We find that most people have attended a funeral, but only a small percentage have had the unfortunate experience of actually planning a funeral. Have you ever had to plan a funeral?

There is much to do. People tell us that planning a funeral when a loved one dies is the single most overwhelming thing that they have ever had to do.

We call our program Life Plan because it makes putting a plan in place easy so that you can forget about it and get on with living with the peace of mind of knowing that you aren’t leaving a burden for your survivors.

Leaving a burden on your family is a sad way to end a life well lived. Planning ahead is the only way that a person can truly finish well.

No one likes to think about dying, but at some point we are all forced to.

Death is something that’s impossible to predict. Just look at these people who died unexpectantly. Unfortunately, none of us has a guarantee. Since we can’t predict or prevent death, it is far better to be prepared.

No one wants to leave their family like this.

This is a picture of a woman and her son on the worst day of their lives. Her husband has died unexpectantly and she is at the cemetery with a memorial advisor to select a place to bury the love of her life. We show a woman in this photo because in 7 out of 10 cases, the husband precedes the wife in death.

Couples rarely die at the same time.

Some people tell us that their plan is to let the kids “take care of it” when they are gone without realizing that that is nearly impossible. The mother and child still end up in the same picture. The only difference is that everyone is older and things are now more expensive. Since it is highly unlikely that the two of you will die at the same time, the burden doesn’t fall on the children. The burden falls on the surviving spouse.

A time of stress, anxiety, grief, and indecision.

The first 24 hours after a death is extremely difficult for the person responsible for making arrangements. For the first time in years, you can’t ask your spouse, “Honey. what do you think?” Now the decisions must be made alone when shock and grief can easily blur your judgement.

The most difficult “To Do” list you’ve ever had.

When death occurs, suddenly a very difficult list of 67 items or more suddenly appears. It is wise to handle as many items as you can as early in life as possible. Wouldn’t the moment you’ve lost the love of your life be the absolute worst time to work on this list? Wouldn’t this be a horrible thing to leave behind for the person you love the most? We think so.

In 2015. People pre-planned, nationwide, in record number.

Because of the Internet, today’s consumers are more informed than any generation before them about the products and services from which they may choose. Planning ahead helps to avoid emotional overspending… when someone in a state of grief spends with their heart instead of what their mind tells them they can spend reasonably. Only you know what your final wishes are. Planning ahead insures your wishes are carried out.

There is a right way and a wrong way to do everything.

What’s the smartest way to prepare for the inevitable?

In a survey by the Wirthlin Research Group, 8 out of 10 Americans agreed that planning ahead is the smartest way to go about dealing with death. We can only assume that those who did not believe planning ahead to be the best option have never had the unfortunate experience of being responsible for making arrangements at the time a loved one has died.

Why plan for the possible but not the inevitable?

We all carry insurance for a multitude of reasons. You might be in a car accident. Your home could be destroyed by fire or another catastrophe. However, one day your will die. All of us will.

Why would you not plan for catastrophe that is 100% guaranteed to happen?

The Reality of Inflation

Besides sparing your family from making emotional decisions, the other important reason to pre-arrange is financial. Inflation doubles and triples prices without our even realizing it. Look at how inflation has affected the cost of a postage stamp, a movie, and a car! Do you remember what you paid for your first car?

Inflation does the same thing to the cost of burial arrangements.

We all hope to live a long time, but we also know that the cost of a funeral and burial have escalated tremendously. In fact, according to the government, the costs have increased father than inflation. Within the next ten years there’s a possibility that a $5,000 expense today could turn into $10,000 or even $20,000 in just 20-30 years.

Couples rarely die at the same time.

The solution is to take part in our Life Plan Protection program. We call it that because the planning we do in advance with you protects the people you love from ever facing the problems we have just shown to you. Life Plan Protection not only freezes the price of your arrangements at today’s cost, but also allows you to make installment payments over time. It also provides a great deal of additional benefits that we provide at no additional expense.

A special place unlike any other!

Dr. Ball was the head of the Radiology Department at the hospital in Oak Ridge. During the 1940’s, people relocated to Oak Ridge from all over the nation and the population quickly swelled as a result of the Manhattan Project. Because the population sprang up almost overnight, there wasn’t a cemetery large enough to accommodate a population of this size. Noticing the need for a perpetual care cemetery in this area, Dr. Ball requested that the Department of Energy sell a large tract of land for that purpose.

