Creativity and beauty
Saint John's Abbey is located on more than 2,000 acres and includes Saint John's Prep School, Saint John's University, The School of Theology, and the Liturgical Press, as well as Saint John's Abbey Cemetery. The cemetery was established in 1869 with a section for the monks and parishioners of the Abbey Church.
> Read the full 2009 newsletter (pdf)
Cremation at the Tipping Point
There are times when a few facts are helpful. For example, cremation was not introduced in the United States until 1876, with the opening of the first crematory. The 2nd crematory was built in 1884, with both crematories located in Pennsylvania. By 1900 there were only 20 crematories in operation. By 1913 cremations totaled only 10,000 per year. Even in 1975 there were only 150,000 cremations. By 2006 that number had climbed to approximately 800,000.
> Read the full 2008 newsletter (pdf)
Bob Updike's special passion
St. George Episcopal Church is located in The Villages, a well-known and active retirement community in Lady Lake, Florida. The decision to build a columbarium in a Memorial Garden was an easy decision for this church. "We saw it as a necessity, an integral part of the church's ministry," states Robert Updike, a leader and designer of the project.
> Read the full 2007 newsletter (pdf)
An encompassing ministry
While reviewing the plans for the new Cathedral in Los Angeles with Cardinal Roger Mahony, Spanish architect Professor Jose Rafael Moneo indiated that the space below the expansive nave could be utilized for storage. "That's a lot of room for storage," the Cardinal commented. It was then that Cardinal Mahony conceived of the idea of a mausoleum beneath the Cathedral, a tradiiton that has a long history in Europe. Recognizing that many Catholic cemeteries were running out of space, the vision of the mausoleum became a significant element of the overall plan for the Cathedral.
> Read the full 2006 newsletter (pdf)
Survey Reveals churches are very satisfied with Eickhof
When Paul Eickhof commissioned a survey, by an independent organization, of the churches for whom Eickhof Columbaria had installed a columbarium, 40.7% responded.
Starting with the appearance of their columbarium, whether within the church building or outside, 85.5% were “very satisfied,” 14% were” satisfied,” and .5% were “somewhat satisfied.”
With the design of the columbarium, 90% of the 74.8% of the respondents who were “very satisfied” indicated they would “definitely do it if they had the opportunity to do it all over again.” A total of 17% were “satisfied,” 5.2% were “somewhat satisfied” and 3% were “not satisfied.”
