Burial

This page, and the one on cremation, may be especially difficult for you, yet deciding between burial and cremation is one of the first choices you must make. It's your decision!

"Disposition" is the term used by the funeral industry to describe the final handling of the deceased's remains.

Although your initial decision for the disposition of the body is between burial and cremation, there are several variations on each.

Whichever choice you make, the body will eventually return to its natural elements.

Burial Choices

If the body is buried:

  • It can be interred (earth burial)
  • It can be entombed in a crypt within a mausoleum (above-ground burial)

Why people choose burial

Although the trend is moving toward cremation, the majority of North Americans still choose to bury their dead and to be buried themselves. Here are some reasons you might choose burial.

1. Burial is traditional within your family, religious group, or geographical area.

2. You do not like the idea of the body being cremated.

3. You prefer to have the body slowly return to the elements.

4. You want to erect a monument on the grave.

5. Perhaps you want to visit the grave in the days to come, and you find a graveyard more appealing than say, a columbarium.

The 3 Main Decisions You Must Make If You Choose Burial

Location of plot:  Choose from various areas of the cemetery in either the upright monument sections or the flat memorial sections.

Choice of grave liner: either basic concrete liner  (basic requirement)  or an assortment of  burial vaults designed to further protect the casket and remains from the elements.

Memorial Marker:  There is a wide range of memorials one can choose from.  Although most ground burial memorials these days are the flat type, there are still sections available where one can choose an upright memorial.  There are many options for both the bronze and granite memorials to customize it the way you want it.