We don’t exist to enrich Wall St. investors.

The Dept. of Energy agreed to sell land to Dr. Ball with the stipulation that it had to be a non-profit cemetery run by a volunteer Board of Directors which could never be bought or sold to anyone. Our Board is comprised of people from different walks of life. They are not compensated for their time, but choose to volunteer as a service to the community.

As a non-profit cemetery, we simply cover our expenses. Any remaining funds are used to improve the park which benefits us all.

Beauty and attention to detail

We also have one of the most beautiful collections of hand carved Italian statuary and sculptures anywhere in East Tennessee.

It’s almost like having several cemeteries all within one Memorial Park

The Memorial park is sectioned off into individual gardens that each have a unique theme and overall aesthetic. In addition to traditional burial gardens, we offer mausoleum entombment and the Garden of Remembrance, a modern cremation garden for ground burial or above ground entombment of cremated remains.

Thoughtful beautification

Mature trees are an import part of the Memorial Park. While most cemeteries prefer to remove as many trees as possible to cut down on maintenance, we prefer to leave as many as we can because of the natural beauty that it adds to our park setting.

A beautifully enormous place of remembrance

As you can see from this overhead view, the Memorial Park is quite large. It extends one mile in length and is comprised of 120 acres. Only 50%of the land has been developed, meaning that the park will eventually be twice as large as it is today.

We do not show this picture out of disrespect…

This picture was obviously not taken here. We only show this to illustrate what can happen to a cemetery when there are no funds or personnel to maintain it. You never have to worry about this happening here because of the irrevocable Perpetual Care trust fund which was established in 1955.

Hassle Free Perpetual Care

Perpetual Care is a type of endowment similar to what a hospital or university may have. We take a large percentage of every property and memorial sale and place it into a state regulated irrevocable trust fund. Each year this fund generates revenues which are allocated for improving the cemetery, but the principal can never be touched, which means that hundreds of years from now, someone will be here to take care of your cemetery. It will look just as beautiful in the future as it does today.

Options to suit nearly any preference

You have choices at Oak Ridge Memorial Park because we offer something for everybody. It’s a matter of personal preference and how you want to be remembered. There’s the mausoleum, traditional ground burial, or countless different options for cremation including a private cremation estate which is pictured here.

Mausoleums are not a new option

All of these amazing structures have one thing in common. They are all mausoleums. Mausoleum entombment has been in existance for centuries. Sometimes we are asked if mausoleum entombment is compatible with those of the Christian faith. It most certainly is, as Jesus Christ was laid in a tomb that Joseph of Aramathea had pre-planned for his own use in the future. Pre-planning was even happening in those days.

Private Estate Mausoleums

We can construct any type of mausoleum imaginable. If you can dream it, we can build it. Although large walk-in style mausoleums intended to entomb generations of a family reach into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, a private mausoleum for two can cost about what one would expect to pay for a new car, making them accessible to more people than ever before.

Community Mausoleums

Community mausoleums are beautiful, prestigious, durable, and affordable. Most people consider mausoleum entombment to be more expensive than ground burial. It's actually very comparable in many cases, and is even less expensive depending on your preferences.

How are Community Mausoleums made?

This picture shows a cutaway of a commmunity mausoleum. They are constructed of steel reinforced concrete, with a granite exterior. Each crypt (compartment for a casket) is connected to a ventilation system which constantly replaces moist warm air with cool dry air, allowing a body (which is 80% water) to dry out gracefully, while being protected from the elements.

Two Types of Configurations

A true companion crypt features one long 14 foot chamber where a husband and wife can be entombed together. The first spouse who dies goes in feet first, while the second goes in head first. The head of your caskets are almost touching. It is the closest form of entombment two people can have.

We also have the deluxe companion. The two of you would be placed side by side by side with a dividing wall between you.

Timeless, and still the most popular option

Of course we offer traditional ground burial in 22 distinct gardens, each with their own look and theme. Most of our gardens only allow flat bronze memorialization, while two of our gardens offer traditional upright monuments (headstones).

