 1903 in West Terrace Cemetery, only a few miles away from Centennial Park.

The largest chapel seats over 250 and can hold 1,000. Two local city governments oversee the park, which serves various denominations segmented by areas and also has two sections for veterans. Each veterans' section is marked by a large cross-monument, one called the Cross of Sacrifice, for those who died in battle, and the other the Cross of Remembrance, for those who served.

Centennial performs 1,000 burials and 3,000 cremations each year. Of those cremated, 40 percent are then interred in Centennial Park. This activity generates approximately $6.5 million in revenue, with net income after depreciation in excess of $850,000.

In the past, cremations were always handled by cemeteries, but recently funeral homes and other establishments have started offering crematory services, creating competition for the cemeteries. Therefore, all the cemeteries talked in terms of burials, cremations and memorials:
• Burials: the number of body interments in the cemetery.
• Cremations: the number of deceased handled by the cemetery's retorts.
• Memorials: the number of cremated remains interred in the cemetery.

Cemeteries now have a challenge in educating families about inurnment options. Centennial's approach is to create an area called Contemplation Court and Garden Walk, a series of niche walls bordering three fountain ponds, all covered by shade sails. The wall serves as a holding area for cremated remains when a decision has not yet been made on their final disposition.

Contemplation Court gives the family an opportunity to visit the deceased and become accustomed to the idea of having their loved one at the cemetery. The hope is that the family will be inspired to choose some form of memorialization at Centennial. 
 

Centennial Park's approach to marketing and selling focuses on branding, educating and providing customer service. Using television, radio and print media, they have spent $300,000 to bring their message to families.

When you enter the administration building, glossy pictorials of each section, along with the respective memorial samples that can be placed in that particular location, line the length of the room. In addition, a book titled "At The End Of The Road," by Robert Nicol, which tells the history of both Adelaide and Centennial cemeteries, is for sale.

Like Enfield, Centennial provides a burial location touch screen located outside the office; each month, it receives 1,200 inquiries from visitors and prints 900 maps for families needing directions.

With their first 50-year license having expired in 1988, they took out a 20-page ad costing $100,000 in October 2002 listing 8,000 names needing a license extension. They received over 10,000 inquiries in the following week.

Though the response was overwhelming, the residual effect was a massive educational exercise for the community that created ongoing traffic for license renewals and an awareness of what Centennial Park has to offer families for preserving memories.

The Necropolis
www.necropolis.com.au
The next stop was The Necropolis in Melbourne, a two-hour flight from Adelaide. The cemetery entrance is flanked by massive gray granite piers, rising two stories high and displaying the cemetery's name. The grandeur of the gate was a sign of what lay beyond.

CEO Russ Allison personally took time out of his busy day to provide an overview and tour of the cemetery, which covers 422 acres. Though The Necropolis has been its name for over 100 years, the name Springvale Cemetery and Botanical Gardens was adopted in January to better describe the property.

Reclaiming burial space after the 50-year license expires

Though cremation is the preferred method of disposition today in England, it got off to a slow—and extremely controversial—start, as recounted in part 1 of this series on cremation in the United Kingdom.

Last year marked a significant anniversary—the 120th anniversary of the first cremation in England. With over two-thirds of deaths in the United Kingdom now followed by cremation, it is a mode of disposal almost taken for granted by funeral directors. In 2004, 424,956 cremations took place at the 245 crematoria in operation.

However, the domination of cremation is comparatively recent; it was 1967 before the number of cremations exceeded the number of burials. In 1885, only three cremations took place; by 1900 a total of 444 cremations took place at the four crematoria in operation—Woking, Manchester, Glasgow and Liverpool.

In 1930, cremation was chosen in only 0.87 percent of all deaths, and by the outbreak of war nine years later, there were 56 crematoria, used in 3.85 percent of all deaths. Today, England's cremation rate of around 72 percent is among the highest in the world.

The development of cremation in this country reveals a fascinating struggle against religious prejudice, legal obstacles and entrenched social attitudes. However, its advocates were a determined group of reformers committed to introducing an alternative to earth burial.

This series of three article traces the events leading up to and immediately following the first cremation at Woking in March 1885. The first focuses on the period 1874-1885 and describes the founding of the Cremation Society and the opening of the first crematorium in England and events which assisted in clarifying the legal position; the second examines the arrangements for the first cremations; and the third discusses the disposal of the cremated remains in the early years.

Sir Henry Thompson and the Cremation Society
Although the history of cremation in this country can be traced back to the Romans, it was not until the 19th century that the idea of an alternative to burial was encouraged. Despite the development of large cemeteries outside cities, such as Kensal Green, Highgate, Nunhead and Norwood, along with others outside London, questions were raised about long term viability, maintenance and costs involved in burial.

In 1873, surgeon and polymath Sir Henry Thompson visited the Great Exhibition in Vienna, Austria, where Professor Brunetti (professor of pathological anatomy at the University of Padua) had exhibited a model of a furnace he had used to perform an incineration.

Thompson was sufficiently impressed that he wrote a seminal article on cremation in the January 1874 Contemporary Review placing the subject before the public. Titled "The treatment of the body after death," the opening phrases of the l0-page article were arrestingly romantic:

"After Death! The last faint breath had been noted, and another watched for so long, but in vain. The body lies there; pale and motionless, except only that the jaw sinks slowly but perceptibly. The pallor increases, becomes more leaden in hue, and the profound tranquil sleep of Death reigns where just now were life and movement. Here, then, begins the eternal rest. Rest! no, not for an instant."

After detailing the somewhat gruesome post-mortem changes occurring to the body and the cycle of returning elements to the earth to contribute to the creation process, Thompson then mentioned "grave-yard pollution of air and water" before discussing methods of disposal of the dead and then focusing on the solution offered by cremation.

Most controversially, Sir Henry suggested the use of bones as fertilizer, and regretted that burial wasted half a million pounds of precious bone and earth each year.  He closed by suggesting that, "no great change can be expected at present in the public opinions current ... on the subject of burial."

On January 13, 1874, a meeting of cremation supporters was held at Sir Henry's home at 35 Wimpole Street, Marylebone. Shirley Brooks proposed, seconded by the Rev. Hugh Haweis, that a declaration be prepared. It read as follows:

"We disapprove of the present custom of burying the dead, and desire to substitute some mode which shall rapidly resolve the body into its component elements by a process which cannot offend the living, and shall render the remains absolutely innocuous. Until some better method is devised, we desire to adopt that (method) usually known as cremation."

It was signed by those present. Four months later, the Cremation Society of England was founded. Among the society's council members were novelist Anthony Trollope; artist John Everett Millais; George du Maurier, novelist and grandfather of Daphne du Maurier; surgeon Thomas Spencer Wells; John Tenniel, political cartoonist of Punch and illustrator of Alice in Wonderland; Charles Voysey, dissenting cleric and founder of the Theistic Church; Shirley Brooks, onetime editor of Punch; Ernest Hart, editor of the British Medical Journal; Rose Mary Crawshay, anti-vivisectionist and women's rights campaigner; and businessman Frederick Lehmann. The annual subscription was set at one guinea; payment of a few guineas brought a life membership in the society. William Eassie became the honorary secretary, and Frederick Lehmann was appointed as honorary treasurer.

At the meeting on January 14, 1875, the council members agreed to investigate suitable cremation furnaces and their adaptability for the needs of the Cremation Society. They also established a fund to build a crematorium and to appoint trustees to take responsibility for the land.

At the same time, they were anxious to ascertain whether cremation was legal. The Transactions of the Cremation Society (1877, pp. 45-47) gives an account of the progress:

"Dr. Tristram and Mr. Meadows White were invited to consider the question ..... They were, moreover, on the whole, favorable to the view of those who advocate cremation, and such as to warrant the council in concluding that the performance of the process was perfectly legal, provided that it involved no consequence which would be construed by anyone as a nuisance."

In 1875, the directors of the Great Northern Cemetery at New Southgate in north London offered land and the use of chapels and other accommodation for a crematorium.  However, the bishop of Rochester, within whose jurisdiction the cemetery was located, forbade the building of a crematorium on consecrated land.

The society, forced to look elsewhere, turned to Woking, the location of the London Necropolis Co.'s vast cemetery at Brookwood. In May 1878, the society members purchased a one-acre piece of land off Hermitage Road, and by December, they had commissioned an Italian professor, Paulo Gorini, to oversee the building of a cremator he designed.

Much controversy followed, as the local residents, led by the vicar of St. John's, Woking, in whose parish the crematorium was located, mounted a campaign to prevent cremations from taking place. Following a deputation by the residents to the Home Secretary, the society was forced to pledge not to cremate any bodies until the legal status of cremation had been clarified.
 
Sir Henry Thompson and the society were disappointed, and six years would elapse before the cremator was finally used. During this time, four events would prove crucial to the society being able to use the cremator.

The wait: 1879-1885
The first event occurred in August 1880, when council member Sir Thomas Spencer Wells gave a paper titled "Remarks on Cremation or Burial" during the section on public health at the annual meeting of the British Medical Association at Cambridge. Spencer Wells concluded his paper by presenting association members with a statement to sign if they supported cremation.

In part a transcript of the Cremation Society Declaration signed in January 1874; the statement included a key addition in calling for a strict system of documentation to ensure that the cause of death would be ascertained before a body could be cremated. Spencer Wells obtained many signatures while at Cambridge and passed them on to Home Secretary Sir William Harcourt.

The second event was the cremations at Manston in Dorset in 1882 and 1883.

Capt. Thomas Hanham's wife, who died in 1876, and his mother, Lady Hanham, who died in 1877, both had expressed the desire to be cremated, and Capt. Hanham was determined to carry out their requests. He had their bodies encased in strong elm coffins with lead linings and then placed in a mausoleum erected at Manston House.

Capt. Hanham had contacted the Cremation Society with a view to having both cremated at Woking, but the society was still awaiting a legal determination. Therefore, Capt. Hanham had his own cremator constructed in a brick building at the rear of Manston House. Lady Hanham was cremated on October 8, 1882, and his wife, the following evening. Following the captain's death in November 1883, a full Masonic funeral ritual was held prior to his cremation at Manston. Significantly, the Home Office took no action in all three cases.

The third event had no connection to the Cremation Society. Its outcome, however, would have great impact as the Cremation Society sought to clarify cremation's legal status.

William Price was a Welsh doctor born in 1800 who embraced Druidic traditions. He wore a white tunic and green trousers, braided his long hair and wore a fox-skin headdress-the emblem of a healer. Price had a reputation for somewhat unorthodox practices. He considered surgery a last resort and believed that doctors should be paid according to the well-being of their patients.

In 1884, Price's 5-month-old son, Jesu Grist, died. Price was against earth burial, so he took the body, wrapped in white linen, to the top of the nearby Caerlan Fields (Llantrisant), placed it in half a barrel of paraffin oil and set it alight.

L.M. Martin takes up the story in "A Welsh Heretic" (Historical Bulletin 12, 1947, p. 12): "People returning from chapel were astonished to see the fire and rushed to the spot. The partly consumed body was snatched from the burning pile and the crowd threatened to mob Price. The arrival of the police prevented this, and Price was placed under arrest. In due course an inquest was held and the jury found that the death had been due to natural causes, not foul play as rumored. The police applied to the coroner for permission to bury the child, but Price strongly objected."

Price was tried at the Cardiff assizes on February 12, 1884, before Sir James Fitzjames Stephen. Martin writes that Price was indicted "for attempting to burn the body of his child, instead of burying it; and a second indictment charged him with attempting to burn the body with intent to prevent the holding of an inquest upon it." Mr. Justice Stephen concluded:

"After full consideration, I am of opinion that a person who burns instead of burying a dead body does not commit a criminal act, unless he does it in such a manner as to amount to a public nuisance at common law. ... A common nuisance is an act which obstructs or causes inconvenience or damages to the public in the exercise of rights common to all Her Majesty's subjects.

''To burn a dead body in such a place and such a manner as to annoy persons passing along public roads or other places where they have a right to go is beyond all doubt a nuisance, as nothing more offensive both to sight and to smell can be imagined.

''The depositions in this case do not state very distinctly the nature and situation of the place where this act was done, but if you think upon inquiry that there is evidence of its having been done in such a situation and manner as to be offensive to any considerable number of persons, you should find a true bill."

