Home Funeral Guide and owner of the first independently owned all green/natural burial ground/cemetery in the State of Alabama.
THE GOOD EARTH, LLC
Home funerals and green burials
Shelia Champion
Hazel Green, AL 35758
256-655-2170
www.thegoodearthllc.com
Introduction:
The Good Earth, LLC was formed to educate, empower and encourage people to take control of the bodies of their loved ones at the time of death. As hospice care gains popularity, it seems to me that it would be a natural progression for families to care for their dead as well. I am planning a green/natural cemetery in Madison County, Alabama, so that families can have a place to bury their loved ones that does not require the use of a funeral home; no need to embalm for viewings; no need for a casket; no need for a vault; and no need to spend thousands of dollars. I am also available for family consultations and can train you in the methods I’ve learned in caring for the deceased.
I want to share what I have learned through my life experiences, my research, by being a hospice volunteer, and my recent training by a licensed Funeral Director. I hope to bring about change in how we handle death, making it more of a family function. People are returning to having babies at home so home funerals should not be nearly as uncommon. Home births can have life threatening complications; the results of a home funeral will not change the outcome.
What is a home funeral and why would you want that?
HELP WITH THE GRIEVING PROCESS:
A traditional funeral takes the body away from the family. Usually within a few hours after death, the body is taken to a funeral home and often not seen again for one or two days until it is prepared for viewing. If not embalmed, many funeral homes will not allow a viewing. I believe this process has caused death to become mysterious and frightening instead of a natural occurrence. A body is no more infectious after death than it was before death. Death will never become easy to deal with and grieving will always take place. By having time to sit with your loved one, to care for them one last time, and creating your own funeral experience, your healing may start sooner. You are in control and can do as much or as little as you choose.
COST:
A “home funeral” is what we used to call a funeral in the days before funerals became an industry. Embalming started during the Civil War so soldiers’ bodies could be returned to their loved ones in a somewhat preserved condition. That spurred the current funeral industry as we know it.
Prior to the custom of what we now see as a traditional funeral, families, friends and neighbors always took care of their own deceased. Deceased loved ones were bathed, dressed, and vigils were held in their own homes prior to burial. Now the average funeral costs consumers approximately $7,000.00, and does not include the cost of the cemetery plot or a vault, which may be required by the cemetery.
Item Median Cost
Non-declinable basic services fee $1,975
Removal/transfer of remains to funeral home $285
Embalming (required for most viewings) $695
Other preparation of the body $225
Use of facilities/staff for viewing $400
Use of facilities/staff for funeral ceremony $495
Hearse $295
Service car/van $130
Basic memorial printed pkg (e.g., cards, etc) $150
Metal casket (low end) $2,395
Median Cost of a Funeral with Casket $7,045
Some cemeteries require a vault:
Vault $1,298
Median Cost of a Funeral with Vault $8,343
http://nfda.org/about-funeral-service-/trends-and-statistics.html
Many, if not most, families go into debt to bury their loved ones which causes more stress and often guilt.
Cremation is rapidly becoming an alternative to traditional burial for several reasons: costs less, less traditional, “no-fuss”, and more eco-friendly. A local Huntsville funeral home charges $2595.00 for direct cremation. That means that once your loved one’s body is picked up by the funeral home, you spend no time with them and do not have a family viewing. Most funeral homes require embalming if you want a viewing. There is also discussion of the ecological effect of the cremation process (burning of fossil fuels, etc.).
Ecology:
Statistics show that every year conventional burials place the following materials into the ground:
• More than 800,000 gallons of formaldehyde (a known carcinogen)
• More metal from caskets than was used in the Golden Gate Bridge
• Enough reinforced concrete from vaults (1.6 tons) to build a two-lane highway from New York to Detroit
• 30 million board feet of hardwoods used in caskets each year
What is a green (also known as natural) burial?
A green/natural burial takes place when there is no embalming or other chemical means of preservation of a body. There is no metal or treated wooden casket, no artificial flowers, and only natural fabrics are allowed (cotton, silk, bamboo, etc.).
Some cemeteries are allowing green burials while strictly green burial grounds are becoming more popular. Many times a green burial ground is used as a preservation of land, keeping green spaces and preserving natural resources and making wildlife habitats.
Green burials can go hand in hand with home funerals allowing families to have control of the entire process of disposition of the deceased. From death to grave, no one else has to be involved.
Decomposition happens! Returning the deceased to the earth allows for natural, normal decomposition. Many believe that by embalming, providing a casket and a vault the body will be preserved indefinitely. No casket is leak proof or waterproof and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will not allow anyone to claim otherwise. A vault is only for the benefit of the cemetery to keep the ground level for maintenance.
Some may want you to think that green burials can cause ground water contamination. It is no bigger risk to ground water contamination than a traditional burial, especially since there is no chemical (as found with embalming) involved.
There is no evidence of animal disturbance of green burial sites which are quite popular in the United Kingdom. There must be a minimum of 18 inches of soil over the remains which provides an adequate barrier.
I am a member of the National Home Funeral Alliance. To learn more about home funerals and green burials please contact me or visit the following sites:
http://homefuneralalliance.org/
http://finalrights.org/
http://greenburialcouncil.com/
https://www.funerals.org/
www.returninghomecs.com
The first independently owned, totally green burial ground in Alabama. I also offer training for home funerals.
