The ritual known as a funeral, carries with it a two-fold purpose: one is to remember that person the way we knew them in life; and two, is to say “goodbye” to their physical presence that no longer will be part of our lives.
Traditional or cremation does not change the way we mourn. Many cremations have full calling hours and wakes, church service, and cemetery burial. The cremation is not the disposal of the body, but rather the process in whichour body takes a different form. The cremains or ashes are as much the spiritual form of the person we loved as theirfull body in the casket. Those 6 pounds of ashes are those physical part of you and your loved ones and our life we lived on earth.
Before you decide on scattering or holding on (collecting cremains). Ask yourself: Are you planning on a one time event, are you planning any ceremony, would any other family or friends want to be a part of this, do you or other family or friend want to keep some of the ashes, have you checked to see if this is allowed, is this something you can bring yourself to do, have you picked a meaningful site for you and your family? If you answered “I don’t know” or “maybe” to any of these, you should put more thought in before you relinquish your property.
When Decision is Made to Transfer Ownership
Ownership:
Ownership is established based on the following. All names on the designated lines establishing ownership at the time of purchase, all names on the deed, legal transfers through our office, transfers through legal divorce agreements specifically referencing exact plot information at Worcester County Memorial Park, Legal Wills, proper death certificates, and Massachusetts Next of Kin Laws. All forms signed outside of our office need to be legally notarized and stamped. Massachusetts Intestacy Laws: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleII/Chapter190B/ArticleII
Disclaimer:
Once ownership is established you can begin to go about selling or transferring the property. We are one of the few cemeteries that allows you to sell or transfer your spaces. We do this so our families are not stuck with unused cemetery spaces. Keep in mind, these are not a savings bond or an investment. They were purchased as protection for your family and were not ever originally purchased to make a profit on, so keep this in mind when trying to sell them. Massachusetts State Law prohibits the purchase of cemetery property in that manner. https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXVI/Chapter114/Section43B
You can transfer them to family or friends, donate them to local charities or churches (some of which you might be able to use as a tax donation), or advertise to find potential buyers.
We now allow for one full burial and two cremations on top of full burial vault. Or three cremation burials. So two spaces can now be used for generations of family in one area. Most people still decide to bury cremains, as collecting cremains and passing them down tends to be unfavorable to the next generation and their families.
Selling price:
The cemetery does not buy back property for more than the original purchase price. It is up to the seller to set the sales price. You can find the current costs of our Gardens here. Keep in mind we also offer different programs and discounts that are not all listed. We handle 100’s of transfers throughout the year, most of which are when property is sold for low cost. Our prices reflect accepting monthly payments for up to 72 months, credit cards, ach monthly debiting, and benefitting from our preplanning services. Your buyers are looking for a deal. If you try to list the property for what we do, you will be wasting your time.
Securing a buyer:
Once you have established who you are going to transfer the spaces to, we will need their full legal names, their current address, and phone number. Our office handles the paperwork needed to legally transfer this property. Forms cannot be drafted until we have all this information. The forms can be signed in our office with current valid identification or by legal notary. Once our office gets the original paperwork and are able to verify all the documentation we will finalize the transfer of deed.
The current deed fee is $225.00.
$225.00 In office transfer. Includes two lot transfer forms signed in our office.
(Additional Forms Extra)
$295.00 Out of office transfer. Includes two lot transfer forms sent off to be signed in front of a notary. (Additional Forms Extra)
$325.00 Expedited transfer processed within 24 hours pending all forms received by our office.
Additional Forms: $30 per form
Possible Donation Organizations:
Veterans Inc Worcester
Veterans: Project New Hope
Children and Families: Why ME / Sherry’s House Worcester
Special Needs Family: Seven Hills Worcester
Advertising:
www.craigslist.org
www.telegram.com
www.thelandmark.com
www.stonebridgepress.com
www.facebook.com
Any questions feel free to contact us here or call the office @ 508-791-0350