In March, Price finally succeeded in cremating his son's body. Though the cremation took place at 7 a.m., a vast crowd at Llantrisant witnessed the act. After his death in 1893, William Price was cremated at Caerlan Fields on January 31.

The final important event occurred in April 1884, when Dr. Charles Cameron, the member of Parliament for Glasgow City, introduced a bill in parliament to legalize the cremation. The debate was made before Home Secretary Sir William Harcourt, who was known to oppose cremation.

On the afternoon of April 30, Charles Cameron rose in the House of Commons to read for the second time the Disposal of the Dead (Regulations) Bill. He outlined the need for an alternative mode of disposal, discussed the decision in the Price case and addressed the issue of the concealment of crime via cremation. Dr. Farquharson and Sir Lyon Playfair supported the motion. During the proceedings, a unique event occurred in the House, as the April 1884 Hansard reported: "Here the hon. Member [Dr. Farquharson] produced, and held up for the inspection of the House, a small bottle filled with a white powder, which, he explained, were the ashes ... of a cow cremated some time before." The reaction of the House is not recorded.

The Home Secretary's opinion was clearly influential; the vote was 149-79 against the bill.

Undeterred by the lack of a law addressing the cremation issue and encouraged by the decision in the Price case, the Cremation Society decided to go ahead and offer cremation. In January 1885, The Times carried the following announcement:

"CREMATION.-Arrangements are now completed for the use of the CREMATORIUM of the CREMATION SOCIETY of ENGLAND. Particulars can be obtained from Wm. Eassie, Esq., C.E. the Hon. Secretary, 11, Argyle -Street, London. W."

By the end of March 1885, the Cremation Society had conducted its first cremation at Woking.

When cremation began in England, no one scattered the remains.
Columbaria were available for urns, and cemeteries accepted burials, many marked by miniature gravestones.

The first cremations in this country presented the families of those cremated with the issue of final disposition of the remains. There were two alternatives: retention in a columbarium and earth burial. Though the former was offered by the Cremation Society of England at Woking crematorium, burial was the option most favored. Based on research from cremation and burial registers, funeral directors' records and published accounts of funerals in the years 1885-1900, this article explores some of the issues apparent from this challenge to a culture more familiar with burial of a body in a coffin.

Retention in the columbarium
Both before and after the first cremation in 1885, cremation literature had given much consideration to both the earth burial and columbarium options for the remains.

The cremationists noted that the Romans practiced cremation-though they stressed that the modem process was more scientific and technically sophisticated-and stored remains in a columbarium.  The word columbarium is from the Latin word meaning dove, and refers to the compartments in a dovecote that resemble the niches of a columbarium.

The contents of columbaria also inspired the design of urns, though such receptacles had long been a feature of classical architecture; many examples can be found on London buildings. It was not long before the funeral business, which was providing wooden caskets, also began to supply urns.

At Woking, Edward Clarke's design for the crematorium hall included 27 niches below the east window (see illustration above) for either temporary or permanent placement of remains. If the latter, the niche could be enclosed with an inscribed stone tablet. In subsequent years, a new columbarium was built which was twice enlarged. For placement in perpetuity in a niche, the society charged £12 for the top two rows of niches and £10 for lower ones.

With cremation increasing, albeit slowly, columbaria appeared in London cemeteries. In 1891-1892, one was opened as part of the monumental chambers in the General Cemetery at Kensal Green, and in 1893 The London Cemetery Co. opened a columbarium within the New Catacombs at Highgate Cemetery and also at its sister location, Nunhead. At Brookwood, it was 1910 before an unused mausoleum was converted into a columbarium. Following his death in April 1904, the ashes of Sir Henry Thompson were placed in Golders Green's West Columbarium, which had opened in 1902.

Earth burial
Remains from some cremations were buried, sometimes in a cemetery attached to the crematorium. The Duke of Bedford's crematory at Woking had a small cemetery adjacent to the entrance. The burial of remains in the ground (or urn sepulture) had been advanced by William Robinson, gardener and member of Council of the Society, writing in 1880 in "God's Acre Beautiful, or the Cemeteries of the Future." Robinson had clearly been impressed by the tombs of the Romans and Greeks.

James Stephens Curl, in "The Historical Problems of Designing Crematoria," wrote: "Money otherwise wasted on elaborate funerals could be spent on beautiful urns and tombs set in an Arcadian landscape. While trees and shrubs would create glades within the cemetery, the perimeter of the grounds could have arcaded columbaria to resemble the cloistered cemeteries of Italy."

The society's engineer and first honorary secretary, William Eassie, rather wildly estimated that the "acre of land on which the Woking Crematory stands should accommodate, with proper management, 1,000,000 urns, or more than a year's mortality of the whole of the United Kingdom."

In 1888, the society recorded the first burial of cremated remains on its land, but it is unclear exactly where. The Cremation Society Council minutes in March 1890 recorded that the decision "that a piece of ground belonging to the society at St. John's be set aside for the interment of ashes and that the sum of £1 be charged for each interment."

The first burial in the Cremation Society's cemetery was for Robert Faulkner, cremated on June 10, 1890. This is noted in the registers as Plot 1. The site was initially popular, and over the next 20 years, hundreds of interments took place.

In the cemetery, there are many traditional monuments—all in miniature. Included are the broken column, the cross, the Celtic cross, the obelisk; tablets raised above the ground, an enclosed chest and two memorials with a swastika emblem.

However, by the early part of the 20th century, the society appeared to consider the burial of cremated remains in the cemetery inappropriate. "The Transactions of the Cremation Society" for 1924 states that: 'In the last two decades of the 19th century, the early cremationists could not entirely break away from the idea of burial. Plots of land were therefore set aside for interment of urns, each one being marked by a miniature gravestone and thus perpetuating the effect of a small cemetery. That fortunately has now practically ceased, but St. John's Crematorium, Woking ... has such a ground, curiously unsightly, but still an interesting relic of a transitional period."

Burials also took place away from the crematorium. By the end of 1886, 13 cremations had taken place at Woking, and all remains were removed from the area. Where earth burials took place, they did so either in a proprietary cemetery or Anglican churchyard.

After the fourth cremation, "the ashes were gathered up and placed in an urn, which was taken away in charge of a relative or friend." After the eighth, the remains "were handed to the sons of the deceased, who were present at the ceremony," and later interred at Nunhead Cemetery. Clearly, the Cremation Society wanted the next of kin or executor—termed the "Applicant for Cremation" according to the 1902 Cremation Act—to be responsible for the decision.

Probably the first division of the cremated remains occurred after the cremation of Madame Blavarsky, founder of the Theosophical movement, whose remains were divided in three and sent to Europe, America and India.

The remains of Osmond De Beauvior Priaulx, cremated in January 1891, were transported back to Guernsey and placed in an urn behind a grille in the Priaulx Library in St. Peter Port. Those of Charles Wyndham Rodolph Kerr, cremated in February 1894, were buried in the floor at St. Saviour's Church Pimlico, following a ruling from the chancellor of the Diocese of London.

Analyzing the burials
Several interesting observations can be made about the disposition of cremated remains in these early years:

1. There appeared to be no problem with burying the remains in consecrated ground, including churchyards, despite the Church of England's uneasy attitude toward cremation.

It seems ironic that the formerly anti-cremation vicar of St. John's Church Woking, in whose parish the crematorium is situated, permitted cremated remains to be buried in his churchyard. The church burial registers show that 22 caskets of such remains were buried in the churchyard between January 1890 and January 1896, when 730 cremations were carried out, and that none of those interred were St. John's parishioners.

The rights of burial are for those living and dying in the parish, but can also be extended to others at the discretion of the incumbent vicar. Unlike in some churchyards, the fact of cremation was noted in the burial register; the notation "after cremation" appears with each entry before the full name.

2. In some cases, the fact that the deceased had been cremated was noted on the memorial. At Brookwood Cemetery, this fact was not recorded on the memorials for the first three caskets of cremated remains interred. But the memorial for Isabella Knight, who was cremated and buried on February 14, 1891, did include that information. At least one memorial (for Sir William John Moore, who died on September 9, 1896) includes the phrase, "cremated at Woking."

3. It appears that cremated remains were buried without delay. In 1886, the remains of the 11th and 13th persons cremated were buried the same day at Hastings and Highgate, respectively. Following the cremation of Alfred Allason at 1 p.m., April 25, 1890, his remains were buried at Brookwood the next morning. The cremation of Percy William Thomas on September 22, 1894, at 2 p.m. must have been carried out with astonishing rapidity, as the remains were buried at Brookwood at 4 p.m.

It seems that the deceased's relatives often waited for the remains while the cremation was taking place. According to the February 1898 "Undertaker's Journal," "With the actual process of cremation the undertaker has nothing whatever to do, but whilst it is in progress, his hands are fairly full. At St. John's it is customary for the mourners to adjourn for lunch, arrangements for which may be made with Mr. Wood at the Albion Hotel." The rationale behind following the cremation with lunch and then burial is easy to see: It saved the family the expense of a second trip to Woking.

4. Being an undertaker who owned a cemetery made handling cremation more profitable. The proprietors of the London Necropolis Co., which had a cemetery at Brookwood, were also undertakers who in the early 1890s formed a relationship with the Cremation Society to carry out cremations. The society offered the company a significant discount on cremation fees in return for providing an all charges-included funeral.

The coffined body was brought to the company's private railway station at Waterloo and transported to the cemetery, where it was then conveyed to the crematorium along with the mourners. The remains could then be buried in private graves in the cemetery, with a memorial specifically designed to accommodate caskets such as the glass-sided chest pictured at left.

Out of the 35 cremations arranged by the London Necropolis Co. in 1892, 14 caskets of remains went to Brookwood; two years later, 21 caskets of remains from 51 cremations went to Brookwood. This was clearly a convenient and profitable arrangement for the company and gave the firm an incentive to promote cremation.

The company could convey the mourners and coffin by train to the cemetery, where the family could walk around the cemetery while the cremation took place. The family could then attend the burial before getting back on the train to go home.
 
The winds of change
By the end of the 19th century, four crematoria had opened. However, neither Manchester, Liverpool nor Glasgow had followed Woking's example of providing a burial ground for the remains, although a columbarium was included in the overall scheme for each facility.

As additional crematoria opened in the 20th century, particularly during the interwar years, and then as cremation increased, the problem of limited columbaria capacity became apparent.

Furthermore, the cremationists had shifted from promoting cremation as a hygiene issue to a cost issue, and following cremation with burial in a grave or inurnment in a columbarium would only add to expenditures. A newfound place and mode of disposition emerged: The scattering of ashes in gardens of remembrance.

The author thanks Woking Crematorium General Manager Kathy Reynolds, the Cremation Society Archive at Durham University and John Clarke for help in preparation of the original paper on which this is based.

It's true that we offer continuous food and beverage service in our ICFA Convention Expo Hall, but if what you really want out of a funeral and cemetery show is a great meal, go to France. I spent several hours at Funéraire 2005, which took place in Paris in November, and I still can't get over how much eating and drinking and socializing went on. At one point, it was 11 a.m. and someone was offering me a glass of wine!

But that's just how they do business. Companies devote almost as much floor space to their food service section as to their merchandise. Some of the exhibits look like restaurants. People spend a lot of time at each booth and it looks like a lot of relationship building goes on—if you speak French, which I don't.

I met a man from a funeral service company in New Jersey who handles a lot of international shipping—repatriations—and was there to develop relationships with Europeans in the funeral business.

Funéraire is different from the expositions put on by the ICFA or NFDA. It seems to be an event held independent of any group, though there were seminars.

I had talked to Dave Jones from Matthews Bronze before I went, and he put me in touch with a woman who would be at the Matthews exhibit at Funéraire. She walked around with me and helped translate when I wanted to ask questions about a product.

The exhibits are geared for the European market (obviously), so even though I found the show interesting, there weren't many products I wanted to buy.

I did find some reliqueries—which is a new term for me. They are miniature bronze pieces that hold a little bit of cremated remains or some hair, and they're works of art, created by the lost wax method. The company has a distributor in Montreal, so I bought about a dozen for my funeral homes to see how they'll be received.

I had never seen anything like these reliqueries in the United States, and of course that was the reason I went to this show, to try to find something new to bring back to my business.

The caskets I saw were very traditional in shape and form for the most part. They are smaller and narrower than the ones in the United States—Europeans are smaller than Americans overall.

