Eco-friendly funeral/burial

[JJJ]

I'm not religious at all so I can be cremated with no problem. I think that is more green than anything. I think the asking price for their green funeral is high considering some choose no casket.

[DianaB]

Sounds really nice. I suggest that you have what you want written and placed with your will so your family knows exactly what you want.

We own an old small cemetery on one of our farms. It's very pretty with wild orange lilies all over it in the summer. My FIL had mentioned to us several times that he wanted to be buried there........I heard him.....and Glen heard him.......but he failed to let the rest of the family know so he's at another cemetery.

We used to have a friend that worked in a funeral home and we asked him questions. In Kansas, at that time, you didn't have to be embalmed or buried in a casket but you DID have to be buried within 24 hours of dying. You probably wouldn't even have to be buried in a special cemetery if you checked into what your funeral home or you can actually do.

Funeral homes are a rip-off!!! They play on your......."this is the last thing I will ever do for this family member". They have certain terminology that they use to hit your heart strings.......they did that when my Dad passed away. We bought a "package" deal but that DIDN'T include the little paper handouts that you recieve at funerals!!! That was an EXTRA fee!!! I couldn't believe that one......so I ended up printing my own........I've never seen or heard of ANYONE ever doing that!!! A friend of mine had a funeral for her grandmother and it was a graveside like Dad's was and they paid half of what we paid!!! I will NEVER use that funeral home again!!! It still makes my blood boil!!!!

I do like the concept of this cemetery and I think that you'd be wise to check into it!!

[judy]

I have picked out this for my funeral too!

http://naturalburial.org/index.php

It is a couple of hours away from Jessie, but who knows where she will be living when I'm gone anyway. I do not like the idea of being put in a coffin at all! I used to think I wanted to be cremated, but I would prefer to be put in the ground. It seems so natural. I even have some of the music I want picked out!

The cost of this seems to vary. I am going to be making out a will, living will, etc., in the next week or so, and will really have to lok into this. I would want to prepay.

I also think it is a waste of money to pay for embalming, fancy coffins, etc. This is, of course, my personal opinion for me.

[DianaB]

That's a lot like what Janet found. I think that it's a good idea to have things planned ahead of time.

[Janet]

I just thought when I read it that it sounded so right...so peaceful and not so commercial. There are special places to be buried and they let them grow naturally. I really hadn't thought about it that much, but when I read that article in the newspaper....it sounded so right.

[Tiramisu]

I'll be buried in a pine box (hopefully made by my son) not embalmed, buried in a comfortable cotton gown, no funeral, no long wake. I LOVE this idea!

[Blueyes]

Around here you have to be buried in a casket with a vault. I didn't have my mom embalmed because I couldn't stand the thought of it, and my dad and my brothers let me choose everything. You have to be buried in a certain time frame if you aren't embalmed. I do not for the life of me understand how people can be persuaded to buy a bug free, moisture free specially sealed vault. I surely understand how you liked this idea, Janet. I like it, too!

[gja1000]

Isn't it so ironic that so many of us want the exact same thing!!! I actually would prefer my body be donated to science or a medical school, but my daughter has a problem with that so I probably won't. In the absence of that, I want the exact same thing, either cremation or buried in a plain pine box with no embalming, no expensive anything, no funeral, no wake. I would like my friends/family to get together (not necessarily at the time of my death) and enjoy each other at the lake, a restaurant, a park, any place, just NOT a funeral. And the only reason I would like them to get together at some point is how many times have you said, "oh it's so good to see you, we seem to only see each other at weddings and funerals........."

My daughter's dad died a couple of years ago and he had no money for any type of burial, so my daughter had to pay the bill. She had him cremated and bought the urn and little heart necklaces for her and his wife to put a few of his ashes in it. I think it was still $1500.00!!! The family just got together at a restaurant and they ate and talked. She said it was nice.