Cremated remains are typically placed in an urn or another container, and are presented to the family after the cremation service. As the rate of cremations rise, so do the options for memorialization after the cremation service. We wanted to share with you some permanent ways you can memorialize your cremated loved one.
Burial of Cremated Remains
This is similar to a traditional burial with a casket and vault. The only difference is that the remains are cremated, and in an urn. Most cemeteries offer this type of burial. Some may require a cremation vault, which is a metal or concrete box that the urn would be placed in. This urn vault acts as a protective container for the urn. Some cemeteries have a section set aside specifically for this.
Cremation Urns
If you plan to keep or store a loved one’s cremated remains, you are going to need some type of container to hold the ashes securely. Urns for human ashes have been used as long as history has been recorded. Urns are made of wood, metal, clay, and many other materials, and come in an almost unlimited variety of styles and personalization options.
Columbarium
A columbarium is a public or private building that houses cremated remains. Columbarium niches are the receptacles within a columbarium that contain the remains. Many cemeteries have columbarium niches in the wall of a mausoleum or standalone garden columbarium, but you can also have a small one created for just the use of your family.
Cremation Gardens
Cremation gardens are landscaped areas designed to house remains in tribute options like pedestals, statues, markers, benches and boulders.
Public Memorial or Private Home
Families can also choose to donate a bench, pedestal, or statue to a park as a way to memorialize their loved one, but choose to keep the cremains at home. This allows friends and family to visit the memorial, allowing them a public space to grieve, but also allowing another family member to keep the urn in their home as part of their own grieving process. The same can be done at a private home or farm, creating a space to memorialize and to honor.
There are benefits to all of these cremation memorial options, but what to do with cremated remains is an entirely personal choice.
There are many reasons to create a permanent memorial for a cremated loved one.