Cremation is popular, and Europeans seem to be questioning the value of funerals. I talked to a woman from Italy who said this is happening there. I was surprised to hear that, because in the United States, Italians are seen as very much into the traditional funeral. She said it's an economic issue that Italy became a poorer country when the switch to the euro was made, and people now have less money to spend on funerals.

Tips for getting more out of a 'foreign' show

My brief visit to Funéraire 2005 was worth the trip—it certainly was educational—but it could have been better. My advice for anyone considering attending a funeral and cemetery exposition in another country:

• Allow plenty of time, which I didn’t do—going was a spur-of-the-moment decision made after I found out there was no Funéraire 2006 (it's held every other year). I spent 48 hours in Paris and was probably in the expo hall a total of about eight hours.

Something like this will probably be a once in-a-lifetime trip, so plan carefully.

• Try to go with someone who can speak the language. Unlike Americans, most Europeans can speak two or three languages, but that doesn't mean most of them speak English. The show was interesting, but I felt like a bit of an outsider. Most of the materials were in French. So even if you had a simple question, the language barrier was a real issue.

• Don't go with too many expectations, especially of finding a lot of products you'll be able to use at your funeral home or cemetery here in the United States. I was hoping I'd be able to find a number of products I'd be able to sell in New York, and I was disappointed.

A lot of the companies I saw don't do business in the United States, or if they do (Biendan, for example), we already see them at American shows. I talked to one guy about an urn I liked and he said he could ship it to the United States if I would order 900. I don't need 900 copies of one urn!

I got lucky, though. Trifac, the one company I found that had something I really wanted—very nice bronze miniatures—distributes out of Montreal.

I do think as long as your expectations are realistic, it's worth a visit to Funéraire or any show you haven't been to before. I probably won't return unless I happen to be in France at the time, but I am planning to attend an exposition in England in 2007.

You never know when you're going to find something new. Very rarely does something new find its way to your door—you need to get out and look.

As cremation slowly made the transition from novelty to reasonable disposition option, questions arose about the best container for cremation (woollen envelopes anyone?) and the most cost-effective way to transport bodies to the crematorium.

The first cremations posed a number of challenges to an undertaking industry only familiar with the burial of the dead. How were bodies to be transported to the cremator at Woking? What coffins could be used? How should the cremated remains be treated? These were all areas which had to be addressed. The support of the undertaking industry was essential to the progress of cremation and it was the Marylebone firm of William Garstin that was initially involved in the early cremations.

A coffin being loaded into a hearse van at the London Necropolis private station at 121 Westminster Bridge Road.

William Garstin & Sons
Born in 1812, William Octavius Garstin established his undertaking business in January 1834 at 4 Welbeck St., Marylebone. In 1907, Garstin's relocated to 49 Wigmore St., where it remained until amalgamation with the equally historic Marylebone firm of William Tookey in 1966 at 51 Marylebone High St. In 1973, J.H. Kenyon acquired the goodwill of both companies.

Following the closure of Tookey's business in the 1970s, Garstin was incorporated into the premises of Kenyon Air Transportation. When this closed in the mid 1990s, the Garstin name was finally consigned to history.

Funeral directors' work largely reflects the social position and aspirations of the area in which they are located. This was certainly the case with Garstin's, who were responsible for the funeral arrangements of Cardinal Wiseman (February 1865) and Napoleon Louis, Prince Imperial of France (February 1879).

William Garstin also had a subsidiary company at 28 New Bridge St., Blackfriars, called The Funeral Co., and it was this organization that was responsible for the first cremation.

March 26, 1885:
The first cremation at Woking
The first person to be cremated at Woking was Jeanette Caroline Pickersgill of St. John's Wood, who died on March 20, 1885; she was cremated six days later. The Times reported:

"Yesterday morning the crematory erected at St. John's Woking Surrey was made use of for the first time, the body reduced to ashes being that of Mrs. Pickersgill of Clarence Gate, London. It had been previously subjected to an autopsy. The deceased was well known in literary and scientific circles, and expressly stipulated in the will that her body should be cremated. With a view to this she had previously become a subscriber to the Cremation Society of England. The cremation, which lasted one hour, is said to have been eminently successful from every point of view." A more detailed account appeared in "The Surrey Advertiser," while ''The Transactions of the Cremation Society of England" stated:

"The form of declaration drawn up by the society had been signed by her [Mrs. Pickersgill], and after the medical certificates had been duly filled up by the registered medical men, and an application from a representative of the deceased, on another form ... the cremation was allowed to proceed. An autopsy had been previously carried out by the medical attendants of the deceased.

"The body was conveyed to the crematory from London in a suitable hearse, and the cremation, which lasted one hour, was attended by two friends of the deceased, who expressed themselves perfectly satisfied with the system employed .... During the time of the cremation no smoke escaped from the chimney-shaft, whilst the ashes were of the purest white and small in volume."

William Garstin was responsible for the arrangements of the second person to be cremated, Charles William Carpenter, who died on October 14, 1885. The firm's register states that he was taken from "30 St. Mary's Road Willesden [in northwest London] to Woking Crematorium on 19th."

The entry also gives other details about the coffin, transport and costs: "A shell covered in cambric with an internal sheet and mattress" was delivered to the house where the deceased was encoffined. On October 19, bearers placed the coffin in the hearse, and drawn by a pair of horses with a "man in charge," the cortège made its way to Woking.

The cremation register indicates that two doctors examined the deceased (without conducting a post-mortem examination) and signed certificates I & II, which became forms B, C and F under the 1902 Cremation Act and are still in use today.

Form B is signed by the medical practitioner in attendance during the last illness; Form C is signed by a medical practitioner independent from the practitioner signing Form B; and Form F is signed by a practitioner employed by the cremation authority to examine all forms and permit cremation.
The cremation took 1.25 hours and the notes in the cremation register also record that the remains were later taken to Golders Green Crematorium East Columbarium following its opening in 1902.

The third and final cremation of the year was of Sarah Gratten of Sunnyside 72 Union Grove Clapham in south London, who died on December 4 and was cremated on December 11. Garstin's did not handle this one, but over the next four years was responsible for a large percentage of cremations, and examination of the firm's registers reveals much about the arrangements.

Coffins for the first cremations
The cremation registers reveal that Jeanette Pickersgill was cremated in a shell, and Garstin provided for Charles Carpenter a "shell covered in cambric with a cashmere sheet mattress and pillow."
 
(Editor's note: A shell is an inner wooden coffin in which the deceased would have been placed prior to the shell and its contents being placed into an outer, elaborate coffin, i.e. polished, with handles and an engraved nameplate.) Sources reported that Sarah Gratten was cremated in an elm coffin.

In March 1886, the coffin for Inglis Jardine was described in Garstin's records as a "Coffin covered cashmere, lined cambric and mounted with plate handles Brit metal plate (metal work removed)." The time of the removal of the coffin furniture is not indicated, but would probably have been immediately prior to the coffin being inserted into the cremator. Inside the coffin was a "cambric sheet."

An account of this cremation states that, "the remains were placed in an elm coffin with name and age of the deceased upon a silver plate. The process occupied considerably more than the usual time on account of the coffin having been constructed of solid elm, instead of light pine or wickerwork."

Other Garstin cremations in 1886 confirm the use of a coffin. For the cremation of Mrs. Martineau on June 30, a "shell covered grey cashmere, lined cambric, cambric sheet, mattress and pillow" was used, while in October it was an "elm shell covered drab and lined with fine cambric." For George Whiteley in January 1887, a "deal shell covered drab lined cambric; 3 pairs handles, cambric sheet, mattress and pillow" was provided. In April 1888, a "pine shell, lined cambric, covered cashmere, cambric sheet and cover." Some coffins were covered in black cloth.

Writing in 1891 in "Modern Cremation: Its History and Practice," Sir Henry Thompson revealed his ideas about a suitable container for cremation:

"It is strongly recommended to all applicants that no large, heavy, or ornamental coffins should be employed for the purpose, but, on the contrary, only a thin, light, pine shell; as in the former case cremation cannot take place without removing the body, and in the latter there is no necessity to do so, and accordingly the practice is to burn the whole together. But, after a considerable experience of cremation both here and abroad, I do not hesitate to say that I greatly prefer the plan of completely enveloping the body (already habited in the ordinary shroud) in a long narrow sheet, say 10 feet by 5, previously placed lengthways over a simply empty shell.“

''The last act before finally closing the shell should be that of folding the sides of the sheet across the body one overlapping the other, so as to cover it entirely. Thus the folded ends of the sheet will extend some two feet or so, above and below the head and feet of the body respectively. Above each of these points, a piece of stout white tape or white web should be firmly tied round the folded sheet, and in two places round the covered body also, so as to maintain the sheet in its place.”

"These ends are then turned over towards each other into the shell before the lid is adjusted and fastened. Immediately before the act of cremation commences, the shell should be opened, the body be carefully and reverently lifted out of the shell by a bearer at each end of the sheet, a third supporting the centre, and be placed on the frame which enters the crematorium. By this means the ashes of the body are not mixed with those of the shell, which must necessarily be the case if both are burned together, requiring a tedious and somewhat imperfect procedure to separate them. Moreover, the wood hinders and prolongs the work of cremation proper.”

''The sheet may be made of cotton linen, or wool, but the latter is preferable because its constituents are largely dissipated in combustion, whereas the vegetable fibre yields and leaves a large quantity of carbon in the form of ash. In the draught of a powerful furnace, some of this fine matter is no doubt carried away."
 
The use of wool is practical, but also curious as it has the property of being absorbent but also being capable of not sustaining fire. It would, however, have been relatively inexpensive.

Sir Henry also says in his text "It cannot be too clearly understood that it is most undesirable to encase the body in a heavy or costly coffin; A LIGHT PINE SHELL IS THE BEST RECEPTACLE FOR THE PURPOSE OF CREMATION. There is no reason why, for the funeral service, a simple shell should not suffice, and it may be covered with cloth at very small expense, if preferred. When, however, it is intended to hold a funeral service in public, and with some degree of ceremony, before cremation, a more ornate coffin may be used if desired, but it should contain the shell described, which can be afterwards removed."

Sir Henry's preference for a woollen envelope was supported by the London undertaker and cremation advocate Halford Lupton Mills, who said, "It should be noted that no wood coffin ought to be burned in the same chamber with the body. Experience has proved that no wood is sufficiently consumed by fire to leave the human ashes as clean and pure as desirable, and such wrapping as cotton-wool has a considerable amount of substance which is indestructible by such a heat as entirely consumes animal tissue. So far it has appeared the best way to envelope the body in a woollen wrapper which entirely enshrouds it. Asbestos cloth has been suggested, and might be useful to ensure a pure human ash, or if zinc would be worked so as just to enclose the body, that would be well, because of the low temperature at which it vaporizes."

The cremation register indicates that in 1886 three cremations took place without using a coffin; in 1887 a further seven took place using a shroud only. In 1888, the last year when they were noted, there were 11 "shroud" cremations recorded in the cremation register. Mills continued to advertise his ''woollen envelopes" in the Undertakers' Journal until the late 1890s. Perhaps this could be the source of the folklore that perpetuates today requiring funeral directors to reassure clients that the body is not removed from the coffin prior to cremation.

Transport
At approximately 24 miles from central London, Woking was clearly an inconvenient location compared to the newly established places of burial available around the metropolis. A rail link from Waterloo extending to the south coast had been established in the 1840s, and in 1854 the London Necropolis Co. commenced running its exclusive funeral train from the London terminus in York Street and into Brookwood Cemetery. While this service was usually used for burials, accounts of the early cremations indicate that the railway, in addition to horse-drawn transport, was used to reach the crematorium.

Garstin's registers note that for the cremation of Charles Carpenter in October 1885, "A hearse and pair [of horses] to Woking, a driver and a man in charge" were provided. In March 1886, the hearse conveying Inglis Jardine traveled down after a service in church in Kensington with the staff staying overnight as the cremation took place at 10 a.m. the next day. The other cremations arranged by Garstin in June and October 1886 also record use of a horse hearse.

The records of J.H. Kenyon indicate that the first cremation funeral arranged by the firm was of Alfred Allason on April 25, 1890. The hearse left central London at 6:45 a.m. and cremation took place at 1 p.m.

Horse-drawn conveyance to Woking was clearly expensive and time-consuming. It was not long before the most appropriate alternative—the railway—was adopted for funerals starting in London.

