The Proper Disposition of Cremated Remains

 
It is our belief and recommendation that cremated remains be treated with dignity and respect.  There are many options available for you to chose from.....from very traditional to very contemporary.  Cremated remains can  be designed into jewelry, made into diamonds, launched into outer space or placed in an underwater memorial reef.  Please choose thoughtfully, some decisions are more permanent than others.

Some of Your Options

In the state of South Carolina, cremated remains may not be freely scattered or otherwise disposed of upon public domain or private property of another person. Public domain is any land owned by federal, state, county, or municipal governments and includes forests, lakes, and streams.

A recommended method of disposition is the placement of the cremated remains in a place of permanence - a perpetual care cemetery, either interred in a burial space or entombed in a mausoleum niche. A memorial garden or columbarium is attractive, the cost is affordable and the placement is permanent. In addition, it affords the surviving family and friends a place to visit as the years pass - to remember and to reflect.

Some families find comfort in placing a portion of the cremated remains in a permanent location and dividing the remainder among themselves for scattering or keeping.

Serious consideration should be given against retaining the cremated remains since they will eventually become your survivors' responsibility. Similar consideration should also be given to placement upon your private property since one day the property will be owned by another.

Interment

 With interment, you can choose burial in the family plot, church garden, or other memorial site. You can also choose a columbarium, which is an arrangement of niches, indoor or outdoor, with memorial identity plaques. This is also sometimes referred to as an urn garden or can be above ground as part of a community mausoleum.

 Graveside Services

 You can choose to have memorial prayers and religious rites performed at the graveside with cremation, just as you can with a typical earth burial. You can also choose to have a marker or monument as a permanent testimony to the life and the history of the deceased, and as a place of memory for loved ones to visit.

 With cremation, you also have other options that aren't available with a typical earth burial.

 Scattering the Cremated Remains

 Options for scattering cremated remains include scattering within a memorial garden or cemetery (if available) with the comfort of an identifying marker, plaque, or memorial book entry to memorialize the loved one; or over water or in some other site loved by the deceased.

 You can also do partial scattering, in which some of the cremated remains are scattered and the rest are retained in an urn for some type of permanent placement.

 Multiple Urns

 Cremated remains can also be placed in two or more urns. This offers the comfort of interment near more than one family member when families are divided by great distances. Smaller versions of specific urns are available which can hold a small amount of the cremated remains; these are referred to as "keepsake" urns and allow family members to keep a small amount of their loved one.

Don't hesitate to discuss these options or any others available to you with your Funeral Director. Its what we do.