Should I Choose a Memorial or Marker if I’m Planning on Cremation?

Cremation services in Phillipsburg, NJ are becoming far more popular among people planning their funerals these days. Cremation is both cheaper and easier than burial, and offers a lot more opportunities for memorials and final respects in the form of ash spreading or sealing away the urn.

If you had a loved one who was cremated, you can still memorialize them with a monument or marker at a cemetery. This might be an especially attractive option if they had other loved ones who were all buried in the same area.

Here are a few examples of some of the choices most commonly selected by people looking to memorialize cremated loved ones.

Columbarium

A columbarium is one option that has seen some significant growth in popularity as more and more people opt for cremation. This is a type of structure (it can be a building, a room or a freestanding memorial on its own) that is built specifically for the storage of ashes. It will feature a variety of niches (little compartments) for the ashes to be placed in. The outside of these compartments contains space for the names and dates of the person and other additional information, such as names of children, marriage dates or quotes.

While you don’t have as much room to work with on a columbarium as far as memorial information goes, this is generally going to be the cheapest option you have, much more so than purchasing a cemetery plot to place down a large memorial. Cemeteries are also making it a point to add more columbaria to keep up with the increasing demand for cremation services and interment.

Traditional memorials

There are some people who will choose cremation but want to get a traditional memorial or monument at a cemetery plot. The urn would be buried in the plot, but the monument placed over the plot would look as though the person was buried underneath. This is obviously a more expensive option, but it can be a good choice for more traditional customers, or people who wish to have a plot to share with a spouse or loved one who preferred standard burial.

Non-traditional memorials

There are plenty of options for non-traditional memorials that allow you to get creative. Memorial benches for cremation ashes have been becoming more popular in Phillipsburg, NJ, whether they are placed in cemeteries or on family-owned land. You might also create monuments of unique shapes, types or appearances to honor a loved one who has passed away, and place these in cemeteries or elsewhere.

With any of these choices, you will have the option to either place the ashes in or under the memorial, or to skip that aspect and spread the ashes wherever you wish (so long as it is legal to do so in your chosen area).

For more information about choosing memorials for yourself or a recently deceased loved one and what you should consider if you are to be cremated, we encourage you to reach out to Phillipsburg Memorial Company today.

Categorised in: Headstone