Garstin's first cremation using the London and South Western Railway for transport was for William Crellin Pickersgill in October 1887. The hearse travelled to Waterloo in time for the 10:15 train to Woking. The records do not state what happened at Woking; though it is likely a member of the Garstin staff supervised the locally supplied horse-hearse to the crematorium.
The Woking undertaking firm of John woods, working from the stables of The Albion Hotel, could supply hearses and carriages for the 2.5-mile journey from Woking Junction.

Around 1890, the Cremation Society forged a link with the London Necropolis Co. to use its train service from Waterloo; it was a clear attempt to help to minimize the overall cost of cremation while also reducing the time taken to reach the crematorium. Writing in "Modern Cremation," Sir Henry advocated use of the "rail, direct from Waterloo Station to Woking." However, he goes on, "In the event of a body having to be brought from a distance, any of the companies will provide a special carriage on the usual notice being given, and convey direct to Woking, where use of a hearse can be obtained for conveyance to the crematorium." Sir Henry also gave the times of trains and of cremation in 1891:

 Train leaves Waterloo  Hour of cremation
  9:30 a.m.                 11:00 a.m.
11:45 a.m.                  1:30 a.m.
  2:45 p.m.                  4:15 p.m.

The funeral service of Miss Haynes Walton on September 4, 1888, took place at St. George's Hanover Square at 10:30 a.m. The hearse then went to York Street station at Waterloo for the 11:45 train. The same times were recorded for Alexander Kinglake. The hour of cremation is recorded in the cremation registers and examination shows that early afternoon was by far the most preferred time of cremation. From January to July 1891, 37 of the 61 cremations took place at 1 p.m., 1:30 p.m. or 2 p.m. and all but seven were cremated after 1 p.m.

The convenience of the Cremation Society being able to link with an organization that could provide an undertaking service and the railway conveyance to Waking gradually ended William Garstin's domination of the market.

Eventually, the society recommended that all London-based clients contact the London Necropolis Co. to arrange a cremation funeral. This significantly increased the company's profitability, not only from funeral income but through burial of cremated remains within Brookwood Cemetery.

A December 1890 article in ''Trade, Finance and Recreation" titled "Common Sense Burial" summed up the situation:

"Persons going down in the usual way to the crematorium at Woking must travel by ordinary trains, and then drive some two or three miles to the crematory, there to wait the incinerating ceremony, and afterward drive to the cemetery at Brookwood.

"It is obviously more convenient that funeral parties should go by special or funeral train from the Necropolis Co.'s private station direct to the cemetery, and spend an hour or two among its delightful surroundings, while the body is sent over to the crematorium, to be subjected to the fire, when on its return the funeral service may be held, and the burial conducted in the usual way. Or, if time is of importance, the process of cremation may be carried out before the arrival of the funeral party."

As the number of cremations increased in the early years, albeit modestly, more undertakers visited Woking crematorium and became familiar with the procedures and documentation. However, it would be many years before every firm in this country could claim to have arranged a cremation funeral.

Are we too "bound to the body"? It's time for funeral professionals to deal with families in a new way, or we won't be the ones planning the meaningful funerals and memorial services of tomorrow.

The custom of burial has a long history in North America. Ancient Native American burial grounds provide evidence of that. Yet in the past 50 years, our society has undergone major changes in its death care rituals, and people are moving from traditional burial to the alternative of cremation. People are rejecting the standard burial formula in such great numbers that if there were another alternative besides cremation; that might be the direction in which they would be going.

As cemetery and funeral service professionals, we need to look back at history to discover what it is that people want and figure out how we can best meet their needs.

Anti-cremation tactics backfired
A few years ago, Batesville came out with a program called "Options," based on the premise that cremation families have more choices and flexibility than families choosing traditional burial. Many of us used the "options" idea to try to dissuade people from choosing cremation, but we greatly misjudged our customers.

Instead of scaring people off, the idea of greater choice selection was embraced. Suddenly, the unthinkable happened. God-fearing burial families began to be seduced over to the "dark side" of cremation.

Instead of facing this new challenge and catering to families' needs, we tried to teach them a way to not want it. Many of us accomplished this temporarily by hiding the urns where no one would see them, in that familiar dark, smoked-glass container in the corner of the arrangement space.
That attempt not only was a colossal failure, but also prevented us from keeping up with the consumers who are now demanding more than many of us can now offer.

The reason for this switch in consumer mindset from traditional burials to alternative services is not hard to understand. People view cremation and memorial services as the Burger King, "have it your way" offer, providing them the flexibility to have the service exactly the way they want it.

People choose cremation because it just happens to be the option that allows them to put together a meaningful service their own way. A memorial service is more adaptable than a funeral service because it does not necessarily have to be sad or religious, nor does it have to follow the well-worn path.

The challenge for us as a burial community is that we are so bound to the body, and so anxious to get it into the ground within 48 hours, that we do not allow enough time for putting together the service. It takes time to organize a memorable funeral service, yet we are too bound to time and to the body to make it happen.

When Coretta Scott King died, her funeral was not two days later, it was nine days later; After President Reagan's death, his body was flown across the country and laid in state before he was buried.

Take the example of a friend of mine named Calvin, whose brother, Steve, died at 48. Steve's memorial service was held in a bar and restaurant in Franklin, Virginia, on a Monday night. There were 250 townspeople there.

Above the buffet was a PowerPoint display with a rolling pictorial of Steve's life. At the other end of the bar a screen and PowerPoint projector were set up for Calvin to tell his brother's story. No one who attended that memorial service left without knowing who Steve was.

One of the people there was a local funeral director, "Barky." After the service, Barky said to Calvin, "I've had no less than 20 people from this town come up to me and say, 'This is what I want when it’s my time to go."

"What's wrong with that?" Calvin asked him. Barky looked him square in the eye and said, "But I can't do this." And he was right.

Many of you who attend conventions are already offering these types of services, but the challenge is getting the message to the people in our profession who are not, because they reflect on our businesses and pull us down with them.

Funeral and cemetery professionals aren't "typical" in today's society
One of the major hurdles for today's cemetery and funeral service professionals involves relating to people who are completely different from us demographically. There are several factors causing people to reject traditional burial. Our society is a very mobile one and, in general, is becoming less and less affiliated with religion and the societal boundaries and rituals that go along with it. Marriages between people of different faiths and blended households created by remarriage bring up other issues. These trends are not slowing down, so it is important to face the challenges they bring rather than to ignore them.

Society is moving and changing all around us, but we are not going anywhere. We keep things exactly as they have been for generations because that is what we know. Many funeral service professionals who have been at the same location for generations have trouble relating to cremation families, to people who have changed jobs several times and moved across the country.

Because we are living in direct contrast to the way our customer base is, it is very difficult for us to give up our traditions and adapt to change. But we need to keep in mind that we are the exception rather than the norm in society, and trying to resist inevitable changes will only hurt our businesses in the long run.

Thus far, many of us have managed to compensate through our excellent communication skills. We can easily talk people into choosing the service we want them to choose. But not everyone on your staff has equal communication skills, nor do they have the same vested interest you have in your business succeeding. We need to face the issue head on and move forward as a profession.

Suppliers need to change, too
Suppliers are also contributing to the problem. Instead of adjusting their sales methodology to modern times, they continue to sell the same way they have throughout history. The same merchandise available to a burial family does not necessarily apply to a cremation family, yet suppliers have not made enough effort to adapt to changes in the marketplace.

The practice of selling merchandise by what it is made of rather than what it looks like is a case in point. The major challenge for suppliers is to learn to merchandise their products differently. Via Spiga, which historically bought its shoes from Mexico, recently began buying shoes from China as well. The shoe from China costs $3 to manufacture, the shoe from Mexico costs $10. But instead of pricing the shoes to reflect the cost of manufacturing and materials, Via Spiga bases prices completely on looks. The $3 shoe sells for dramatically more than the $10 one, and the resulting profits suggest this is the right decision.

We need to take a major step in changing our sales methodology so that our pricing reflects more than the raw product. It also needs to reflect the value perceived by the consumer.

We also should be more aware of the people we are serving. Just because families choose cremation does not mean they want to know about the details involved in the process. Some of you who offer windows where people can peek through and watch the cremation may be surprised to learn that not everyone wants to see it. This is not to suggest that having such a window is a bad idea, but that you need to be attentive to your customers' individual needs.

When we think of cremation, we think of decreasing profits, yet many of us put very little effort into selling to cremation families. It is important to make families aware of all options regarding final placement and to encourage them to purchase urns.

Unlike caskets, which are 100 percent lift (every burial family buys one), urns are completely optional. By providing cremation families with temporary urns, we are even encouraging them to walk out without buying anything.

We cannot afford to sit back and do nothing while the cremation trend continues to increase. Learning more about our customers and what they want is the first step to increasing our sales and profits.

Before we can begin to increase sales, we need to stop our tendency to equate cremation with burial, with disposition. Our profession has distorted this notion so badly that it seems almost impossible to undo. When faced with cremation, we think of final placement as an afterthought. When cremation becomes the alternative to burial, final placement falls right off the page.

Our challenge is to change our perception of cremation and look at it not as an alternative to burial, but as an alternative to embalming. Cremation is simply the preparation and it is the final placement on which we should be placing more focus. When we start seeing and believing in the value of final placement following cremation that is when we start selling more urns and achieve a higher lift on related products.

We are still not focused enough on final placement, and some of us may not even be involved in the memorial service. You should have seen Barky in Franklin, Virginia, when we changed his world overnight. Things will never be the same for him.

What cremation families want
The short answer to the question of what cremation families really want is "just what everybody else wants." They want less contact with salespeople. When a salesperson walks up to someone at the mall and asks, "Can I help you?" the customer inevitably says, "No thanks; I'm just looking." What he or she means is, "Leave me alone. Some smart guy set this store up in such a way that I can find it on my own. If I need your help, I'm glad to know that you're available, but I don't need you following me around the store."

Yet as soon as people cross the threshold of our funeral homes, we try to sit them down and make them use our age-old selling process, one that people in focus groups consistently reject, comparing it to a timeshare sales pitch.

Today, "personal service" no longer means "one-on-one service." People now consider it to mean being free to browse on their own, able to control the pace and momentum of the entire transaction.

Just like everyone else, cremation families want more meaning, more flexibility, more individuality and value for their money.

But the more in-depth answer to the question of what cremation families want is still to be determined. We need to discover the answer before we get further behind than we already are.

As a profession, as individuals and as leaders in our profession, we need to stop trying to convince people to accept what we want and focus on learning what they're looking for. We need to do this ourselves and more important, we need to spread the message to our colleagues who don't attend conventions. 
 
This article compiled from an address presented by the author at the 2006 ICFA Annual Convention

What is the burning question? Many years ago a certain long suffering pedagogue managed to instill into the minds of his pupils that a burning question might be one of a number of important questions, but the burning question is the question which above all others demands our close attention.

What is, then, the burning question? With one class of people the burning question is how to live; with another class of people the burning question is how to die; but with the cemetery superintendent the burning question is the proper disposition of the dead, having always in view, in addition to other conditions which have been discussed from time to time, the safety of the remains and the sanitary conditions, both as regards the present and the future.

Science has been for many years successfully combating disease. The dreadful scourges which periodically visited our forefathers have ceased to recur, or are practically under control. This is doubtless due more to sanitary measures than to medicines. The evils of unsanitary conditions have been overcome and scientists are looking for new fields to conquer.

Regarding post-mortem matters, there is a decided sentiment of reform working slowly but effectually in. the community. The time has arrived when the ability of the time-honored method of earth burial to meet the requirements may be questioned and the idea of quick dissolution of the body by fire as the only practical way of solving a difficult problem is fast finding favor.

There has been enough said and written at different times upon this subject to excuse me from giving you a sketch of the history of cremation from its inception to the present time. Of what import is it to us what were the sentiments or the customs of the ancients only inasmuch as such sentiments or the customs may be of service to us in forming our own opinion or on guiding public opinion? Consumption of the body by fire seems to have early found a place in the religious rites of man. When a man sacrifices to the deity, his sense of the fitness of things would not allow him to leave the sacrifice to putrify upon the ground, neither would it allow him to submit it to the process of corruption by burying it in the ground. The consumption of the sacrifice by fire, the ascending of the smoke into the mysterious from whence came the thunder, the lightning, the wind and rain, would appeal to him as being an appropriate manner of disposing of his tribute to the giver of all good.

