Funeral services and memorials held at cemeteries in Matthews, NC can be very expensive, and if you don’t do some planning right now, you’re going to leave your family and loved ones with a very big bill when you die. However, paying for a funeral isn’t as simple as just putting money aside in a savings account. When someone dies, his or her money is usually frozen for at least a month. So, your family can’t access any money you had in an account for your funeral until long after the funeral is over.

Luckily, there are a few ways to put money aside to pay for your eventual funeral service at a cemetery, such as:

• Payable-on-Death Account – Payable-on-death accounts, or PODs, allow you to set money aside specifically for funeral and other death-related expenses. Your beneficiaries simply have to present a death certificate to the bank in order to obtain the money. They will not have access to the money until after your death.
• Borrowing – Banks also offer loans specifically for funeral expenses. However, as these loans are personal and unsecure, they can get expensive. Interests range usually from 16 to 35 percent on these kinds of loans. Since the FCA recommends that you do not go into debt for a funeral, be sure to only take out a loan you can easily pay back.
• Insurance – Most life insurance policies will pay out a lump sum of money to a beneficiary when you die. This lump sum can go a long way towards paying for your funeral or memorial service. These insurance payments are made almost directly after death so your loved ones can pay for the funeral right away. There are also special insurance policies for death related costs like burials, funerals, cremations and more.
• Veterans Benefits – If you served in the military you may be eligible for veterans’ benefits, including burial and funeral at no cost. The Veterans Administration will pay a burial allowance to your loved ones to cover funeral expenses. Check the VA website to see if you’re eligible.

If you don’t have money to set aside right now, and feel like you won’t later on either, you can plan for low-cost funeral options. There are tons of low-cost options that are just as respectful and honoring as their more expensive relatives. From direct cremations and at-home funerals to green burials, or even donating your body to science, there are definitely low-cost options out there. If you do plan to donate your body to a medical school or other institution be sure to enroll in advance.

These are just a few ways you can put aside money for your funeral at a cemetery. If you want to learn more about your funeral payment options or your options for Matthews, NC cemeteries just get in touch with Gethsemane Cemetery and Memorial Garden. We offer a wide range of services and can give you the guidance you need in your time of loss. Please call or visit us today.

There are lots of options for what you can do with cremated or embalmed remains after a death. From scattering to displaying, burying to even casting at sea, the options are for cremains are numerous. There is another option for bodies called interring. You can inter, or place, the body or remains in the ground, or in an above ground permanent resting place in a cemetery in Huntersville, NC.

The two most common options for interring above ground are columbarium and mausoleums. Both are defined as permanent, above ground resting places for human remains. However, how are they different, if at all? How do you choose which one you want to use for your loved one’s remains?

If you’ve ever been walking in, through or past a cemetery, you’ve most likely noticed the ornate but small buildings scattered around the grounds amidst the tombstones. These buildings are mausoleums, columbarium, or even a combination of the two.

A mausoleum is defined, according to the National Funeral Directors Association, as “a building designed for above-ground placement of a casket. The casket is placed into a crypt that may be designed for one or two persons.” Mausoleums can have one crypt, or a chamber designed to hold one body, or a larger space made to hold a few people like a family or a couple. Some mausoleums have more than one room for different parts of a family. These buildings are often decorated with exterior markers to denote who is resting inside. Some even have glass windows that allow those on the outside to view the coffins.

There are lots of different kinds of mausoleums all around the world. In fact, one of the original Seven Wonders of the World was a mausoleum. Built in 353 BC near what is now known as Turkey, The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus was the final resting place of a famous Persian king named Mausolus. This king was so rich that he commissioned one of the finest mausoleums ever built and is actually how the term mausoleum was coined.

But what about columbarium? Unlike mausoleums that generally hold bodies, columbarium are designed to house cremated remains. The term columbarium comes from the Latin word “columba” which means dove. In the past, doves and pigeons were housed in buildings with niches on the walls for their nests. This design is very similar to how columbarium are made, as they have compartments built into the walls to house and display cremation urns. There are lots of different columbarium designs. Some are indoor and some are outside, while others are simple and more still are decorated and elaborate. You can choose whatever kind of columbarium you like for your lost loved one.

Want to learn more about columbarium and mausoleums options? Gethsemane Cemetery and Memorial Garden can help. We are a Huntersville, NC cemetery with years of industry experience we would love to use to help you in your time of loss. Please stop by and visit us or give us a call today.

