In recent times, almost 50 percent of all deaths in the United States result in cremation. To the surprise of many, the numbers are growing every year. Here, we’ll go through some of the major reasons why many people opt for cremation:

1. Affordability

People have been spending thousands of dollars over the years on caskets over the years. Besides, the funeral services end up costing thousands, which is not affordable for many. Considering this, a direct cremation without any other services is always an affordable option.

Cremation is far less costly than the traditional burial. You’ll still have the option of having a wake, religious tradition or hours of visitation. The cost will greatly depend on various factors if you choose to conduct a wake or ceremony at a funeral home.

2. Flexibility

Upon choosing cremation, you’ll have plenty of time to plan out things. This is when you’re conducting an event that everyone would be able to attend. This is something which is not urgent. Things are different in case of traditional funeral services. It is common to have everything done within ten days of someone’s passing. The body needs embalming in order to slow down the process of decomposition.

Family members will need some time to arrange the funeral services. Those staying far from the town need to arrive as soon as possible to attend the burial and service. Some of them might be living in distant countries. So, it’ll not be easy for them to arrive quickly.

3. Convenience

It’s certainly not easy to plan a funeral. Things can take a toll on the members of the family. A funeral service can become overwhelming and emotionally draining for them. It, therefore, makes sense for a family to avoid the hassles of a traditional burial. Opting for cremation doesn’t mean that you love your family any lesser.

Many would agree that the most challenging part is arranging the activities after a loved one’s death. Cremation eliminates the need for these things and takes away all the worries from the family members. The process of cremation is also faster than the traditional burial.

4. Personal preference

Some people have to face their inner fears while thinking about a burial. These fears can be due to many reasons. Some are personal while there can also be emotional reasons for not choosing burial. You might be someone who dislikes the slow decay. There are others who just don’t like traditional burials. A family member may also choose cremation because of the last wish of the deceased.

The person who died might have expressed the desire to be cremated after death. He or she must have told about his or her dislike of the body getting buried. Another thing worth noting is that a sudden earthquake or flood can cause caskets to come out of the ground.

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In this process, a body is burnt, vaporized, and oxidized to basic chemical compounds. This retains the appearance of a dry bone and results in more quantity of remains. It is a modern alternative to the process of burial. Here are some of the best cremation services in California worth considering:

1. Sacred Space Memorial Funeral and Cremation Services

This funeral and cremation service is proving to be a great alternative to the traditional funeral homes. It focuses on helping families select the most suitable locations for performing the funeral or memorial services. The service also focuses on providing end-of-life care involving personal planning. Contrary to the traditional funeral homes, this service doesn’t place any limitations or restrictions on the families.

They have several years of expertise in these matters and cater to families from all walks and backgrounds. The personal planning that they offer for families of the deceased is what makes their service special.

2. Oak Hill Funeral Home

People of all faiths are welcome at both the cemetery and funeral home. They have a dedicated staff that provides 24/7 service to the families of the deceased. Oak Hill Funeral Home and Oak Hill Memorial Park has a lot of experience in Asian funerals. Their non-denominational funeral homes stay open throughout the year.

For generations, they’ve been helping families in the Santa Clara Valley in their funeral and cremation services. They have several chapels that are useful for burning incense in case of the Buddhist ceremonies. They also arrange transfers of the remains from the United States to other countries.

3. Los Gatos Memorial Park

This cremation service has a licensed staff that understands the requirements of families and have a 24/7 availability. Los Gatos Memorial Park is a place where families can feel at home. It is a safe and welcoming space that celebrates the lives of those who have departed from this world.

The staff of Los Gatos Memorial Park is committed to creating a positive environment for the grieving families. Those who require help with planning of the cremation event can contact their cemetery staff or funeral directors.

4. Darling and Fischer Garden Chapel

What brings the staff of Darling and Fischer Garden Chapel together is decades of experience in caring for families. This is a place where the deceased individual’s good times of life are remembered and celebrated. The team at Darling and Fischer Garden Chapel is extremely passionate about their work.