It may be that the sacrificial altar gave birth to the funeral pile. The slow and horrid process of corruption was obviated; the body could not be subjected to defilement nor indignity, by friend, by foe, nor by future generations. "The duty was performed by loving hands and the end was counted an honorable one."

The advent of Christianity gave the death-blow to cremation throughout that part of the world known as Christendom. It was the belief of the early Christians that the second coming of the Lord would be in the immediate future; during some of their lives. As taught by St. Paul, "We shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed." Therefore they buried their dead in the hope that they might live to see the resurrection of the body. Cremation need cause no anxiety upon this score, for to quote the words of a learned preacher: "It will be just as easy for the Almighty to recreate the body from a pile of ashes as it will from a pile of dust: Either case will require a miracle."

The preservation of the bodies of the departed, from corruption or from possible defilement, seems to have been an ever-present source of anxiety with the human family. It was this horror of the ill-treatment of the dead that caused Joseph to instruct the children of Israel to carry away his bones when they should leave Egypt. This, which caused the valiant sons of Israel to brave a desperate foe and recover the bodies of Saul and Jonathan and burn them with fire. This, which caused the Egyptians to embalm and entomb their dead.

In preparing our dead for burial we are today doubtless actuated by the same motive. While we do not turn the body inside out, stuff it with spices and sweet-smelling herbs, bind it with unlimited length of starched linen and pile mountains of rock over it, yet we array our dead, with extreme care, in their best clothes, encase them in coffins or caskets of pine, cedar or copper and cover them with broadcloth to the tune of from fifteen to one thousand dollars, lay them away in the earth, in vaults under the ground, or in mausoleums above the ground and to what end ? The tombs held as sacred and built at enormous cost of treasure and human life by the Egyptians are being rifled by a people who at the time of their erection were clothed in the skins of animals, if clothed at all; and their precious contents are placed in glass cases to be gazed upon by a curious public. After all our expense and care we layaway our dead with the sure and certain knowledge that in a few months, and for years after that time we would not care to look upon them nor even to contemplate their condition.

Why is it that we cling so tenaciously to earth burial with its present arid future horrors? Which is most shocking to a sensitive mind, seeing the casket gently lowered beneath the floor of the chapel or wheeled away into an adjoining room to undergo the quick process of disintegration by fire, or seeing it lowered into the earth, sometimes dry and sometimes wet, to meet the same end by the slow and repulsive process of corruption? In spite of all our care, our embalments, our coffins or our vaults, the end is the same; and the quicker it is accomplished the better it is for all concerned.

When we have overcome the prejudice of two thousand years the benefits of cremation are obvious. When we have seen the flower covered casket lowered from our sight and have been assured by the presence of one or two friends that cremation is an accomplished fact, we have performed for our dead the last office. No dreams of desecrated graves will disturb our sleep, no cutting up of cemeteries by railroad extensions or by the requirements of city growth will cause us anxiety. As we often hear the expression, "We have seen the last of them," we have prevented for every one of those scenes we occasionally witness, the undignified removal of the remains, more often prompted by caprice than by necessity, by future generations. Often when presiding over this work the words of an epitaph said to be inscribed upon a tombstone in Stratford-on-Avon came to my mind:

“Good friend, for Jesus' sake forebear
 To dig the dust enclosed here;
Blest be the man that spares these stones,
And curst be he that moves my bones."

And yet I well remember that a number of years ago but for the strenuous opposition of a number of influential people, some antiquarian society or other would have unearthed the remains of the poet because they wanted to see if the old fellow's skull was a true copy of some models they had.

According to the opinion of some superintendents with whom I have corresponded, one important feature of cremation will be a reform in the way of economy; as one superintendent says, he thinks that the cost of the incineration might well be taken off the cost of the casket. Not the least important will be the economy in the use of land, not only in regard to the expense incurred by the necessary purchase of a larger lot, but as regards the area of land required and occupied for cemetery purposes. The population of this country is increasing by leaps and bounds; but the area of ground available for cemetery purposes increases not at all. Once occupied for burial purposes it is locked up forever from future use. Those of you who preside over cemeteries with an unlimited area of available land should remember that at one time the same conditions prevailed in those cities where at the present time one grave is allotted for the use of a whole family and in some cases for the promiscuous burial of a number of people. I will leave you to draw your own pictures of what the conditions must be in the cemeteries of Southern Europe and the Azores, where people are buried without coffins and the ground is reused after a period of from one to ten years. In many Old Country cemeteries graves are opened to the depth of fifteen feet, more or less, the grave is reopened as often as required, twelve inches of earth being left between the bodies as the grave is filled. In one particular cemetery they find ooze at that depth and bury the first body in it.

But we need not go so far from home to meet with circumstances sufficiently revolting. What must be the state of the earth in the potter's field in some of our own cemeteries, where bodies are buried five or six feet deep and nearly if not quite touching one another? Seventy-five thousand bodies lie in one potter's field. What a healthy neighborhood this must be for a city of nearly four million inhabitants. In and around New York there are 84 cemeteries. Newtown, in the Borough of Queens, NY, has a cemetery area of 1,800 acres which contains two million bodies. Calvary Cemetery, New York, a cemetery of 214 acres in extent contains 600,000 bodies, 2,800 to the acre. The population of New York has increased 260 percent during the past forty years and it would not be difficult to find several cities whose population has doubled and trebled during that time. When we consider that the greater part of the present population along with a considerable portion of the increase we may reasonably expect during the next fifty years, must be provided with sepulcher within that time, it is reasonable to conclude that the time for a decided change is not far distant, as time is measured. And I think it safe to prophesy that when scientific men have vanquished the germ-carrying mosquito they will probably turn their attention to cremation.

Some years ago there was a general effort made to introduce and encourage cremation; but it seems to have been spasmodic only. In the opinion of cemetery superintendents and promoters of cremation, the idea seems to have taken a new lease of life and is surely gaining in strength; especially among the medical fraternity.

From the time of the erection of the first crematory in the United States in 1876, there have been over 24,000 incinerations and in the leading countries of Europe, during that same time, there have been 18,000. Of 25 crematories in the United States of which we have reports, 19 report a steady increase in the number of incinerations; 2 just hold their own; and 4 appear to be progressing backwards. The total yearly number of incinerations in the United States has gradually increased from 813 in 1894 to 3,020 in 1904.

The fees for incineration are generally twenty-five and thirty dollars, and this charge, I am informed, pays. The Massachusetts Cremation Society reports a profit of nearly four percent on its capital stock.

It is the opinion of some managers of crematories that as cremation gains favor municipal authorities will take up the matter, that cremation will shortly become more general and that these prices will be reduced.

The cost of crematories varies according to taste and resources. Generally the retorts have been built in connection with a chapel or other building already in existence and cost so far as I have been able to learn from $1,250 to $3,600. The crematory buildings of Massachusetts Crematory Company, which we were privileged to inspect three years ago, cost in the neighborhood of $30,000 and the two retorts $5,000.

The office of incineration is performed as it should be, in a private manner. The last rites concern the family and the immediate friends only. The unseemly conduct of curious crowds sometimes witnessed at funerals is avoided. The family and friends accompany the body to the chapel and one or two are permitted to see the casket placed in the retort. The casket after being divested of its metallic handles is raised or lowered to the level of the floor of the retort, a heavy soapstone door is raised and the casket is pushed into a chamber made of fire clay, the door dosed and the flames turned on. There are neither flames, smoke nor odor to cause sensation; anything at all gruesome about the process exists only in the imagination.

To the progressive superintendent I would say: do not be afraid that the adoption of cremation will lessen the value of your profession or immediately upset the present order of things and mar the beauty of your creations; cremation will not come into exclusive force in a day, any more than did the lawn plan and the banishment of fences and curbing. Do not think that you will live to see the family lot erased from your plans, or the monuments disappear from the landscape. The work of the rider of the pale horse will not be retarded and the spades of the sexton will not be allowed to grow rusty as "One by one he gathers them in." The columbarium will doubtless cause a change in the size of lots sold and in the construction of monuments, but many generations will have passed after cremation has become general and compulsory before people will have abandoned the idea of a family lot in which to bury their ashes.

I do not read this paper with a view to make converts, but rather with a view to submitting for your consideration the necessity of the situation. The duties of Superintendents and Trustees are obvious. Take time by the forelock. Give this matter your serious consideration; read up on the matter so that when this reform reaches you, you may be prepared to meet the requirements and not have to stand by and see stock companies organize and cheat you out of your birthright.

 
From the publication:
AACS - Proceedings of the 19th Annual Convention
Held at Washington, DC
September 19, 20, 21 and 22, 1905

The average person regards cemeteries in a community as a matter to be seldom if ever mentioned. To overcome this tendency on the part of the public and enlist them in the good work of having their views and ideas broadened and coincide with the work and aims of the Association of American Cemetery Superintendents is a great object.

We can meet year after year and while we are gaining knowledge and experience in methods of conducting our cemeteries to the best interests of our several communities we do not feel that we have accomplished all that there is to do unless we can interest the public. How best to do this, then, is one of the ideals we have set forth to realize.

For one, I maintain that we each have to set a high standard, in fact one in advance of the community that we are respectively in and plan our work to that end.

Some writers on cemetery topics consider that a cemetery is like a professional man that it cannot with good taste advertise. Practical men realize that the newspaper of today is a great molder of public opinion.  Now, as to localities situated like ours, where we have only a population of 4,000 to draw business from the conducting of the cemetery cannot be carried on in lines parallel to those where a population of one hundred times more furnishes business. There are some matters on which the work would be similar but in details only; the whole general plan is different. Now, as we are situated, the local papers are a great help to us; the newspaper man is glad for us to give him an item when we have in contemplation any improvements, he is glad to note the progress of the work, as well as to give us a write up when the work is completed. This on a scale more or less helps to bring us in touch with our people. Could we interest them to visit the cemetery semi-occasionally without waiting until they come out to bury one of their dear ones, and look around, ask questions, make suggestions and kindly criticism; also a word or two, if merited, to the Superintendent in praise would help alleviate his labors. There is no one as appreciative as he.

After an experience of more than twelve years the Superintendent begins to think he is a judge of human nature, but as in all other arts and sciences he finds that the longer he is in the business the less he gives himself credit for knowing, and were it not for the heart he has he would to some extent becomes a cynic; as time goes on he becomes, so to speak, of the place where the community has its sleeping dead, he feels a responsibility and almost personal interest in each family and to him it has become a sacred trust.

This is truer in a large sense in the smaller communities where the persons committed to his care are known by him. Now, can we judiciously advertise and if so, what is the best method? With some people price counts some, but we notice that the public are willing to pay good prices, provided they feel that they are receiving adequate service. We are of the opinion that our association can and is, doing more for the smaller cemeteries in proportion, of educational work in the right direction, than for the larger and older cemeteries, but we are all of us benefited.

One of our members once said that we ought to make our cemeteries look like parks, plant trees that would give a cheerful look and eliminate as much as possible all the old cypresses• and funereal looking trees once so prevalent in many of our cemeteries; this we know to a large extent has been done, but we cannot make the cemetery a place of gayety either.

We must do something to arouse the public, for it is their best interests, in these matters, that we are conserving; and our efforts should be reciprocated and aided by them.

Frequent reports of our meetings, both by the daily and local papers and a judicious distribution of the reports of our proceedings are doing much in the direction desired, but still for all that we fall short of the standard we set.

One member gloomily predicts that fifty years hence the public will want cremation and that earth burial will be a thing of the past. Now, this, to practical men, would be no argument; cremation has been already in vogue hundreds of years and has not as yet become the favorite mode, for the thought of lying to sleep under grassy mounds and following old Customs in this direction need not deter any of us from the belief that our mission is soon to end. While it is true that the public are seemingly more apathetic in this regard than in anything else, still we have hope that they will in due time realize our efforts are for the best of all concerned and that an orderly, well regulated and properly cared for cemetery reflects creditably on their judgment and community for so maintaining.

