You may be wondering what are all the steps one must take to do a burial, albeit for yourself, your family or a loved one. When a loved one passes, we work with the family and the funeral home in making burial arrangements. If no pre-arrangements have been made, below is the information that may be helpful to consider:
- Selecting the Cemetery and Burial Lot- We currently are selling graves in two of our four cemeteries, Trow Cemetery on Charlemont Road and Center Cemetery on Upper Street (below the Mary Lyon Church). Your decision may include arranging a visit to walk through the cemeteries and view available gravesites. We are available to answer questions and/or help you choose a grave(s). Visit our Contact us page and send a message or give a call. We will help you choose a location. If/when you make a purchase and render payment, our Treasurer will send you a deed for the graves(s), and you become a landowner and shareholder in our Association. Payment can be made by check, cash, or PayPal (click the link). If you are interested in touring the cemeteries to chose graves, we can make an appointment to do, usually between April 16 and November 14.
- Timing of the Burial- Our cemeteries are closed from November 15 to April 15 due to snow, ice, and frozen ground. No burials take place during this time, except with a special board exception.
- Choosing the Type of Burial- Green burial, Casket burial or Cremation. Please note that we specialize in green burials because a green burial is a low-cost alternative that is good for the environment. See Types of Burials section.
- Coordinating with a Funeral Home– You will want to work with a funeral home on many aspects, such as the burial, service and timing. *We work closely with Smith & Kelleher Funeral Home and Johnson Funeral Home most often, as well as the funeral home a family chooses. Click for more information on pre-arrangements and a form, which may be helpful to you if you decide to pursue end-of-life planning. Please visit our Resources page for additional information about funeral homes, churches /halls and monument companies.
- Making Arrangements for Site Preparation– There are arrangements and costs for the site preparation. We can assist with making arrangements, and this must be done with BUCA permission.
- Consider the Monument– The arrangements for a monument (or gravestone, tombstone or marker) takes a lot of time and planning. Often this is intalled months after the burial. When the monument is installed, there are arrangements such site preparation and ordering. *We work closely with Negus & Taylor as well as any monument company you might choose (see Monument list on the Resources page). The type of monument can vary greatly in price, so please contact companies and see Expenses.
- Planning the service- There are limitless possibilities for burials, and many include a service. Some services are at the gravesite on the day of burial, whereas others are done before or after the burial.
This page is in development. Please contact us for immediate information and resources.
Proceed to TYPES OF BURIAL page
return to BURIAL INFORMATION page
or return to BUCA home page