Read More Here

WASHINGTON – Denise Anderson lost her only son in the Iraq war. She’s determined not to lose her fight to be buried with him in a national veterans cemetery.

Army Spc. Corey Shea died Nov. 12, 2008, in Mosul, with one about a month left on his tour of duty in Iraq. [...]]]>

Fallen Soldier Corey Shea

WASHINGTON – Denise Anderson lost her only son in the Iraq war. She’s determined not to lose her fight to be buried with him in a national veterans cemetery.

Army Spc. Corey Shea died Nov. 12, 2008, in Mosul, with one about a month left on his tour of duty in Iraq. He was buried at the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne, about 50 miles from his hometown of Mansfield, Mass.

A grieving Anderson, 42, soon hit an obstacle in her quest to be buried in the same plot with her son. That chance is offered only to the spouses or children of dead veterans; Corey Shea was 21, single and childless.

Read more at yahoo.com

Sometimes, a funeral goes as smoothly as a family could hope for:

Jack Sanders had talked frequently with his mother, Joyce, about her funeral plans. A frugal woman, she disdained high prices for anything. She wanted cremation and a simple burial with a graveside service and a few friends. No big [...]]]>

The High Cost of Dying

Sometimes, a funeral goes as smoothly as a family could hope for:

Jack Sanders had talked frequently with his mother, Joyce, about her funeral plans. A frugal woman, she disdained high prices for anything. She wanted cremation and a simple burial with a graveside service and a few friends. No big fuss. No viewing.

So Sanders, 52, of New Sharon, Maine, arranged for precisely what she wanted when his mother died in August at age 68. Chuck Kincer, owner of a number of funeral businesses in Maine, did everything to specifications and charged $1,250. “It was perfect,” Sanders said after the graveside service at the family plot.

But other times, things spin out of control:

Read the full story at AARP.org

If I’m going to be cremated, why would I want my remains to be placed in a columbarium, [...]]]> In the National Funeral Directors Association’s FAQ on Cremation, I found an interesting answer to a couple questions that should be considered by those who want their ashes sprinkled in a favorite place after their death and cremation.

If I’m going to be cremated, why would I want my remains to be placed in a columbarium, or interred or scattered at the cemetery? Why shouldn’t I just have them scattered in the sea or in some other place of my choosing?

As long as it is permitted by local regulations, the cremated remains can be scattered in a place that is meaningful to you. This can, however, present difficulties for your survivors. Some people may find it hard to simply pour the mortal remains of a loved one out onto the ground or into the sea. If you wish to be scattered somewhere, it is therefore important to discuss your wishes ahead of time with the person or persons who will actually have to do the scattering. Another difficulty with scattering can occur when the remains are disposed of in an anonymous, unmarked or public place. Access to the area may be restricted for some reason in the future, undeveloped land may be developed, or any of a host of other conditions may arise that could make it difficult for your survivors to visit the site to remember you. Even if your cremated remains are scattered in your backyard, what happens if your survivors relocate sometime in the future? Once scattered, cremated remains cannot easily be collected back up. Having your remains placed, interred or scattered on a cemetery’s grounds ensures that future generations will have a place to go to remember. If remains are scattered somewhere outside the cemetery, many cemeteries will allow you to place a memorial of some type on the cemetery grounds, so survivors have a place to visit that will always be maintained and preserved.

Why is having a place to visit so important?

Because it provides a focal point for memorializing the deceased. To remember, and be remembered, are natural human needs. Throughout human history, memorialization of the dead has been a key component of almost every culture. The Washington Monument, Tomb of the Unknowns and Vietnam “Wall” in Washington, D.C are examples of memorialization which demonstrate that, throughout our history, we have always honored our dead. Psychologists say that remembrance practices, from the funeral or memorial service to permanent memorialization, serve an important emotional function for survivors by helping to bring closure and allowing the healing process to begin. Providing a permanent resting place for the deceased is a dignified treatment for a loved one’s mortal remains, which fulfills the natural human desire for memorialization.

Read the entire cremation FAQ at www.nfda.org

“On November 4th, 2009 mommy and daddy picked you up from the chapel. It smelled like stale cigarettes and felt strangely like home there. An elderly lady [...]]]> In her personal blog, The Root of All Evel: Surviving the Loss of a Child, Julie McAnary describes bringing her baby boy home after he was stillborn and cremated.

“On November 4th, 2009 mommy and daddy picked you up from the chapel. It smelled like stale cigarettes and felt strangely like home there. An elderly lady filled out papers and after a few minutes of searching she carried you to her desk. You were in what looked like a jewelry box. My little gem. Mommy and daddy cried the second she put you down on the desk. It was sad seeing you like that.

I carried you out in that tiny little box. It was the first time I ever carried you. I wish it wasn’t.”

Read her story, and share her journey as she shows him around at therootofallevel.wordpress.com…

Publisher: American Catholic Author: Marion Amberg

Article Excerpts:

Dust to Dust: …Geographically, the percentage of Catholic cremations varies widely and is closely tied to state trends. Rates are highest in the far western states but substantially lower in the South, where more faithful seem to reverence the traditional funeral and burial…

Lifting the Ban …In 1997 the rules [...]]]>

Image Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cindy47452/2876871918/

Publisher: American Catholic
Author: Marion Amberg

Article Excerpts:

Dust to Dust:
…Geographically, the percentage of Catholic cremations varies widely and is closely tied to state trends. Rates are highest in the far western states but substantially lower in the South, where more faithful seem to reverence the traditional funeral and burial…

Lifting the Ban
…In 1997 the rules were relaxed even more: American bishops received an indult that permitted the presence of cremated remains at the funeral Mass. (Canadian bishops were granted a similar indult in 1985.) A random survey by this writer suggests about 30 percent of cremations today occur before the funeral…

Works of Mercy
…Bereavement ministry isn’t solely for survivors; it also consoles and assists the dying in planning their last rites. A few weeks before my father died, he, my sister and his pastor met to discuss his funeral. Dad had been a devout Catholic all his life and wanted the funeral to reflect his faith.

