Showing posts with label mausoleum. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mausoleum. Show all posts

Friday, March 9, 2012

The Cost of Dying – Traditional Funeral Services & Burial


A Wedding
We love to plan and prepare for the major events in our lives; graduations, weddings, births, anniversaries, reunions, but when it comes to planning our death – that seems to flummox us like nothing else.  Yet, it is a major life event, and it does need our attention and planning.  Maybe now more than ever!

Invoice Example
Death is a $12 to $15-billion industry in the United States. As we continue to die, rates continue to climb.  Expenses for a funeral service can vary dramatically, depending on what type of funeral you decide on and where you are located.  According to the 2010 Funeral Price Survey by the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) http://www.nfda.org/, Americans spent, on average, $7,775.00 for an adult funeral in 2009, based on the elements of a regular, traditional funeral.

Grave monument
Opening a Grave
This does not include the cemetery costs which include the gravesite, vault, opening and closing of the grave, or the grave marker.  These charges can run another $2,000 to $3,000 for interment in  ‘regular’ cemeteries.  (Remember, the larger, more popular or exclusive a cemetery is, the higher the cost to get admitted.)  And the price of a grave marker or monument depends on what you choose.

Traditional Funeral
So what elements make up a traditional funeral?  What are you paying $7,775.00 on average, for?  Note: a funeral service involves a body being present, it occurs soon after death, and usually includes a viewing of the body.  If there is no body present – it is called a memorial service, does not require a funeral director to be involved and may be held at any time.


To begin the funeral process, you will need to pay for copies of the death certificate.  Then there’s a transportation charge to take the deceased to the funeral home of your choice. 
Studies have found that people make the decision on the funeral home based on these criteria:



Location – usually it’s the funeral home closest to them, or to where the deceased lived.

Family history – they continue to go to the funeral home the family has always used.

Personal recommendations – these are based on suggestions from friends and family. 

Funeral Planning
The National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) encourages customers (And yes, that is what you are,) to ask questions about anything you do not understand. If plans were not already in place and you are feeling stressed and emotional, ask a trusted friend to assist you in getting the funeral arrangements decided on.  A clearer head can be an asset to you and the funeral director when planning a funeral in a time of grief.  You do not necessarily have to accept the pre-bundled funeral services offered by funeral homes, although it may be easier to do so in certain circumstances .  You can pick and choose from the options available to find those that best suit your intentions and finances.

Itemized Statement
Once you have decided on the arrangements you want, the funeral home will present you with an itemized statement of the services and merchandise you have selected.  This includes an estimate of all cash advance fees paid on your behalf to third parties, such as the cemetery, organist, florist, clergy, etc.






A Funeral Cost Breakdown:

Offering Professional Services
Professional Services involve the services provided by the funeral director regarding advice, support, and dealing with third parties, external cleansing of the body, burial arrangements made with the cemetery, and securing all necessary certificates and permits.




Use of Funeral Home
Funeral Cars
Supplemental or Optional charges include transporting the deceased to the funeral home, use of the funeral home, the services of the funeral home attendants for custodial care and arranging the funeral, embalming, cosmetology, charges for the casket or urn, burial vault, obituary notices, flowers, music, prayer cards, memorial cards, acknowledgement cards, providing the hearse, and limousine or funeral cars for transportation to the cemetery for the interment.

Embalming is Optional

You do not have to have the deceased embalmed.  Embalming is never required for the first 24 hours after death. Also, you have a set amount of time to bury a body before embalming may be required according to your state law. There are several religions in the United States that do not allow a body to be embalmed.



Embalming Table
According to Funeral Consumers Alliance, http://www.funerals.org/  There is no public health purpose served by embalming.” However, the Federal Trade Commission does allow funeral homes to require embalming for public viewing.

Embalming does not preserve the body nor does it not stop decomposition.  It only slows it down for a period of time.

Caskets
One of the largest expenses of a funeral is the casket. Caskets come in all makes and models.  There are very basic caskets - the unadorned pine box, - usually running $500 to  $1,000. 


14K Gold Casket

Bronze Casket
  More detailed caskets with gaskets, seals and liners can cost up to several thousands of dollars, depending on what extras you select.  Up to $10,000 can buy a bronze casket. $40,000 or more will buy you one adorned with gold or jewels!

Here is a break down of funeral costs, provided by the National Funeral Directors Association for 2010.

