| The concept of Memorial Gardens
started in the late 1920's. The idea of using
flush bronze memorials instead of upright tombstones
was to serve several purposes.
First, it was designed to give the cemetery
a “park like” appearance rather than
that of a graveyard. This was done with larger
areas of green grass, landscaped common areas
and beautiful features.
Second, bronze memorials do not deteriorate
since bronze is a semi-precious metal and does
not “rust” like other metals. Therefor
it is considered permanent memorialization.
Third, since most Memorial Gardens are not operated
by cities or townships, they are maintained by
a State regulated Perpetual Care fund. That means
there will always be funds available to maintain
the cemetery long after it has no space available.
Unlike government run cemeteries that rely on
tax dollars for their care and maintenance.
Most of the cemeteries operated by American Cemetery
Services also offer the use of a committal chapel
for services held at the cemetery. There is no
fee for the use of these chapels unless visitation,
full funeral services or other extended services
are required.
In addition to committal chapels, 3 of our cemetery
locations also have full service funeral homes
located on the grounds of the cemetery. This provides
a unique benefit for those families choosing to
use these facilities. See our Funeral
Home pages for additional information on these
benefits and locations.
TOUR
THE GROUNDS
DESCRIPTION OF AVAILABLE
SERVICES
Most of our cemeteries offer the following services
and options for burial.
Mausoleum
Mausoleum entombment is considered by many people
to be the most prefered form of burial. Its many
benefits include:
• Only form of above ground burial
• Includes lettering so there is no need
for a memorial or tombstone
• Eliminates the need for a vault or outer
burial container for the casket
• Decreases the cost of Opening and Closing
the space
• The crypt is not taxable
• The Cost is comparable and in most cases
less expensive than ground burial
Private Estates
Private mausoleums are regaining popularity
in the United States. As the prices of these estates
have dropped, more and more families are designing
estate areas that reflect their personalities
and life styles. The buildings themselves are
available in a variety of sizes, shapes and colors.
The mausoleum is then set in selected areas and
landscaped to their specifications to include:
trees and plants, paved walkways and patios, unique
features, fiber optic landscape and crypt lighting,
additional burial spaces, and personalized memorialization.
Ground Burial
Ground burial options vary widely. To complete
the burial process there are several items that
are needed:
1. The burial space.
2. The vault or outer burial container. The
casket is placed inside the vault which is then
placed in the space. Vaults are not a requirement
of the State but are required by most cemeteries
to help prevent the earth from caving in on
the casket.
3. Memorial or tombstone. There are hundreds
of options avialable to families when it comes
to marking the space of a loved one.
4. Opening Closing. This is the cost of opening
the cemetery space, filling the space at the
end of the service, removing the flowers within
7 days of the service and reseeding the space.
This also includes the cost of the administrative
staff. Preparing the Interment Athorization,
updating the Master Card, file, garden maps,
lot books, history log sheets, filing the burial
permit and interment authorization, verifying
the space location, ordering the memorial and/or
death dates etc.
Lawn Crypts
Only a few of our locations offer Lawn Crypt
sections. These are double depth vaults that have
been pre-installed in a specific garden of the
cemetery. This option is typically less expensive
than traditional ground burial since it saves
space for the cemetery, uses 1 companion vault
rather than 2 individual vaults and accomodates
the use of a smaller memorial.
Cremation
As the use of cremation increases as a form of
disposition, our cemeteries offer a wide variety
of options for those families. These options include:
• Private and semi-private cremation
estates
• Traditional ground burial with specially
designed urns and cremation vaults
• Mausoleum niches in a variety of styles
and sizes
Pre-Arrangement
Regardless of what form of disposition you chose,
one of the most important aspects of cemetery
arrangements is the option of having those arrangements
made ahead of time. The concept of preparing a
final resting place in advance has been around
for thousands of years. Pre-arranging your cemetery
needs is a simple process but contains countless
benefits. Not only does it freeze inflation, give
you control over your arrangements, elimate the
possiblitly of emotional overspending, but most
importantly relieves your loved ones of the burden
of making those arrangements within hours of your
death.
All of the options listed above, and many more,
are able to be pre-arranged and/or pre-funded.
Please contact one of our Family Service Advisors
or email us at acs@robertsfuneralhome.com and we will
make arrangements for you to receive the information
requested.
In addition to pre-arrangement options we also
provide the following educational information
and programs.
• Legal Will Kits
• Living Will Forms
• Family Record Guides
• Historical Records
• Seminars and Educational Programs for
your group, Churches, and schools.
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