From the publication:
AACS - Proceedings of the 17th Annual Convention
Held at Rochester, NY
September 8, 9 and 10, 1903

When I was asked by one of your committee to contribute a paper to be read at this, the seventeenth annual convention, I thought perhaps I would find it an easy task to say a few words in regard to "Our Cemeteries and Our Dead," but I feel somewhat embarrassed to even make an effort, in fact the short five years experience I have had in cemetery work makes me feel like I am too young in the cause to fully express myself before you gentlemen, that have had more experience, and a better opportunity to study the advantages and disadvantages of cemetery work. I desire, however, to say in the outset if my ideas are averse to yours, you must remember while they are my honest convictions, they are only the views and expressions of one of your number.

"Our Cemeteries" are the last resting place of "Our Dead"; in other words they are places sacredly devoted to the interment and repose of "Our Dead." They should under any and all circumstances be free from entangling public alliance or political embarrassment.

In fact, politics should not figure in "Our Cemeteries" under any conditions; wherever it does it works to a disadvantage. I know of one that changed superintendents three times in one year, traceable to politics alone. The officers should be men especially fitted for the place, and especially the superintendent should be a man well qualified to fill the place and in love with the work. Too often we find men officially connected with Our Cemeteries that do not or seldom visit them more than once or twice a year.

The past history of the growth of all of our large cities demonstrates the absolute necessity for a permanent site for "Our Dead," which grows up side by side with the city of the living. They should be ample in size beautiful in surroundings and at the proper distance to serve the ends of convenience and requirements of all interested. We too often see all over our land evidences of misspent labor in building and maintaining the last resting place of "Our Dead"; too often we see hastily and ill chosen sites dot our country sides, where mold and decay hold their melancholy reign. We find many old cemeteries fallen into disuse; neglect, decay and desecration present their sad and somber scenes and too frequently the tale of obliteration can he heard from the lips of the living. A visit to most of our cemeteries today will present the same sad spectacle.

Now the question naturally comes up, why are so many of our cemeteries neglected. There are many reasons, one is "Our Dead" are too soon forgotten, we see almost daily loved ones laid to rest in "Our Cemeteries" and for a short time that sacred spot is visited almost daily by the bereaved relatives and we see them sometimes go to extremes in trying to maintain and beautify the last resting place of their dear ones, but as time rolls on we notice their visits become less frequent, until finally they lose all interest in that once well kept, sacred spot; then comes the sad part of this scene. Left neglected and to grow up in weeds and briars, a sad spectacle indeed.

The most plausible reason for our neglected cemeteries of today is that they have no fund set aside for their perpetual care. Looking to the prevention of the evils of the past, some of "Our Cemeteries" (but very few, comparatively speaking) have been provided with the only remedy, a fund for their perpetual care. We all know without this fund no cemetery can be uniformly kept, or even decently kept. I believe this association in all probability has and can do more toward educating the people to show more respect for "Our Dead" than any other source. If that be true, it behooves us to push forward in cemetery improvement, and not sanction anything that will throw a stumbling block in our way.

From time immemorial, burial grounds have existed. We learn by reading from Genesis that Abraham purchased a field containing the cave of Machpelah for a family burial plot and afterwards buried his wife Sarah and later on his own remains were laid to rest by the side of his wife and still later on other members of his family were buried there also. We find from Genesis to Revelation earth burial is the proper method of disposing of "Our Dead" and as I see it, when we advocate any other we are going backward in civilization and cemetery improvement.

I contend there is no necessity for and no doctrine in the Bible justifying cremation of "Our Dead." Some say we must advocate cremation from a health standpoint, others contend that earth burial is a waste of land and that there is danger of our going too far with our pet schemes. I doubt very much after a body is placed five or six feet under the sad that the health of the living is affected in the least. Take the health of the superintendents that have spent thirty and even forty years in cemetery work, do you suppose if it was so dangerous to the living, as some try to make it appear, that the founder of this association, that spent thirty years of his life in cemetery work would have reached the ripe old age of eighty-five before his death and there are other cemetery superintendents living today that have spent over forty years in this same vocation. It is needless to say that I believe as long as time lasts there will be land enough to bury all "Our Dead." This cremation idea is the work of man and not in accordance with the method laid down in the Bible.

We should be opposed to the cremation of "Our Dead" from a humane and Scriptural standpoint.

We are told after the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, the graves of the sleeping saints were opened and many of them arose and made their appearance before the living in the streets of the Holy City; and again Christ said, Marvel not at this, for the day and the hour is coming in which all that are in their graves shall come forth. Mark you, not a word was said about cremation and coming forth from an urn placed in a crematory building. We are also told our bodies are to be sown natural bodies of flesh and blood, but on the morning of the resurrection that they will come forth from their tombs spiritual and immortal bodies, then shall be brought to pass the saying, Death is swallowed up in victory, O death where is thy sting, O grave where is thy victory? I would like to know how are we going to get around this grave theory that is so often spoken of in the Bible, and again what will become of "Our Cemeteries" that we are trying so hard to beautify and devise plans by which they can be perpetually kept, if cremation should become universal and our ashes placed in an urn and deposited in a building?

Again, we should be opposed to cremation because it is going to have a tendency to lead to less respect being shown "Our Dead." I believe the danger that confronts us today in cemetery improvement is the growth of the cremation idea. Taking the Bible as the foundation stone, as our guide, if we expect our work to survive us any length of time, we should put ourselves on record as being opposed to the cremation of "Our Dead."

Now, in conclusion, will say, I am confident that some of you differ with me in what I have said in regard to cremation, but I trust, however, that a majority of you are in sympathy with the views and expressions I have tried to present from a Scriptural standpoint and that you will not under any circumstances advocate or sanction anything in connection with "Our Cemeteries" and "Our Dead" that are directly contrary to the teachings of the Bible. If we will do that, it will not be many years before we will have representation from every nook and corner of these United States.

From the publication:
AACS - Proceedings of the 17th Annual Convention
Held at Rochester, NY
September 8, 9 and 10, 1903

When your chairman, Bill Boyd, asked me to accept a topic at this Convention, I readily agreed to do so because I knew he was going to ask me to talk on cremation, he knowing full well that this was the subject that I was best qualified to speak on and give to you gentlemen some basic information based on my past training. You can imagine my surprise when my topic arrived - "Increasing Cemetery Revenue." Well, gentlemen, we are still going to handle that subject through cremation and those profitable items which arise due to cremation or the operation of a crematory, so let's change this subject to read - "INCREASING CEMETERY REVENUE THROUGH CREMATION".

During the past 10 years I have attended at least one Convention and sometimes two each year, all dealing either with cremation or the operation of a cemetery, such as the CAA, ACA or the NCA I have heard various talks on how to do this and that and have tried to absorb those points that I thought would apply to my place of business, but if you want to get the real lowdown on the operation of a crematory or a cemetery, get in a car with another cemetery man, preferably a man that knows considerably more than you do or a man that is or has been an officer of this organization and has entree into any place, spend six weeks living together, visiting different burial properties each day and talking to the men who operate them; then if you don't come away from that trip a better operator you are in the wrong profession. It has always been my idea that the cemetery business was primarily the burial of the dead and the sale of lots, but it was on this trip that I learned that everything in the cemetery business could be simmered down to one word features or a feature. We all seek features with which to enrich our cemetery; we know that the day of a burial ground no longer exists in the American civilization. It is with this in mind that we seek to create in the form of memorials an atmosphere of beauty for the memory of those we serve. When I came home I decided to look at my own properties and take inventory of what we had. We truthfully thought that we had a most acceptable entrance with a beautiful rock garden just as you enter, no burials within 600 feet of the front entrance, well laid roads, rolling grounds, many magnificent monuments, a well located chapel, a crematory, a large mausoleum and several columbariums, and finally I decided - "No" - these are not what we have, but we do have features and features within features, and that is what they are today "Features of Valhalla," so I now must talk features to you. Of all the features that I saw they were all erected with one thought in mind, namely, to enhance that particular section of ground so that it would make that section a more desirable one in which to own a lot, or to assist in the sale of lots. I checked various locations on our property and noted one place where there was a stately old oak tree, well developed with long spreading branches, and realized that there had been many desirable lots sold and expensive monuments erected surrounding this tree. The lots were so arranged that they circled around the tree and the monuments placed so that the tree formed the background, this is no longer a mere tree, it now is a feature. It cost me nothing; Nature had been good to me, it had protected and grown this tree for many, many years. It certainly enhanced the value of this particular section in which it stood, but the lots have now all been sold, the tree has served my purpose as a producing feature, and I wonder what it is today, a tree or a feature. As a tree it has no value other than. the wood, cord wood, so maybe we had better look at another type of feature, a feature that will produce revenue from within itself in addition to having all the advantages that any other feature might have, You may need an administration building or a chapel in your grounds, you might feel that your cemetery should have a mausoleum unit or you might like to have a crematory and columbarium with a chapel in or near your cemetery. All of these revenue producing features are self liquidating and any of these features can be started first and provision made for the others to be added as conditions or needs arise.

I am particularly interested in that portion of these features that deals with the chapel and the crematory. I realize that I am talking to a group of men that represent many different size towns and various communities, and the possibilities or results will naturally vary according to the size and needs of your community, but I would like to say that these thoughts do not necessarily apply to only larger populated centers, because your buildings will be sized according to the needs of your community.

The erection of a chapel and crematory muchly broadens your trade territory because you will receive cremations from adjoining towns, and the many people coming to your chapel and crematory is always a desired position for your other properties. I know that the building of a chapel in our cemetery has done much for the cemetery. Our own lot owners take considerable pride in bringing their friends to visit the chapel. In very inclement weather, such as icy days and heavy snows in the winter, we use our chapel for ground interments, provided the chapel is not reserved for a cremation or mausoleum service. Our visitors at the chapel are many times more than the visitors to the cemetery. On those memorial days such as Easter, Mother's Day, Memorial Day and Christmas, many visitors have learned to come with their friends just to see the mass flower displays, and of course, our chapel is used for memorial services. It is a feature that they take pride in showing.

Cremation is not a new innovation; it dates back to early history, and today a great many people are cremationists or cremation minded. There are enough favorable points to cremation and indoor burial for cremation to stand on its own feet. By that I mean you do not have to degrade ground burial or mausoleum entombments in order to sell cremation. The opening of a crematory is going to bring many people to your property; people who have a dislike for ground burial those that are curious and they all will want to know more about cremation.

In opening a chapel and crematory it will naturally take some time before cremations begin to come to you, but remember the first crematory placed in operation generally controls the cremation business in that community, and unless you furnish that service someone else will do so. It is very apt to be one of the local funeral directors who realize the need of a crematory and can see the possibilities of operating one. Let the control of a crematory be vested in one local funeral director and immediately cremation will begin to be retarded in that community. The local funeral director will very probably plan on building his crematory in the basement of his funeral home where else can he build it? All he wants to be able to say is: "I can handle cremations for you." He will figure that by building a crematory he will secure practically all the cremation business in that locality, and without question it will be a profitable venture for him. This crematory would serve without the facilities which you are able to provide through your cemetery and chapel. With this would come the hesitance of other funeral directors to patronize a competitor, and could easily retard the acceptance of cremation in your locality. It is thus recognized that the crematory should be a part of the cemetery, and in so doing we have created another feature.

Cremation is a form of the burying of the dead and should be handled entirely by a local burying organization. It can be in a cemetery or adjacent to a cemetery, and at a location where everyone can visit and pay their respects to their loved ones. Cremation is not a method of disposal of the dead, but rather a method of preparation for permanent preservation.

This now brings me to another revenue producing feature the columbarium.

A columbarium is any place where cremated remains are permanently placed or inurned. This may be a building of its own, it may be a room off the chapel, or it may occupy a small chamber in a portion of your chapel. The manner in which cremations are first handled in any community is generally the manner in which cremations and columbariums are handled in that locality. There are two schools of thought in the cremation field, commonly referred to as the Eastern and Western ideas. In the Eastern part of the United States they formerly used cremation as a method of reduction in size so that burial could be made in an already overcrowded burial ground, while the Western or California idea is to use cremation as an entrance to indoor burial or entrance into a beautiful columbarium. It is the Western trend of thought that I am talking about. There are just as many people who believe in cremation and want to erect a fine memorial as there are families who purchase fine monuments in the cemetery grounds, in the ratio of cremationists to those who prefer ground burial; in other words, people do not believe in cremation because they want something cheap, it is because they do not want ground burial. We have many memorials in our columbariums that cost as much as $3,500.00 to $5,000.00, and in some of the larger, columbariums I know that they have sold many memorials at an even higher figure; but like any other business, your sales are not always those of the higher priced locations. You will have many in the lower price brackets, and this is the volume business.

