State-Journal.com - Crematorium helps keep loved ones close

State Journal/Kelly Mackey A keepsake urn and memorial jewelry sold at Harrod Brothers Funeral Home.

With requests for cremations increasing, Harrod Brothers Funeral Home decided it was a good time to invest in its own crematorium rather than relying on companies in Lexington or Louisville.

“People entrust their loved ones to us and expect us to take care of them,” says Will Harrod, the funeral home’s vice president. “It is important to me that a family’s loved one never leaves one of our facilities.”

So, Harrod Brothers opened Frankfort’s first crematorium – Sacred Cremation – in June 2008. They have performed more than 72 cremations for area funeral homes to date.

Sacred’s president Mike Harrod said the increase in requests prompted the $200,000 investment in the Regan Street facility.

Requests have increased each year, the Harrods said. And they expect more people to opt for cremation in the future.

“It appears to be a trend,” Will Harrod said. “The younger generation is beginning to move away from traditional burial.”

Five employees, including Will Harrod, are certified to operate the crematorium. The process, which takes place under 1650-degree heat, takes about two hours, and all that remains are dry bone fragments.

By law, all cremations are performed individually, Will Harrod said.

Cremated remains are returned to the family in a standard container or in an urn that the family has already purchased. An official certificate of cremation accompanies the remains.

Families may choose to scatter or bury the remains. Some keep part of the remains in specially designed jewelry, which Harrod Brothers sells at its Washington Street location.

“Most people will choose the remains to be placed in an urn – an urn in which they can take their loved one home,” Will Harrod said.

Second to that is scattering.

On average, funeral homes charge $1,000-$2,000 for direct cremation.

However, most families choose traditional services and embalming before cremation, which increases the cost. National figures put average funeral costs in the thousands.

Sacred Cremation is licensed through the Kentucky Office of the Attorney General, which requires annual reports from each of Kentucky’s 22 crematoriums.

For 2008, Kentucky reported 6,349 cremations.

Comparatively, the state has one of the lowest cremation rates in the nation. The three states with the lowest are Mississippi (10 percent), Texas (12 percent) and Kentucky (13 percent), according to the Cremation Association of North America.

Nationally, cremation was the method of disposition for 34 percent of deaths in 2007, compared to 23 percent in 1997.

The three states with the highest rate of cremation are Nevada and Washington (both 69 percent) and Oregon (66 percent).

Kentucky’s cremation rate is low, because when it comes to death and memorializing, it is one of the most traditional states, says Sidney Fogle, executive director of the Funeral Directors Association of Kentucky.

“For the most part, you don’t see a whole lot more talk about cremation,” Fogle said. “We’re still so traditional. However, we do see more providers of urns and cremation products at conventions.”

The Harrods say even if most people don’t choose cremation, they’re happy to give grieving families another option.

“We feel there have been some horrifying stories in other states about misuse,” Will Harrod said. “We don’t want the families of Frankfort to worry about the care of their loved ones. We will continue to serve our community as it grows and as the needs of our families change.”