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Even in death, high cost an issue

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By Jessica Heffner, Staff Writer Updated 11:08 AM Sunday, November 1, 2009

Nothing is certain but death and taxes, and both will cost you.

At Millville Cemetery in Hanover Twp., sexton John Goldsberry is laying the three-foot foundation for a headstone he recently received for a grave plot. It’s been almost a year since the deceased was buried, but it took that long for the family to save up with the money for a marker.

“It can be expensive,” Goldsberry said as he smoothed the cement box that will prevent the monument from sinking into the mud once it is placed on top. “Right now there are people who just can’t afford it.”

The cost can be staggering: $2,500 for a headstone and $700 for a flat marker. That’s on top of the $7,323 for the average funeral, which includes fees for items such as the transfer of the remains, use of facilities for services, hearse and casket, according to the National Funeral Directors Association.

For some, it’s too much of a squeeze on finances already stretched to the limit by current economic pressures. That’s why experts say nationally, the number of cremations is on the rise — up to 34.89 percent says the NFDA — as the price for one is about half at $3,000, and the use of a cemetery plot is several hundreds of dollars cheaper since not as much ground has to be opened.

Goldsberry said people have been known to come to the cemetery carrying a loved one’s cremated remains in a cardboard box, being left with no money for another container for burial. “I’ll seal it with concrete for them,” he said. “Sometimes, even here, it’s all about cost.”

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