Now, how do we go about securing this revenue producing feature? I am assuming that you have an office on the grounds, and if not you can include it in our feature, but you would like to have a chapel. This is quite a feature to any cemetery, but we want a revenue producing feature, so let us add a room on the rear of the chapel be sure that everything is kept on the same Boor level, because we do not want our crematory placed in the basement. You are going to show cremation to the public and it should be in a showable location, attractively designed and kept spotlessly clean at all times.

The story "Light Like the Sun," which was undoubtedly one of the finest articles ever written about cremation, appeared in the Reader's Digest in March, 1938, and was reprinted by public request ten years later in January, 1948. The main statement in that story was: "Tell me about it, it is what I don't know that I fear," according to Francis Newton, the author; and that is the public's request - tell us about cremation. They want to be able to see a crematory chamber where cremations are held, so have your crematory chamber built so that you can show them to anyone as you are explaining cremation.

Now when you build your chapel you will have to have some type of heating plant, which will necessitate a chimney, so let us enlarge this chimney and place two 18”x18” additional flues so that a crematory chamber or two can be added when needed. Do not raise your stack any higher than normally needed for your heating system because the present day crematory does not require a high stack. I know that one of your main questions right now is - How much will a crematory chamber cost me? I cannot give you that figure because it is going to vary according to how your building is arranged in preparation for a crematory chamber, but we do have men attending this Convention who can give you more definite information regarding your particular needs than I can in a general way. This will probably be a topic in our round table discussion, at which time I hope that their representative or any other one will be present.

The average price of cremation will vary from $40.00 to $60.00 in different parts of the country. The price of cremation will generally be about 33⅓ percent above your local grave opening and interment fees. A crematory with any number of cremations will prove a very profitable addition to your chapel. One desirable point about a crematory chamber is that there is practically no upkeep or maintenance unless you are running a large number of cremations, and under those conditions you can afford the maintenance cost.

Now that we have our chapel and crematory in operation we will need another revenue producing feature, a small columbarium. This can be located in any desirable place: it may be an additional room added to your chapel or you may have made provisions in building your chapel to have alcoves that can be used for columbariums. Remember that after your crematory the columbarium will be your next largest revenue producing feature, and is entitled to an appropriate location. In selecting the place for your columbarium choose one that is attractive and well lighted; in this room we will build niches -not many at first but a diversified group of sizes and types of niches. In some sections of the country people prefer a closed front niche, while in others they use a glass front niche in which cast bronze urns are placed. Personally I prefer this type of niche because my bronze urn business will amount to approximately sixty (60) percent of my niche sales and is a profitable item.

In the erection of our columbarium or group of niches I use a 12"x12" niche as my basic unit because from this many other size units can be made. A 12"x12" niche can be divided in half, either horizontally or vertically, making desirable companion niches, or they may be divided into quarters, forming single niches. For the larger niches partitions may be removed, forming various size niches. In every columbarium unit that I have built I have always had at least one memorial niche that is a feature of that room. I generally have an art glass window in this niche, and it is often sold first, because there are enough people who believe in cremation and desire a fine memorial to justify this type of a niche. May I caution you gentlemen, that you establish a policy concerning the type of memorials placed in your columbarium in the beginning; for example, that only cast bronze urns be permitted in glass front niches. If you do not have rather strict regulations regarding your urns you are apt to have quite a conglomeration of containers varying from jelly glasses to Woolworth's deluxe china. In your closed front niches make available permanent but less expensive type containers. It is the pattern that you set at the beginning that will regulate the beauty of the columbarium that you will have in years to come and the revenue which this feature will return to you.

I have brought several general designs of portions of different columbariums that we have, and I believe that I can show you that there is more money per square inch in columbarium sales than there is per square foot in cemetery lot sales.

Now if you are giving serious thought to the erection of a chapel and crematory in your cemetery take a trip and visit the various chapels, crematories and columbariums throughout the country, and I believe you will realize that the addition of these types of revenue producing features will mean an increase of revenue for your property.

From the publication:
1948-1949 NCA Yearbook

It seems to me the subject of cremation and modern crematory construction can best be covered by beginning with cremation as it has been practiced since its revival in modern days. We all know that the ancient Romans cremated their dead and that some of the most beautifully designed urns recovered in buried cities were for cremated ashes. In fact, the skill of the finest artists was lavished on these cinerary urns. It is said that the well known Roman and Grecian urn shaped vessels were originally designed for this purpose and that the inverted torch long known as an ancient emblem of mourning was in reality an emblem of cremation in those far-off days. However, with the Dark Ages when the history of so much of that ancient civilization was lost to sight and all the sophisticated arts perished, cremation ceased to exist. For a long time, of course, the Catholic Church ruled the civilized world and its opposition to cremation would have effectually stopped the practice even had there been equipment to handle it, but there was not and it was not until as late as 1866 that papers began to appear on the subject and discussion of method became prevalent.

It was Italy which revived this lost custom. After several years of experiment, Professor Brunetti of Padua in 1873 exhibited at an exposition in Vienna a model of his furnace, as it was then termed, and the ashes of a human body to show the public the procedure and the results of cremation. It was an open furnace operating out of doors.

In 1874 there were two cremations in Dresden, Germany, in which gas was used for fuel. This was the first crematory to employ, a closed retort with the object of carrying off gasses and vapors. In the same year the Cremation Society of Milan, Italy was organized and two retorts were constructed. Cremation became comparatively popular at once in spite of the Catholic Church opposition, so that in the first ten years of existence they cremated 463 bodies. This was regarded as remarkable evidence of public approval, since there had been the weight of adverse sentiment to overcome even in the families of those who favored it. In the same ten years Germany had 473 cremations.

Perhaps the most vigorous effort and certainly the most discouraging one made by cremation adherents anywhere is contained in the history of Cremation Society of England. It was formed in 1874 with the express purpose of disseminating information on the subject of cremation. Great difficulty was encountered in securing a site upon which to erect a crematory. A prominent Bishop condemned the project so harshly that failure confronted it for some time. In 1878, four years after its inception, the Cremation Society finally succeeded in purchasing one acre of ground at Woking and the following year erected a crematory designed by Professor Gorini, of Italy. They cremated the body of a horse to determine the success of their equipment. It worked perfectly and they announced themselves ready for business. But the end of their troubles was still far in the future.

The British Government refused to permit cremation to take place on the grounds that murder might thus be concealed. A long correspondence ensued and the Government could not be induced to reconsider. At last an appeal was made to the British Medical Association who became interested because of the unsanitary conditions of many graveyards. Doctors wrote eloquently of the appalling state of affairs but to no avail. In 1882 a wealthy man who had been awaiting the outcome of the controversy for several years applied for permission to cremate the bodies of two members of his family who had left instructions to this effect. Their bodies had been in a private mausoleum on the estate since death. Permission was refused, whereupon the man built a private crematory and used it for the two cremations. Later he died and by his request his body was also cremated there. The British Government paid no attention to this act of defiance and a year after his death another citizen defied the Government and had the body of a child cremated. Legal proceedings were begun against him which in a decision that cremation was legal providing it was done without nuisance to others, and so the Cremation Society of England at last began to use their equipment eleven years after the founding of the Society.

Even then, the Government regulations were unbelievably severe.  They required for example the signature of two physicians before cremation could take place, and if two physicians could not be obtained an autopsy was required to be performed to make sure that no poison could be found in the body. Other equally stringent rules designed to discourage cremation were also adopted.

The Cremation Society of England, feeling it must show the public its desire to cooperate with the Government in every way then began some propaganda of its own. An announcement was made that it would require a written application for cremation signed by the executor, or written instructions left by the deceased. It also insisted that a physician's certificate must accompany the application.

While this struggle was taking place in England, cremations had gained a foothold in France where the French soon evolved a set of forms designed to overcome objections on the ground that cremation might aid in concealing crime. An elaborate chart of diseases was prepared and everyone which might have contributed to the cause of death was required to be noted by at least two physicians. The English Society adopted this system which helped their cause materially. The price of cremation was at that time six sterling (about $30.00) payable in advance. It must be remembered of course, that all this was in the days before every town had its health office with its official scrutiny of death records.

In 1887 this Society became slightly more aggressive and prepared what is now called an advertising campaign in which they invited people to arrange for cremation in advance by deposit of 10 guineas (about $50.00) which they said would take care of all arrangements and spare all anxiety to relatives. The quaintly worded forms set forth a schedule of details, one of which was that the body would be sent for if the distance was not greater than twenty miles from the Crematory. This advertising angle is interesting to crematories of today, for some of them even yet, look a little askance at the idea of openly advertising such arrangements before they are necessary by reason of death. Needless to say, all the aggressive organizations now believe in such advertising in an effort to spare the bereaved relatives the distress of concluding arrangements when death has occurred in the family.

The first Crematory Chapel in England was built in 1887 from funds solicited from the public. It was mentioned in their literature that those who attended services did not see nor hear the retorts in operation. The building of this chapel was a long step forward, for previously services had been held at churches or residences or even sometimes in the open beside the heated retort.

Even after all this missionary wonk had been done and it seemed the hardest part was over, the public remained rather uninterested. The Cremation Society was then reduced to beseeching the public to adopt cremation on sanitary grounds. They wrote horrifying treatises on burial, contagion, etc. Finally the argument was put forth that if cremation was done, the purified remains could be stored in the churches where the corruptible bodies could not. This was the first modern mention of the Columbarium for in one place they wrote "In ancient crypts or in cloisters newly erected for the purpose the ashes might be deposited each in its cell in countless numbers."

The first crematory built in the United States was at Washington, Pennsylvania in 1876 by Dr. Francis Julian LeMoyne. It was heated by burning coke, preheating the retort 48 hours before the cremation. The first commercial crematory was erected at Buffalo, New York, endowed by a family of doctors, being operated by gases distilled from wood. For years thereafter the principal crematories were operated on the Schneider system, which was used in Germany. The fire was built in a retort of combustion chamber located on the side of the crematory retort. The white hot gases then passed upward under an arch and thus down over the body and casket, and up a flue. This system was used in several crematories in San Francisco, Oakland and Los Angeles.

In 1892 a book was published by Augustus E. Cobb, President of the U. S. Crematory Company. In this book he stated that at that time there were 17 crematories in the United States and that 2300 bodies had already been cremated. He mentioned the indirect firing system, especially one in use at Fresh Pond, L. I., which was supposed to be an unusually successful retort in which they said a man weighing 275 lbs. had been cremated and reduced to ashes weighing 5 1bs. at a cost of less than $1.00 for fuel.

The first recorded use of oil for cremation was made at a crematory in San Francisco by means of a burner firing crude oil directly upon the body. A high pressure oil and air mixture was used in this burner causing a remarkably hot fire, deafening noise and huge clouds or smoke. The cremation was completed in about 45 minutes. The next development was the substitution of oil for coke in coke burning retorts and about 1910 a direct fire gas burner was devised which fired directly upon the body and which had an auxiliary burner in another combustion chamber for consuming the smoke and dissipating the odor.

Forced by public opinion, crematory engineers are constantly trying to make cremation less offensive; to reduce the noise, control the smoke and fire indirectly upon the body. Experiments are constantly being made with every grade of tile, brick and cement, with every sort of fuel and all mechanical details of cremation. At Forest Lawn Memorial Park, ordinary fire brick has always been used in the construction of our retorts, but recently the floor's have been changed to carborundum brick, which is considerably more expensive, but so far has been most satisfactory.

The present trend of crematory furnaces is towards simplification and at the present time there are three types of retorts. There is the indirect system which has the separate combustion chamber; the semi-indirect in which the flame enters the retort through a slotted floor, and the direct, in which the floor is smooth and the retort and combustion chamber are one and the flame is applied directly on the casket.

There are several advantages of the smooth floor over the slotted type as it permits the easy removal of the ashes, presents a more pleasing appearance to the public and is much easier to keep clean.

At the present time there are two kinds of fuel used by the modern crematory, gas and oil. It is also suggested by crematory engineers that a separate stack should be provided for each retort in place of having one stack for several retorts. In this way a better draft is created, reducing the smoke and heat waves. The appearance of the workroom is another important feature. It should be kept in a tidy condition so that in allowing visitors to pass through it may be without fear of their criticism. Several of the most modern crematories have provided white tiled walls in their workrooms, which is very satisfactory, easy to keep clean and always presents a neat appearance.

