Selecting a Final Resting Place After Cremation

When a cremation service has been chosen for your loved one there are a variety of options that you can choose from as you decide upon a final resting place. Regardless if you choose to have a service for your loved one either with a visitation or a non-formal gathering with friends and family, you will have the decision as to what you want to do with the ashes afterwards. If your loved one hasn’t left you any instructions as to what they want, or if you are pre-planning your own funeral, here are the options you can look at: 

Bring the ashes home: Once the cremation has been done and you can have the urn with the ashes of your loved one, you can bring the urn home to be displayed somewhere that is meaningful and resonates with your family. Perhaps on a fireplace mantel, or a display you have created in honour of your loved one.  

Burying the ashes: Your family may have a plot at a graveyard where other deceased family members have been buried. Burying the ashes in a family plot keeps the family tradition going and your loved ones together in a spot that has meaning to you and ca be visited frequently. In this case the urn would buried without a casket 

Scattering the ashes in water: Here, in the state of New Jersey there are some federal, state and local laws that are in place and they are as followed: 

• Federal: Ashes can be buried in or on ocean water only if they are places three nautical miles out from the coast line and you have up to 30 days to report the scattering or burial to the EPA office in writing. Flowers and other decomposable decorations are allowed to be scattered with the ashes.  
• State: If you want to scatter the ashes in a lake or a river that is meaningful to your loved one and your family, an application for a permit must be completed and approved before you can scatter in the body of water.  
• Local: If you wish to scatter the ashes on water in a local park, just as state laws requires, you need to fill out a permit and be approved before doing so.  

Scattering garden: This is a plot of land that is designated for scattering ashes of humans and pets. These are typically in your local cemetery. Ashes can also be scattered in a place that has profound meaning and represents the life of you loved one. If you prefer to scatter the ashes on a plot of land you own or have received permission to scatter on private property, this is also an option which pays tribute to your loved one and their wishes.  

Columbarium: This is a wall with niches in which an urn can be placed with an identity plaque that can visited as you wish. These are typically located at your local crematorium or cemetery.  

Now that you know what options you have when it comes to choosing a final resting place, you can decide on one that will fulfill the desires and wishes for a loved one, or for you if you are pre-planning. If you have any other questions or would like to speak to our professionals at, Ocean County Funeral Home, you can contact us here.