“I was comforted by the priest’s willingness to work with us and respect Dad’s final request,” says my sister, Rita Waldref. “We chose Scripture readings and music that spoke of Dad, his faith-walk and his family.” As Dad would have liked, the funeral Mass was a community and family celebration…

Grave Responsibilities
…In the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis, about 45 to 50 percent of Catholics are being buried in Catholic cemeteries, estimates John Cherek, director of the archdiocesan-run cemeteries. That number compares with 75 to 80 percent in 1960.

Where have all the Catholics gone? To other cemeteries, for one thing: The Vatican no longer mandates that Catholics be buried in a Church cemetery. Another reason is cultural practices that suggest burial of the remains is not necessary…

Read the whole story at www.americancatholic.org…

Article Excerpt:

…She is the last surviving member of her family and none of her children or grandchildren would be using these graves. So what to do with them? She could have sold them, but that might require a lot of traveling from her home over 50 miles [...]]]> Publication: Associated Content
Author: Agnes Farside
Publication Date: May 27, 2008

Article Excerpt:

…She is the last surviving member of her family and none of her children or grandchildren would be using these graves. So what to do with them? She could have sold them, but that might require a lot of traveling from her home over 50 miles away to secure a deal, which she did not want to do. She thought about selling them back to the cemetery, but she would only be able to get what they originally cost, 64 dollars and one-half (64 ½). Not $64.50. The 100 year old deed listed the cost at 64 & ½ dollars. Plus she would only get the cost for each grave, $10.00. She finally decided to donate the graves.

The funeral director recommended a Catholic organization as the cemetery was a Catholic cemetery and suggested the St. Vincent DePaul Society. Mom thought this was an excellent idea and was very excited at just being able to view the original 100 year old deed.

When her and my brother returned home, she asked me, her daughter, to find out how she should go about donating the two graves to the St. Vincent DePaul Society. I looked up the society for the St. Louis area on the Internet and dialed the main number….

Read the whole story at www.associatedcontent.com…

Article Excerpt:

So you think London, population 8 million, is crowded with the living?

There are many millions more under the soil of a city that has been inhabited for 2,000 years. And London is rapidly running out of places to put them.

Now the city’s largest cemetery is trying [...]]]> Publication: USA Today
Author: Rachel Leamon
Publish Date: October 29, 2009

Article Excerpt:

So you think London, population 8 million, is crowded with the living?

There are many millions more under the soil of a city that has been inhabited for 2,000 years. And London is rapidly running out of places to put them.

Now the city’s largest cemetery is trying to persuade Londoners to share a grave with a stranger.

“A lot of people say, ‘I’m not putting my Dad in a secondhand grave,”‘ said Gary Burks, superintendent and registrar of the City of London Cemetery, final resting place of close to 1 million Londoners. “You have to deal with that mindset.”

The problem is a very British one. Many other European countries regularly reuse old graves after a couple of decades. Britain does not, as a result of Victorian hygiene obsession, piecemeal regulation and national tradition. For many, an Englishman’s tomb, like his home, is his castle.

Read the whole story (or watch the video broadcast) at www.usatoday.com…

Article Excerpt:

… People could buy three plots for $5 when Riverside opened in 1871, he said. But people often left before using them, or maybe buried one child there and then moved on, forgetting about their plots, he said. “It’s amazing how many are not [...]]]> Publication: Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN
Author: John Weiss
Publish Date: November 20, 2009

Article Excerpt:

… People could buy three plots for $5 when Riverside opened in 1871, he said. But people often left before using them, or maybe buried one child there and then moved on, forgetting about their plots, he said. “It’s amazing how many are not ever used,” he said.

The cemetery with 6,000 plots has started the legal process for reissuing the sites by putting notices in the legal newspaper, he said. It has to go through several more steps but hopes to take over the plots by the end of the year if no heirs can be found. It will sell them — $500 for one, $900 for two, $1,200 for three — and use that money for cemetery maintenance, Johnson said…

Read the whole story at www.postbulletin.com…

Article Excerpt:

Cemetery Plots are a unique class of real estate to invest in. The price is low compared to traditional real estate investments and the profits can be huge as you also help out families in need.

You can get started with just a few hundred dollars and some research [...]]]> Publication: eHow.com
Author: jadedragoninbc
Date Published: November 13, 2009

Article Excerpt:

Cemetery Plots are a unique class of real estate to invest in. The price is low compared to traditional real estate investments and the profits can be huge as you also help out families in need.

You can get started with just a few hundred dollars and some research time, the easily double or triple your money over and over.

Steps include:

1. Basic Market Research
2. Detailed Market Research
3. On the Ground Research
4. Finding Inventory
5. Buying Inventory
6. Identifying and Understanding the Client
7. Marketing Inventory
8. Enjoy Short and Long Term Profits

Read the article at www.ehow.com…