Their promise is to provide top-quality funeral and cremation services that exceed the expectations of families. All the concerns of grieving families are heard when they get in touch with the staff. Based on their requirements, all the necessary planning is done in advance.

5. Martinez Family Funeral Home

Martinez Family Funeral Home understands the pain of loss that the grieving families have to go through. They are, therefore, committed to serving such families in every step of the cremation process. Their goal as a funeral home is to provide the best funeral service to all those who come to them. The staff ensures a respectful service to every family and the members are serious about their commitment towards honoring their wishes.

They always uphold their code of ethics in all their dealings. This ensures honesty and fairness to all the families. While performing the cremation-related services in an ethical manner, they also respect the privacy and dignity of family members.

6. Willow Glen Funeral Home

This particular funeral home located in San Jose understands the special needs of the veterans of America. They also take care of their family members with regards to the funeral arrangements. Willow Glen Funeral Home offers all the families in San Jose a warm and inviting environment.

They’re especially proud of the fact that they take the responsibility of honoring the country’s veterans. However, their services are available to all the families and not just the families of veterans.

7. Lima Family Erickson Memorial Chapel

The origin of this chapel goes back to 1945, when Donald J. Lima Sr. had laid its foundations. He, along with his two partners Ralph Salmon Sr. and Gilmore Erickson founded it as Lima Salmon Erickson Mortuary Chapel. Since those times, this chapel has been providing funeral and cremation services for families in San Jose.

Over the years, Mr. Lima became the sole owner of this establishment. In the year 1971, his children graduated from San Francisco College of Mortuary Science together.

8. San Jose Funeral Service

This is yet another excellent funeral service in California. San Jose Funeral Service offers a compassionate service for grieving families without any sales pitches. The Brown family provides this service and they have been serving the Santa Clara county since 1994. It was established as a tiny office in Willow Glen on Lincoln Avenue. Back in the day, it offered merchandise without using catalogs.

The funeral ceremonies were conducted at the cemetery or in churches. In the year 2010, they moved to Bascom Avenue. Today, they have their own chapel, preparation, and holding area. Their aim is to help the families avoid the high mortuary costs and provide them with professional care.

9. Bay Area Mortuary Services

In order to help the families in planning a funeral, Bay Area Mortuary Services offers many options in cremation. This is a family-owned and operated funeral home and mortuary. Their services include religious services, burials, and cremations.

Their high-quality and affordable funeral services also include mortuary shipping. Bay Area Mortuary Services takes care of all the details of the funeral services. This helps families to focus on what really matters in those crucial moments.

10. Casa Funeral San Jose

The origin of this funeral service dates back to the 1920s. The first and second generations of casket builders in Mexico were the people behind its establishment. The third and fourth generations established this funeral service in San Jose in mid-1960s. Currently, the fifth generation has taken over this funeral service. Starting in the late 1990s, they’ve been providing high-quality funeral services for many families in the city.

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These factors are mainly the weight and size of the body and the type of container that holds it. Efficiency of the equipment that is in place for the process also matters a lot. Every crematory follows its own policies on the amount of time required to have the remains ready for the bereaved.

When compared with the traditional form of burial, cremation doesn’t require embalming. It doesn’t need large plots for burial as well. Here, we’ll take a look at the two types of cremation:

1. Direct cremation

Direct cremations eliminate the need for a funeral service and casket. They are, therefore, the cheapest form of cremation. In the process of direct cremation, the remains go to the cremation center directly without a funeral service.

There’s no visitation, viewing, or wake beforehand in a typical direct cremation. Mostly, the families opting for this type of cremation will schedule a memorial service at a later date. This will allow the family members and friends to pay their respects for the deceased.

