Belleville, IL Death Cafe
A write up of Belleville, IL Death Cafe
By maggieboone
Belleville Death Café Summary 4222017
The summary for this meeting contains a lot of information (either by attachment or websites listed). Our discussions were varied and all pertained to internment or inurnment as well as ways to memorialize our dead loved ones. The information is by no means, legal advice and should only be used for educational purposes. That is fitting considering the purpose behind the Death Café is to educate individuals about death to dispel avoiding or fearing aspects of death. When that happens, one can then proceed with living. Death is as natural and inevitable as birth.
Here are the educational materials promised. I am working on getting a funeral director to attend our next meeting to answer some of the questions everyone wants to know, but many are afraid to ask.
There is information containing training and certification of a Death Midwife (aka Home Funeral Guide, Death Doula) attached. There is a training being held in Collinsville mid October of this year. The cost is $700 for pre-registrants and $750 for those who register after the date.
Death Midwife training classes:
http://deathmidwife.org/missouri-death-midwife-class
There was a mention of a type of flameless (for those who fear the flame) cremation.
Alkaline Hydrolysis in Illinois
Illinois is one of the very few states with alkaline hydrolysis facilities that are available to the public. Sometimes referred to as “flameless cremation” or "green cremation," alkaline hydrolysis uses water, an alkali solution, pressure, and heat to speed up the body’s decomposition, resulting in a small amount of liquid separated from bone fragments that resemble cremated remains. In Illinois, the same rules that apply to flame cremation apply to alkaline hydrolysis.
There was also mention of needing information about burying a loved one in a place other than a cemetery. Apparently there are no laws in Illinois governing that, but there may be zoning ordinances set by local governments. But, there are no funeral police – just saying!
Can You Bury a Body at Home?
There are no laws in Illinois that prohibit home burial. Before burying a body on private land or establishing a family cemetery, be sure to check local zoning rules.
We also discussed jewelry and other memorial objects for a deceased, cremated loved ones (including our fur babies). Unfortunately, I gave the wrong name of the company that sells these objects online a lot cheaper than funeral homes. The benefit of buying from a funeral home is that the cremains will be put in by the funeral home. If you buy from perfect memorials, you are sent a “kit” and instructions on how to do it yourself.
Jewelry and other ways to carry cremains for humans and pets:
http://www.perfectmemorials.com/clearance-jewelry-c-1113.html
The next meeting of Belleville Death Café will be on Saturday, May 20 from 6pm – 8pm at Miscellanea House Café. I’ll post a reminder (hopefully sooner than I did this month J).