Death is a difficult concept to grasp, but it’s one that everyone eventually will have to face.
Choosing not to die isn’t an option – but choosing how to be laid to rest is something people have control over.
This year, the rate of cremation surpassed that of burial, according to a 2016 National Funeral Directors Association Cremation and Burial Report.
And, according to the Cremation Association of North America, the rate of cremation will be nearly 55 percent by the end of 2020 – meaning, cremation will become the norm in the United States.
Barbara Kemmis, executive director of the cremation association, believes that the change is a result of society becoming less religious and more transient.
“It’s new traditions, you know,” Kemmis said. “With people moving around the country for work or school, there are fewer ties to hometown cemeteries.”
Kemmis said the desire for a personalized service is something that people have also gravitated toward.
“You can shoot your cremains into space,” Kemmis said. “You name it and it can be done with cremated remains. It’s a break from tradition and a desire to make it more personal.”
That might not be true for Roman Catholics, however.
In October, the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published a new instruction on the burial of the dead and on the conservation of the ashes in cases of cremation, according to the Vatican Radio website.
The instruction reiterates the long-held view that the church is not opposed to the practice of cremation, though it continues to recommend that the bodies of the deceased be buried in cemeteries or other sacred places. Also, ashes should not be kept in private houses and that the scattering of ashes on land or at sea is not permitted.
David Roefero, owner of Scala and Roefaro Funeral Home Inc. in Utica, hasn’t been impacted by the rise in cremation, even though the service typically is less costly than traditional burial.
“It really hasn’t affected my business that much. You adapt with the times,” Roefaro said. “It makes no difference to me whether someone is cremated or goes through a traditional burial. It’s whatever their belief is. We’re here to serve them.”
Roefero said that the cost difference is only significant if the family of the deceased chooses to immediately cremate their loved one.
Oftentimes, families still decide to have calling hours and mourning services following a cremation, with the only difference being where the deceased is laid to rest – a columbarium instead of a cemetery.
New Forest Cemetery in Utica, for example, was granted a $113,094 loan from the Permanent Maintenance Fund in the spring for a new columbarium – a room or building with niches for funeral urns to be stored.. The process took more than 1,000 hours of work, paving the road, landscaping and the clearance of a one-and-a-half acre lot.
Other funeral services, such as Matt Funeral Service, have been required to change the way they operate their business as a consequence of the rise in cremation.
“It has impacted our business, but it’s just like anything – you adjust to the changing times,” said Tony Matt, owner of Matt Funeral Service.