Resources

www.cremation.com
Practical information on how to locate providers of cremation, as well as legal, religious, and medical issues which surround cremation of humans and/or pets.

www.cremationassociation.org
The Cremation Association of North America is an international organization of over 1500 members, composed of cemeterians, cremationists, funeral directors, industry suppliers and consultants.

www.crossings.net
A home funeral and green burial resource center.

www.davidkessler.org
A thorough collection of resources, articles, book titles on such topics as grief, rights of the dying, and advice on coping with end of life issues. 

Death For Beginners

Your No-Nonsense, Money-Saving Guide to Planning for the Inevitable.

• Book and companion website by Karen Jones. To be released in June 2010 by Quill Driver Books.

www.fondpetmemories.com

Fond Pet Memories offers a free, virtual memorial for your family to remember the loving pet that brought many years of happiness.

www.growthhouse.org
Comprehensive gateway to educational resources for life threatening illness and end of life concerns.

www.hospicefoundation.org
Website for national foundation, provides educational and support resources for family, friends, and professional healthcare workers.

www.iccfa.org
Website for the International Cemetary, Cremation, and Funeral Association. Information for providers and customers about cemeteries, funeral services, cremation, and memorials.

www.judishouse.org
Help and Healing for Grieving Children, this website discusses how children grieve and how to help them, as well as lists of suggested reading and other resources.

www.lovingtouchesmemorialservices.com -signature service providing funeral, memorial and life celebration services to ensure families experience a personal and uplifting gathering honoring the unique life, passions and personality of their loved one. Based in the Chicago area, Loving Touches can accommodate clients nationwide.

www.memorialecosystems.com
Memorial Ecosystems Inc. opened Ramsey Creek preserve in 1998, the first “green cemetery” in the United States.

www.memorialserviceplanning.com
The complete resource for funeral poems, funeral songs, examples of eulogies, eulogy writing tips, creative funeral service ideas, and funeral preplanning advice.

www.memory-of.com
Assists in the creation of a memorial website for your loved one.

www.pbs.org/wnet/onourownterms
The website companion to the PBS Bill Moyers program about dying. Includes financial and medical guides, as well as a Self Assessment of Your Beliefs About Death and Dying 

www.rainhummingbird.com
Animal communicator, pet psychic and animal intuitive, Rain Hummingbird, offers animal communication, Reiki and soul journeys.
  

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Ask any middle aged baby boomer about their end of life preferences, and you’re almost guaranteed to hear, “well, of course I want to be cremated.” A recent national survey validates this with results showing that 46% of Americans plan to be cremated after their deaths. This statistic is a 15% increase since that question was asked in 1990.

The US is actually behind the curve in this arena. Japan has reached a 99% cremation rate, while some European countries such as Great Britain - well over 73%, Czech Republic -  more than 78%, and South American countries like Peru, are currently above 77% of deaths ending in cremations.

Most religions in the US have accepted cremation as a suitable choice. Baptist churches are still not aligned with the practice due to beliefs about appropriate treatment of the body of the deceased.

The most common reasons for choosing cremation are environmental and economical. Land is becoming more and more of a commodity, which partly explains the popularity in Japan and Asian cultures (the other important factor for Asian cultures is religious beliefs). Green burials have returned as options for the same reason.

The cost of a direct cremation is a fraction of the expense of a traditional funeral and burial. Cremation also offers greater choice in memorialization. This is evidenced by the abundance of options available, such as artist-made urns, jewelry to hold cremains, paintings incorporating ashes, etc.

There are approximately 77 million baby boomers in the US today. Projected cremation rates are forecasted at 43% of all deaths by 2025. This projection has been confirmed by CANA, the Cremation Association of North America.

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Before my children were born, my husband and I had an amazing German Shepherd named Wotan. I was pregnant with my firstborn daughter when we got him. Purebred litters are always alphabetized, and the breeder instructed us to come up with a German name starting with –W-. I was stumped, as I had been really focused on baby names at the time, and this was just pushing me over the edge. My husband immediately came up with Wotan, the equivalent of Zeus in German mythology. Having grown up with opera-loving parents, he was also very familiar with Wagner’s Ring Cycle, and the Wotan character therein.

I fell immediately in love with this puppy. The breeder told us that he probably had a 10 year lifespan. I remember cradling him in my lap during the ride home, and crying at the thought that he would probably only live to our baby’s 10th birthday.

He was as much a part of our family as any of us. Our two daughters grew up with him always by their sides. He circled around the neighborhood children while they played in our yard, because he knew that his job was to protect them. When the school bus stopped in front of our house each afternoon, Wotan greeted them by climbing up the bus steps and jogging down the center aisle for petting from every child in the bus. It was a tradition that was loved by all, especially the bus driver.

He outlived the breeder’s prediction by 2 years, and by age 12, he was visibly suffering. His rear legs dragged as he tried to run. His pace was much slower than that which is still vital and exuberant in our home videos. I knew we had to end his misery, but couldn’t let go. I cancelled 4 different appointments for his euthanasia. Three of us sat with him while he left his body at the vet’s office. One of my daughters knew she didn’t want to witness his lifeless body, and we respected her decision.

We were about to move to another part of the country, and really wanted him to be part of that move. He loved the beach near our home at that time, so we sprinkled half of his ashes into the water where he  used to play with the waves where they met the sand.  We brought the other half of his cremains with us on our long journey. We still have those ashes 10 years later. We still feel protected by his spirit.

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