Average Funeral Service Costs:








Professional Services                               $1,800
Transfer of Remains to Funeral Home       $250
Casket (Metal)                                       $2,295
Embalming                                            $628
Cosmetology                                          $200
Use of facilities/staff for viewing               $395
Use of facilities/staff for Funeral Service    $450
Use of Hearse for funeral                         $275
Use of Limo                                            $125
Service Van                                            $125
Basic Memorial Cards                               $125
Graveside Service                                    $405
Average Funeral Service Costs                $7073.00
This does not show average cost for flowers, death certificate, refrigeration fee (when embalming is not selected,) publishing obituaries, organist, clergy, etc.

Cemetery Burial Costs:
Digging a Grave by Hand
The first cost for a traditional interment is the price of the burial.  The charges associated with this include the grave opening and closing.  (Formerly known as digging the grave and filling it in.)  And there may be a charge for annual or perpetual care, (also known as grounds and grave maintenance.)

Installing a Vault
Concrete Vault
Most cemeteries also charge for a vault.  Known as the outer burial container or a grave-liner, these vaults may be made of concrete, steel or fiberglass.  Their purpose is to keep the ground from sinking in as the casket deteriorates over time.  This also makes it easier to use heavy equipment in the cemetery when needed.  Just as caskets do not prevent the body from decomposing, neither do vaults.  No state requires a vault be installed, but most cemeteries do.  Vault prices range from $1,200 to $2,000.  The price of installing the vault may be included with the vault price.  If not, figure another $300 on average.
Family Mausoleum

Stacked Mausoleum
Other burial options instead of in-ground burials include mausoleums and columbariums.  Mausoleums are above ground structures where the casket is placed in a drawer-like space.  Mausoleums may be private or public.  Private mausoleums were especially popular during the late 1800’s through the 1920’s, mainly for well-to-do individuals and families.  Private or family mausoleums have regained some popularity, but look less like small buildings and more like stacked drawers.
Public mausoleum
Some cemeteries also offer public mausoleums.  This consists of a large public building where hundreds, even thousands of people are entombed.  Many public mausoleums offer the advantage of visiting in a quiet, comfortable place, regardless of the weather.
Columbarium
Columbariums are smaller versions of mausoleums, offering a niche for urns to be placed.  The urns are the receptacles for cremated remains.  Plaques attached to the niches bear the name and information about the deceased.


Rules on Decorations

Cemetery Information
As with funeral homes, cemeteries should provide you with an itemized price list before you buy.  Be sure to read and get a copy of the cemetery’s rules and regulations.  Information on stone size and requirements will be listed here.  Also find out the rules on grave decorations and plantings, and become familiar with the cemetery’s hours for visitation.  Public cemeteries may cost more than not-for-profit cemeteries, especially when considering their location and popularity.
According to the National Funeral Directors Association, cemetery charges for 2010 average as follows.

 Average Cemetery Burial Costs:







Cemetery Charges                                    $1,400
Vault                                                       $1,195
Average Burial Costs                                 $2,595
(Perpetual Care is usually between 5 to 15% of the total sale.)
This number does not include the cost of a gravestone, monument, urn, or space in a mausoleum or columbarium.   These costs vary greatly depending on what you have selected and where the cemetery is.

Total Cost for Average Funeral & Interment       $9,668
(Not including third party charges as listed after funeral service costs and cemetery burial costs.)


Graveside Service
Direct Burial
You also have the right to select direct burial.  This means there is no embalming, no public viewing of the body; no funeral home services need to be performed. You will need to get a death certificate and set up burial with the cemetery.  You also have the option of holding a graveside service at the time of burial and or/a memorial service at a later date. 

All told, for a basic, traditional funeral with viewing, hearse and burial, expect to spend around $10,000 to $15,000 dollars.  As my grandfather used to say, "Death is not for the faint-of-heart!"
~ Joy









Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Cemeteries Worth the Visit – Oak Hill Cemetery, Evansville, Indiana


Map of Evansville
Oak View Cemetery

Oak Hill Cemetery located in Evansville, Indiana began in 1853. Located along the curve of the Ohio River, this hilly, rural-style cemetery is made up of 175 acres. Although now located in a thriving section of the city, Oak Hill has retained its quiet, Victorian charm.


