Many people choose cemeteries as their final resting place. Making cemetery arrangements for a loved one can be stressful.  Some people choose to make their own cemetery arrangements to help reduce the stress on family and loves ones.  If you are planning on purchasing a burial plot, here are some terms that may be useful for you to understand.

• A "cemetery operator" sells the cemetery lot and opens and closes it to allow for interment (burial)   The cemetery operator may require you to purchase a cement liner to protect the casket if necessary and typically arranges for the installation of the marker.
• A "memorial dealer" sells memorial markers, such as headstones, tombstones, monuments and plaques.
• A "columbarium" is an above-ground structure, usually in a cemetery, where boxes or urns containing cremated remains are placed in many small compartments or niches.
• A "mausoleum" is an above-ground structure in a cemetery where caskets containing human remains are placed in specially constructed compartments called "crypts."

If you are planning to install a marker or memorial plaque, make sure it meets the standards of the cemetery you have selected before purchasing it. These standards are found within the bylaws of the cemetery and most memorial dealers can tell you what is acceptable in any of the cemeteries in their service area.

Those who choose cremation rather than interment have the cremated remains buried in a small cemetery lot, placed in a columbarium, have them scattered in an authorized place or given to the next of kin.  If you wish to have remains scattered on private land, you must request the land owner’s permission before doing so.