Cremation
Cremation is a preparation, not a final step, in the process of a loved one’s final arrangements. While cremation grows in popularity, many people forget to think about what will happen to the cremated remains five, ten or even fifty years after the funeral service has passed. Riverside Cemetery is here to assist in this decision making process, provide options for permanent placement, help families to memorialize cremated loved ones, and maintain perpetual records of a life well lived.
Riverside Cemetery’s Choices
Riverside Cemetery offers several options for the commemoration of cremated loved ones: the new columbarium, located in our recently expanded Violet section; the Camellia mausoleum, located on a hill overlooking Riverside Drive; traditional lots in any section of the cemetery; or the cremation garden in shady Hydrangea.
Choosing Burial
An urn can be buried in a traditional grave space or on a family estate lot with a permanent marker to memorialize a loved one for generations to come. Burial provides a perpetual place of rest, assuring the security of your loved one’s remains while also offering a place for family and friends to visit in remembrance.
Choosing a Niche
Like traditional burial, placing the urn in a columbarium or mausoleum niche offers family and friends a physical, above ground location for memorialization.
Choosing Home
Some families consider keeping the urn at their home and find comfort in the ability to see the urn every day. However, families should consider future custodianship of the urn and permanent memorialization to preserve the loved one’s history for future generations.
Choosing to Scatter
While scattering is often chosen as a way to honor the loved one’s desires and memory, the family and friends are left without a physical place of remembrance, which is an important part of the healing process. Riverside doesn’t allow scattering of cremated remains on traditional lots or along the cremation garden trail. These areas are for burial only.
Columbarium
Middle Georgia’s first columbarium, completed in 2013, includes 162 niches to help memorialize your loved one and protect their cremated remains. Surrounded by the historic beauty of the cemetery, the columbarium is constructed of granite and brick, and is adjacent to Riverside’s lovely family estate lot areas. A historic Civil War Redoubt overlooks the columbarium.
Cremation Garden
Our shaded cremation garden provides an in-ground burial option for cremated remains. The garden is terraced and landscaped on a hillside to provide an atmosphere of tranquility and semi-seclusion. Large trees shade the pathway winding across the hillside, adding a peaceful element. Memorial markers and benches can be added to the garden, and cremated remains may be encased in these benches or markers as well as buried on individual lots within the garden.
Pre-Plan Today
Whether you are considering cremation for a loved one or pre-planning for yourself, Riverside Cemetery has a large number of Mausoleum spaces available, or we can assist in the planning and construction of a personal mausoleum on your lot.
There are many advantages to pre-planning your arrangements including alleviating the stress of decision-making during a difficult time for your loved ones. Families often remark that this is the greatest gift a parent has left them. One of the first steps to pre-planning at Riverside Cemetery is scheduling a personal tour with the cemetery’s President or Maintenance Superintendent. Having devoted their professional careers to Riverside for more than 60 combined years, they will guide you through the cemetery, offer helpful advice, shepherd the pre-planning process, and answer any questions.