2. Liquid cremation

This is a flameless process, which results in much more remains than a flame-based cremation. Liquid cremations use the process of alkaline hydrolysis. It involves the combination of water, heat, alkali, and pressure to cause a reaction that accelerates decomposition.

As a result, only a sterile liquid and bone fragments are left behind. A larger vessel may be required in this type of cremation. The process takes about three to sixteen hours to complete, depending on the equipment used and body mass. There’s no need to remove pacemakers and other medical devices.

This is the cremation process for the modern world. It reduces over 75% of the carbon footprint of a body. Green cremation also consumes far less amount of energy compared to the conventional flame-based process. This is why alkaline hydrolysis is considered a green alternative to burial. The resulting sterile solution can be recycled through wastewater treatment once drained of the remaining fragments of bone.

The individuals who are conscious of the environment are now choosing alkaline hydrolysis for cremation. As there’s no flame involved, this ‘green cremation’ prevents mercury emissions and reduces the use of fossil fuels.

Deciding on green cremation

One disadvantage of alkaline hydrolysis is that it still doesn’t have a nationwide approval. You, therefore, need to know whether your state permits the practice if you’ve decided to go for green cremation. Only about half of the American states have legalized this process.

The first step would be to get in touch with the funeral home to know about their policies and practices. Even if your state allows alkaline hydrolysis, your funeral home must have the right technology to perform it.

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This is owing to the growing awareness of the environment. Many Americans are in favor of cremation today, as they want to reduce land usage. Preserving hardwood and other natural resources are also some of their priorities. Others want to avoid chemicals that they use in the embalming process. Cost is one of the strongest reasons why people choose cremation.

It is less expensive than a burial and gives families the chance to hold a traditional service. Cremation also gives them many choices for storing or scattering the remains. They seem to be meaningful options that represent the dead better. This process also allows some time for the family members to come together. This is helpful when the family members are in different parts of the country or the world.

The costs involved in cremation would depend on your location and the services you intend to have. If you go for a traditional service beforehand, the costs can go up significantly. This is especially true if there’s a need for casket. Now, let’s take a look at the steps involved in cremation:

1. Identification of the dead

The regulations for identification of the deceased vary from state to state. It typically involves a family member who confirms the identity. After confirmation, a metal ID tag goes on the body. It remains throughout the process. For the final verification, it needs to be with the remains. The individual facility has its own specific procedures that are based on industry recommendations.

2. Authorization of the procedure

In order to go ahead with the cremation, the crematory must have an official permission. For this purpose, the person or persons making the final arrangements needs to complete paperwork. Upon completion of the paperwork, the authorities give the crematory an authorization to proceed.

Each state has its own rules with regards to the person who has the legal permission to make such decisions. The paperwork also seeks information with regards to the type of container the crematory would be using. It also asks for information on who will take the responsibility of collecting the remains.

3. Preparation of the body

The embalming process is not done on the body unless the beneficiaries request for it. There are certain cases, for which, it would be necessary. The individual facility can handle the preparation of the body in its own way. Usually this process involves cleaning and dressing.

Jewelry or other items are taken off and handed over to the right persons. Prosthetics or medical devices of any kind are removed from the body to avoid chemical reactions. The body finally goes into a vessel that’s combustible and strong enough to handle the weight.

4. Moving the body into the cremation chamber

The process of cremation involves temperatures of up to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. It takes place in a furnace that has been specially created for this purpose. The extreme temperatures reduce the body to ashes. After this procedure, the remains go through a cooling process before they can be handled.

5. Finalization of remains

After the cremation, the remains go through an inspection to identify metal remnants. It helps in finding out whether there are any metals present in the body, such as screws, pins, and joints. Such items may have been placed surgically in the body of the deceased during the person’s life. Metal is removed using hands or strong magnets. It mostly goes for recycling. Next is making the remains finer by a special processor to get the final ashes.

6. Transfer of ashes

The remains are placed in an urn or any other container unless it has been specified otherwise. They are then returned to the family.

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