Cremation is a process of reducing the body to bone fragments by applying intense heat for a period of two to three hours. The cremated remains, which are commonly referred to as “ashes,” are removed from the cremation chamber. They are the processed into finer fragments and placed in a temporary container. The ashes typically weigh between three and six pounds. An urn may be selected for the final disposition of the cremated remains.

Cremations occur at a crematorium in a special furnace called a cremation chamber or retort. Regulations allow only one cremation at a time. Hites Crematory is located in the funeral home.

A casket is not required however, law states that at a minimum, the deceased must be places into a rigid combustible container. Many options of caskets and containers are available to you

Many personal items may be placed in the casket. However, some items may need to be removed prior to the cremation process. All items left in the casket will be destroyed during the cremation. Your funeral director can advice you on what items may stay and what items must be removed from the casket.

Cremation does not limit the type of funeral service that may be chosen. The same options that apply to earth burial are available with cremation. Some of these choices include: casket type, location of services and visitation, music selection, open or closed casket, and the display of the personal mementos. Some families elect to have a complete service at the funeral home or place of worship. Others prefer to have a procession to the crematorium similar to that often done to the cemetery for an earth burial.

Embalming is not mandatory however, some circumstances may require it. If you prefer an open casket with a visitation prior to the service, embalming is highly recommended

An urn is a container designed to hold cremated remains permanently. It may be constructed from a variety of materials such as wood, bronze, copper, brass, steel, pewter, granite, marble, clay pottery, or fine porcelain. We have a large selection of urns available designed to reflect the lifestyle of an individual.

Urns may also be personalized by engraving. Urns also come in a variety of sizes that allow more than one member of family to have a portion of the cremated remains.

Burial: The cremated remains be buried in an existing cemetery plot or a new plot may be purchased

Inurnment: The urn may be placed in a niche in an above-ground structure called a columbarium 

Scattering: Some cemeteries have scattering areas on their property. Cremated remains may be scattered on private or public property if authorization is obtained. Properties may be bought and sold so it is important to know that once the scattering takes place, the cremated remains, are irretrievable. Scattering on either public or private property may offend some people and there may be laws prohibiting such action.

Shipping: You may wish for the cremated remains to be shipped to another country. We can look after these arrangements for you. You may also be permitted to take the cremated remains yourself to another country. Check with us first and we can assist you to obtain any additional documentation that may be required.

Keeping: Many people still prefer to have the urn at home with them.

Typically, it is less expensive than earth burial. Depending on which cemetery is selected, the cremation cost may be less expensive than the purchase of a cemetery plot. There are coroners fees to authorize the cremation, an urn to purchase, and possible transportation costs of delivering the urn to its final destination.