In September, 2007, Jeff Palmore, owner of Bell Funeral Home in St Louis, arranged a burial at Pacific City Cemetery. To save the family the $525 fee the cemetery sexton was charging, he offered to dig the grave himself. Sexton Alan Bruns refused, saying there was a city ordinance that only allowed sextons to dig Read More
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Crematorium Planned in Missouri
Waynesville, MO, southwest of St Louis, may be getting a crematorium. Waynesville Memorial Chapel plans to install a crematory if City Council affirms the zoning recommendation Thursday evening. The city Planning and Zoning Commission approved the application Tuesday evening. Affected residents had several questions about the facility and how it might affect property values, but Read More
Death and the Economy
The funeral industry isn’t being overly affected by the current US economic issues. Forbes reports that given the aging baby boomer population, the industry is actually looking at a slight upswing. “People don’t borrow from the 401k to buy groceries or gas. This is a major life event, like a wedding, so people are willing Read More
Lower Than Low
The gremlins in Indiana are setting a new standard for abhorrent behavior. Burglaries are on the increase, and they’re apparently picking targets by reading obituaries. It’s always been a good idea to keep someone at the house during funeral home calling hours. Now it seems it’s a better idea. Sadly, I suspect we’re going to Read More