A tribute to our nation's military

The Garden of Valor is a special place where veterans and their families can all be together. We offer a free space to honorably discharged veterans, and first responders. You can read more details about the Garden of Valor here.

Why do I need an outer burial container?

An outer burial container is required for burial at any reputable memorial park. When a casket is buried, hundreds of pounds of dirt are placed on top of it. Without an outer burial container, the weight of the dirt would crush the casket and the cemetery would be left with unsightly sink holes. The use of outer burial containers protect the overall appearance of the cemetery, and are a benefit to everyone.

Lawn Crypts

The only outer burial containers that we offer are called Lawn Crypts. This picture shows a double depth lawn crypt where two caskets can be stacked in one space. We don’t offer this stacked arrangement because our soil is too rocky to dig that deep, so just imagine that the lawn crypt is half as high and made for one casket. When we construct a lawn crypt, we first place a thick layer of gravel and then install the steel reinforced, concrete lawn crypt on top of it. More gravel is then placed on the sides forming something similar to a french drain. As rain water penetrates the ground it is able to trickle through the gravel rather than pooling around the lawn crypt. There is also a strategically placed drainage hole in the bottom of the lawn crypt. This drainage hole allows moisture that may enter the crypt to have an escape route so that it can trickle away through the gravel below.

Bronze Memorials - A Timeless Tribute

Our memorial park is mostly comprised of flat bronze memorials. The bronze plates are all cast using a custom mold made of sand. The molten bronze is poured into the mold. After the bronze has cooled and the mold is chipped away, it is finished with the color of your choice and a protective clear-coating. The bronze is bolted to a solid granite base and is installed in the appropriate location.

The Process of Cremation

People often ask us about the cremation process and what is involved. The first step is that the funeral home of your choice will take you into their care. After your family has given the proper permission, the funeral home will transport you to the crematory where the actual process takes place. Once the cremation is complete, you are returned to your family typically in a plastic bag, inside a plastic box, inside a cardboard box. Sadly, this is not the end because your family has to ponder the question... Now What? Your loved ones are faced with several different options...

Turn your living room into a cemetery

Option one is to turn your living room into a cemetery. You can place an urn on the coffee table or on the mantle and try to get on with life, but that’s not an easy thing to do because turning your living room into a cemetery has unintended consequences.

-There is a lack of closure and the emotional distress that comes from looking at his/her ashes over and over every day. How can somebody expect to heal that way?

-There is no special place to go and visit to pay your respects on birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays.

-You are also continually surrounded by death, which is discomforting and slightly creepy for most people.

Some people do choose this option, and those that do are left to ask themselves, “What happens in the future”?

It doesn't really make sense for the long term

Think about it. You may be okay with having your family’s ashes on the mantel, but what will future generations who may not have even known you decide to do with them? You will likely end up in a closet, a garage sale, or who knows?

"I just want to be scattered"

Option two is to scatter the ashes somewhere. Even though it is against the law in most places, people still do it as you can see in this picture.

It sounds so simple, but it isn't.

Scattering poses problems of its own because once it is done it can not be undone.

• There is no particular permanent resting place

• There is often a lack of closure for loved ones and a feeling that they have abandoned someone important to them

• There is no place to come to visit and pay your respects

• Most importantly, there is no physical memorial to commemorate your life.

That brings us to option three...

Every life is worth remembering.

Option three is to memorialize. Every life is worth remembering and the choice to cremate does not remove the need to memorialize a life lived and a life loved. This photo shows a cremation bench, which is just one of the many beautiful options that we offer for families who have chosen cremation

Which option is more dignified?

We believe that memorialization is always the best and most dignified option. Why would anyone want to put their family through the difficulties we have just seen?

A host of options are available here.

In memorializing a loved one who has been cremated, you have several options. The ashes can be buried in a traditional ground burial space using a bronze memorial. Another option is to place your urn in a private columbaria, which is essentially a small granite house where your urn can be placed with an inscription of your choice. It can be placed in our cremation garden, The Garden of Reflection or in the location of your choice at Oak Ridge Memorial Park.

The only solution to a problem we all have.

There is really only one solution to a problem that you have. Preplanning is the only way to spare your family and solve the problem once and for all. It's the kind and loving option. It's also a responsibility that we all have to prevent our loved ones from having to handle alone, what should have been done years before it is needed