What do you know about burials and cemeteries in Charlotte, NC? If they were answering honestly, most people would say, “not very much.” There is a lot more to burials and cemeteries than you would think. It’s important to spend time learning as much as you can about them as it will help you be more prepared to make the necessary plans and decisions when you’re facing the loss of a loved one. Use this list of frequently asked burial questions and their answers to get started on learning more about burials.

• Why is Burial Necessary in the First Place? While there are many disposition options besides burial, a burial is a wonderful way to remember the deceased in a constructive way. A big part of the human grief process is memorializing the dead, and a permanent burial place serves as a focal point remembering your lost loved one. A permanent resting place also gives the deceased a dignified ending while still allowing his or her memory to live on.
• Will My Cemetery Close When It Runs Out of Land? Cemeteries do run out of land, but they usually do not close when that happens. They generally remain open for family members to visit graves and can even have guided tours of historic resting places.
• Is Ground Burial the Only Option? There are several options besides traditional ground burial. These include mausoleums, lawn crypts, and cremation internments like urns and columbarium.
• Are There Laws About Burial Timelines? The short answer is no, there are no federal laws requiring a body to be buried within a specific amount of time. However, there are many steps that need to be taken before a burial can take place, so it’s a good idea to get started as soon as you’re able after a death so your loved one can have a dignified funeral service and burial.
• What Will Happen to My Loved One’s Grave in the Distant Future? Cemeteries are traditionally thought of as permanent, and the land designation is often in perpetuity. You can visit graves that are more than a hundred years old all over the country. It’s nice to think that your loved one’s grave will still be around and treasured by coming generations.
• What Are Burial Vaults? And Do I Need One? Burial vaults are the outside container that holds a coffin or casket. Their primary function is to protect the casket and help maintain the grave’s integrity, so the surface doesn’t sink in. Most active cemeteries do require burial vaults to keep the cemetery ground intact and safe.

These are just a few of the many questions people have about burials. Gethsemane Cemetery and Memorial Garden is a Charlotte, NC cemetery. We offer a range of burial, cremation, cemetery, memorial garden and funeral services. If you have any more questions about burials or cemeteries or would like to learn more about other aspects of funerals, please do reach out. We are more than happy to do whatever we can for you in your time of loss.

Serving in the United States armed forces is a great sacrifice, and all of our veterans deserve to be honored. One such way our country honors veterans is with veteran funeral services. There is a range of post-humus benefits available to veterans to ensure they get the honor and respect they deserve, whether they’re held at a cemetery in Matthews, NC or another location such as a church, memorial garden, or a place with special meaning.

Military funeral service honors are given to members of the United States Armed Forces, or those that served in the Marines, Army, National Guard, Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard. The veteran must also meet one or more the following requirements:

• Passed away while in active duty or Selective Reserve
• Completed at least one term of enlistment or initial obligated service in the Selective Reserve, and was not dishonorably discharged
• Served on active duty, or in the Selected Reserve, and was not dishonorably discharged

The United States has laws that provide eligible veterans with military funeral services honors. If an eligible service member’s family so requests, the government must provide no-cost honors including:

• Flag Folding and Presentation: All eligible veterans have the right for to have at least 2 Armed Forces members serving as an honor guard during the funeral. At least one of these guards will be from the deceased’s service branch, and this guard will present a traditionally folded American flag to the next of kin or designated person upon the funeral’s completion.
• Headstone – The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) can furnish a headstone at no cost to the family. These veteran’s headstones are made available for any veteran regardless of date of death. These headstones come in bronze, marble and granite in various styles to match existing headstones in the place of burial.
• “Taps”– “Taps” is a bugle song traditionally associated with military and patriotic funerals. Though live bugle performances are rarely seen these days, military funeral honors require that a high-quality recording of the song be played at any eligible funeral services if no live bugle is available.
• Flag Burial – A flag is provided at no cost to the family to drape the casket or accompany the urn. The flag will then be folded and presented to eligible family members such as the next of kin or requested friends. Family members may donate their flags to national cemeteries with Avenue of Flags so the flag can be flown on patriotic holidays to honor the deceased, or they may keep the flag as a keepsake or at-home memorial.

Gethsemane Cemetery and Memorial Garden is a Matthews, NC cemetery that offers a wide range of services for veterans. We would be honored to help you show respect for your lost veteran through a beautiful funeral service. Please give us a call for more information on post-humus veteran benefits, our cemetery services, or on what we can do for you and your family in your time of loss.