Map of Oak View in 1800's
Ellen Johnson
The land for the cemetery was originally purchased in 1852 and the first to be buried here was 2-year-old Ellen Johnson on February 18th, 1853.  A local paper of the times described the land selection as “a “hillock, a wilderness of underbrush and briars, and called at that with a mantle of loess, underlain by sandstone.”


Mission Revival Gate
The cemetery entrance is located on Virginia Street and the drive up to the Mission Revival gate and brick-walled fence is 365 feet long.  Architects William Harris and Clifford Shopbell designed the entrance gate in 1901.




Craftsman Administration Building

Harris and Shopbell also designed the Craftsman style Administration Building in 1899.  It contained an office, waiting room and chapel. The building was remodeled in 1917.  It still contains the central bell tower and massive fireplace, with a 3-sided porch surrounding it.



Oak View Cemetery
Ginkgo Tree
The cemetery grounds are made up of numerous hills.  Most of the landscaping was done between 1853 and 1932 and has grown into a place of beauty and seasonal color.  The cemetery is a treasure-trove of trees, many native to the state of Indiana.   While pine, maple, willow, and oak abound; it was interesting to see several magnolias, and one of the largest ginkgo trees in the U.S. is located here.


Cemetery Lake
A large man-made lake is on the grounds, surrounded by mausoleums crafted from marble, limestone and granite.  Local architects designed many of the mausoleums and their intricately laced doors.  A stone pedestrian walking bridge crosses to a small island where the Mead family (of Mead-Johnson fame) is buried.


Annie F Johnson
 Also buried here is Annie Fellows Johnson, author of the over a dozen of the children’s Little Colonel book series. Born May 15, 1863 in Evansville, Johnson wrote for years about her Little Colonel, a “precocious young girl growing up in aristocratic Kentucky prone to bullying and temper tantrums.”  Over a million of the books were sold at the turn of the century.  The series of Little Colonel books inspired a movie by the same name, starring Shirley Temple and Lionel Barrymore.




Harrison Marker
Records also indicate the King and Queen of a tribe of Romany Gypsies are buried here.  Elizabeth Harrison, Queen of the Gypsies, died in November 1895, in either, Massachusetts, Mississippi, or Ohio.  Her body was shipped to Oak Hill Cemetery and held in the receiving vault until members of her camp could meet to attend her funeral. Services were finally held on April 1, 1896.  Over 6,000 people were on hand for the graveside services, fifty of them Gypsies.  It was the largest funeral ever held at the cemetery.

Gypsies Camp
On Christmas Eve, 1900, Harrison’s husband, Isaac was buried beside her.  Isaac Harrison, King of the Gypsies, had been killed by a bullet on December 1st, in Alabama, in a fight between his sons.



Civil War Burial Ground
Oak Hill has a Civil War military cemetery section that includes over 500 Union soldiers and 24 Confederates.  Surrounded by heavy chains, with two Civil War cannons, it is a moving tribute to those fallen men.

Confederate Monument
A Confederate Solider stands at the intersection of two lanes, one that leads to the military section.  The statue was erected at the turn of the twentieth century by the Fitzhugh Lee Chapter of the Daughters of the Confederacy in remembrance of the 24 Confederate soldiers buried on Yankee soil.

Union Monument
A Union Soldier also stands in Oak View Cemetery as a reminder of the hundreds of local men and boys who died during the Civil War.
Governor Conrad Baker

Other notables interred here include over a half a dozen U.S. congressmen, along with several Civil War officers and Indiana’s 5th Governor, Conrad Baker.







Autumn in the Cemetery
Assistance on genealogy research is available by contacting Cemetery Superintendent Chris Cooke at ccooke@evansvillegov.org or by calling (812) 435-6045.  For a list of many of those buried here, visit the Vanderburgh County, Indiana InGen Web Project http://www.ingenweb.org/invanderburgh/cemeteries/oakhillcem.htm

Ad Building in1910
Tree Stones
Oak Hill Cemetery is located at 1400 E. Virginia Street in 
Evansville, Indiana. Regular office hours are from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. 
Saturday the office is open from 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.   At this time the cemetery has no web or Facebook presence.


Contemplation

Oak Hill continues to fulfill its purpose of being a place of relaxation and contemplation.  As first stated in the 1800’s, and still true today, Oak Hill is there for those who “become wearied with the sight of human faces, when the noise and bustle of the city grate harshly on the ear, when we feel an inward yearning for some quiet spot where we may rest in seclusion, undisturbed and alone.”




~ Joy