Many of the older style retorts it is necessary to preheat from thirty minutes to one hour before the cremation. In the newer and more modern type it is not necessary to preheat and the flame is not started until after the body is placed in the retort. Experiments are being made with the electrical retorts but at present they have not proved satisfactory and are still in the experimental stage.

The ideal cremation is one which cremates noiselessly, smokelessly and gives the appearance to the family of absolute ease or operation with no distressing details. Following this thought to its conclusion means maintaining that the perfect cremation is followed by placing the ashes, uncrushed, in a suitable bronze urn and depositing them in an appropriate final resting place. The ashes of a human body should not be desecrated by crushing them for placement in an urn any more than an un-cremated body would be crushed to place it in a casket, and the modern crematory follows this practice—placing the ashes in the urn in the same condition as when removed from the retort.

On the Pacific coast the percentage of cremations is approximately 15% to 18% of deaths. I have no official records, but I am of the opinion that percentage is much less in the Eastern cities.

By some people cremation has long been considered an inexpensive method of disposing of the remains of one who has passed on. By this I do not mean that there is a lack of respect, but a great many feel that a body may be cremated and no further disposition made. In fact many people are under the impression that the arrangements are complete after the cremation. This is a condition which we must overcome by every means in our power, this tendency destructive to the memorial idea, which is as old as the human race. It is for us to keep before the public the thought that cremation perpetuates the memorial idea just as earth or mausoleum interment perpetuates it. The idea of creating a memorial spot in honor of the family is a noble one. It provides a place upon which to center the thoughts and memories of those who have gone before, and it allows friends to visit the spot and place a tribute of flowers whenever they desire to pay this honor.

The memorial idea is responsible for some of the world's famous structures. The pyramids of Egypt, and such buildings as the Taj Mahal and Westminster Abbey would never have existed if it were not that man had always possessed a strong desire to perpetuate the memory, deeds and identity of his beloved dead and of himself when his span of life is over.

The fact that more and more cremation is looked upon as ideal in no way weakens this instinct of the human race. It has often been said that cremation accomplished in an hour what burial takes months and even years to accomplish. This does not mean however, that so called ashes should be scattered or stored in some closet in the home.

There is the same obligation to the family to provide a fitting memorial resting place when cremation has occurred as when the body itself is to be laid to rest. After the incineration has taken place, the cremation, or urn interment, as it should be called, is only one-third complete, and a family should be urged to select an urn and niche which are representative of and in keeping with that person's station in life.

I recall a case that came to my attention not long ago in which a friend of mine lost a member of his family. He telephoned me stating that he had lost this member and the body was now at the undertaker's. He said it was his intention to cremate the body at our institution and consequently it would not be necessary for him to purchase a good casket. My answer was that a casket and final resting place were selected in accordance with one's station in life, and were indicative of love and respect for one who had passed on; and it made no difference whether the casket was interred in the ground or mausoleum or placed in a crematory retort—it was not seen by anyone thereafter and decomposition of the casket would set in, in either event. I also told him that after he had selected his casket it was his duty to perpetuate the memory of this loved one and select a representative urn and niche which would be in keeping with the surroundings this person had in life. As a result this friend selected a good casket, and after the cremation, purchased a beautiful urn and niche in our Columbarium.

Cremation should not be allowed to stand alone, as it were, without the complete rite or urn interment. A crematory should recognize this and should provide representative urns and proper niches for the permanent disposition of incinerated remains. Attention of families arranging for cremation should be drawn to these things. It need not be done in an offensive manner, but the family should be made to understand that any other idea than urn interment in an appropriate niche is unthinkable. The question that confronts us is how this can best be done. All of us can help to educate the public on the subject if we but give the matter a little thought.

In the first place, when the nearest relative, or the family of the deceased come to make arrangements for cremation, a signed order for the cremation should be required. The signing of this order should take place in a room where urns of different styles and sizes are on display in plain sight. In many cases when the family see such a display they will inquire about final disposition of the ashes. If they do not, it should be mentioned by the sales person handling the arrangements. We must constantly remember that most people are absolutely uninformed about these details, which to us are our every day business. They are usually willing to be guided by the word of those experienced in these matters if they are tactfully and sympathetically handled.

We must gain the confidence of those whom we are serving. The purchase of a suitable urn and niche should be made at the time arrangements are made for the cremation, or within two or three days after the cremation has taken place.

Within the last 60 days the Interment Association of Southern California, which is composed of all cemeteries, crematory and mausoleum companies, took a step which I anticipated and of which I spoke at the convention of the Cremation Association of America last year. In order to educate the public that urn interment includes cremation, niche and urn, and the three are inseparable, it has been decided to quote a price for cremation, which includes the cremation, niche and urn. This price has been set at a minimum of $100.00. When inquiries are received as to the price of cremation this price is given, with the explanation that it includes cremation, niche and urn. In instances of course where people insist upon cremation alone, the price is $50.00, as before, but it is not quoted except on definite request. This, it is believed, will gradually educate the public to the custom of interring the ashes as naturally as they now think of interring the body.

The urns are constructed of sufficient size to accommodate the ashes of one adult person. These niches are small and when people have made up their minds to purchase the urn and niche, they readily see the desirability of buying a better one which represents their family and is suited to their station in life. Their resistance to the interment idea has already been broken down by the preliminary discussion.

The sales people who deal with the public in this way should learn for themselves some of the preeminent facts concerning the memorial idea, its interesting history through all recorded time. If they do familiarize themselves with such facts they will have no difficulty in selling to people who say they do not care what happens to the ashes, or that they do not wish to erect a memorial to the physical remains or a loved one. We must recognize that this work demands people of a high order. The day of the uncouth shirt-sleeved man making cremation arrangements with the family is over. We must have men and women of prepossessing appearance who can handle the distressing details of these arrangements quietly and sympathetically and who can, without offense, convey to the family that the memorial idea is a sacred obligation which they have no right to disregard, that in the years to come the family memorial will be to them a shrine, reminding them always of precious memories and the sacred ties of family affection.

From the publication:
AACS - Proceedings of the 42nd Annual Convention
Indianapolis, IN
September 10, 11, 12 and 13, 1928

Beginning as early as 1825 Dr. Jacob Bigelow started the movement for the removal of human bodies from church cellars and other sepulture in the city of Boston to the better method of laying out a garden cemetery which should be located a few miles from the cities with the primary object in view of protecting the general health of the public and as stated in his own words "To desire the institution of a suburban cemetery in which the beauties of nature should as far as possible relieve from their repulsive features the tenements of the deceased; and in which at the same time some consolation to survivors might be sought in gratifying, as far as possible, the last social and kindred instincts of our nature.”  It was indeed a far sighted idea on the part of Dr. Bigelow and one which spread rapidly in succeeding years to all parts of the United States. The Modern Cemetery with its engineering and landscape features of today is a logical outcome of this initial movement.

It is now over one hundred years since this important step for a better disposition of human remains started and in this period of time there have been many changes and additions to the original conception of what a cemetery should be so that the larger cemeteries of the present time represent the collective human experience of many minds and probably the largest single influence in this period has been the American Association of Cemetery Superintendents. In such a gathering as this, which is the fortieth that has assembled, it is inevitable that ideas and ideals start for or realized by its present members, and it is with this thought in mind that I am going to review particularly the engineering characteristics which we may find in a cemetery and which are naturally the outcome of many years of experience in this special line of work.

LANDSCAPE: I have divided the particular engineering features under the headings with the sub-division illustrating the details as applied to this work. The outstanding feature of course is landscape work. This necessitates a study of topography of the land, a study of roads and paths, trees, shrubs and equipment which will reveal to the best advantage the natural landscape which may be available. Constructions have been made so that vistas thru the trees and shrubs will show ponds and lakes, monuments and slightly beds and observation towers which are existent. Embankments and special ground are planted to shrubs, vines and trees not only for effective landscape but also to lessen the maintenance of certain grounds.

PLANT AND MAINTENANCE: In order to carry out the construction work and maintenance of a cemetery it is of course essential to have a plant with proper buildings thereon which shall necessitate the least amount of steps and in the larger cemetery adjacent to these buildings a railroad side track is very convenient, not only for unloading cement, sand and necessary material but also for the purpose of taking in monuments and mausoleum granite. In addition to side track facilities we have the following buildings: Garage for trucks, Blacksmith Shop, Carpenter Shop, Mechanics Shed for tools and derricks, Laborers Shed and tools, Grass-cutters Shed, Perpetual Care Shed, Housing for Power Sprayer, Steam Roller, Gas Engine and pump, Men’s Lounging room and Yard Office. One engineer says "Our structures begin to wear out even before they are completed, hence the necessity for maintenance." Depreciation and the need of repairs for buildings and equipment are self evident to anyone and the condition of the plant is dependent upon constant inspection followed by decision and action to hold every part of it to as near as possible 100 percent maintenance. When our perpetual care fund runs up to a considerable amount it seems that the word maintenance covers the greater part of our work.

ROADS: Due to the demand of present traffic conditions it essential that every cemetery shall have good roads and it therefore becomes part of the work of modern cemeteries to build their own roads and in this work there is a very large opportunity for every cemetery superintendent to improve the existing grades as well as to build roads of such material and in such a manner that the grades are easy that the surface material will stay for a great many years and that no weeds will have an opportunity to grow. Preliminary work in road construction necessitates proper drainage by piping and this in turn would become also the problem of proper surface drainage in every part of the grounds so that the soil in every section is clear and drained of water in winter as well as in summer. In order to carry this thru it is sometimes necessary to recognize the mistakes made in early days and consequently raise the grades of paths that the roadways shall always be the lowest point in the topography of the grounds with the exception of course of any natural lakes or ponds that exist.

Our experience so far leads us to construct the roads as follows: The standard road is 18' in width. After the road is brought to proper grade by excavation and fill and the gravel for proper material for the road bed spread the width of the roadway, the whole bed is thoroughly rolled being drenched with water at the same time so that a solid and substantial road bed will be ready to receive the constructed surface. The construction surface begins with 4" to 5" of 2½" crushed stone thoroughly rolled and it is a fact that at the present time particularly where the road slopes in the direction of its length that the surface is made practically flat but where the road is almost level a crown should not exceed 2" in an 18' width. The six to twelve inch crown on a gravel road of years gone by is really dangerous construction for present traffic. After the 2½ crushed stone has been thoroughly rolled all depressions noted, and properly filled, then the whole is covered with tarvia or other bitulithic material at the rate of 1½-2 gallons per square yard. After this tarvia is spread, ½" crushed stone in as thin a layer as possible is spread over this surface. This is then thoroughly rolled again and after being thoroughly rolled is covered with one coat of tarvia at about ½ gallon to the yard which we call the sealing coat. Next a very thin layer of clean sharp sand is scattered over this surface and worn in by traffic.

I have known a road constructed in this manner to lay for almost twenty years without any further treatment than occasional coating of tarvia and sand. I believe a road of this nature is one of the least expensive that any cemetery can build. Concrete for road construction in my judgment in a cemetery is unnecessary, except in special cases where grades are so steep that a roller will not work efficiently. We have such a problem and are building this small piece of road according to the Mass. State Highway Specification.

About twelve years ago after completing a road, I remember the roller engineer telling me that we had so improved the grade on this particular piece of road that he only required one half the steam pressure to go over the hill that he had to have before; what this means in the saving of foot power and horse power I will leave to your imagination but I'll wager that the foot power or horse power saved will never be known to the ones who are using this highway. However, this thought should never prevent us from doing all our construction work as the best engineering science demands it should be done.
 
WATER SUPPLY: Due to the large amount of vegetation which is an essential part of a good cemetery, a water supply is very necessary equipment and a great many cemeteries for this reason have their own pumping stations. At Mount Auburn Cemetery this equipment includes 28-2½" driven wells varying in depth from 52' to 125'. It is a fact that practically all water from driven wells contains a large amount of iron and iron in water for cemetery purposes is very undesirable for the reason that it discolors all stonework with which it comes in contact.

By means of aerating equipment the iron in the water is readily oxidized, the water then flows over charcoal beds and sand filters which not only entirely remove the iron but also other impurities that may be in the water. From the sand filters the water flows into a clear water basin and is then pumped up to the reservoir where it flows into the mains to all parts of the