Hawaii’s cremation rate highest in nation
Almost 70% of Hawaiians are cremated at death, making Hawaii’s cremation rate the highest in the nation, according to The Cremation Association of North America. One reason so many islanders choose cremation is to serve the greater good – Hawaii’s land shortage is a perennial concern, and cremation is seen as a responsible way to preserve open lands for future generations.

Those who choose to donate their bodies prior to cremation not only leave a gift of life through the advancement of medical research, but also have the relief of knowing that their loved ones will not be saddled with the expense of a traditional funeral, which can run as high as $10,000 or more.

Gifts for Life less restrictive than other donor programs
While the desire to leave a meaningful legacy runs high, good intentions often aren’t enough. Medical schools that accept whole body donations are often governed by strict exclusionary regulations. Many schools, for instance, will not accept donations from people who have undergone amputations or donated health organs to save another’s life. Some programs also charge a hefty fee to the family or estate of the deceased for transportation of the body to the medical school.

Gifts for Life, in contrast, accepts virtually all donations except in cases of communicable diseases like AIDS, Hepatitis B or Hepatitis C; extensive trauma at death; or advanced decomposition, which would make the body unsuitable for anatomical study. There is no upper age limit for whole body donation, nor does amputation automatically preclude acceptance.

“Being able to receive donations for learning is imperative to ground-breaking medical research,” says Dr. Greg Gerber of Gifts for Life, noting that there is no computer model or other acceptable substitute for a human cadaver in anatomical research.

How it works
State of Hawaii laws (HRS 327) permit an individual 18 years or older to donate his or her body to an appropriate organization, such as Gifts For Life. If an individual dies without signing a donation form, the next-of-kin or personal agent may authorize the donation of the remains, but if the donor is still living, he or she must personally complete the donation process. Gifts for Life will mail donation forms upon request, or the forms may be downloaded from the organization’s website (http://www.giftsforlifehawaii.com). The forms must be filled out and returned to GFL (the services of a lawyer or notary are not required to complete the process). Upon examination of the documents, GFL staff will issue a letter of acceptance and a donor identification card.

The only cost to the family or estate “may be the cost of transporting the deceased to a facility with refrigerated holding facilities (mortuary) if the person dies at home or in a facility that does not have refrigerated holding facilities,” according to GFL’s website.

Following study of the body, typically within 3 months after the donation, Gifts for Life will cremate the remains and either return them to the family or perform a memorial ceremony on the peaceful waters surrounding the islands.

The number of people opting for cremation over traditional burial may be on the rise across the United States, but nowhere is the trend more evident than in Florida.

Since 1958, the cremation rate in North America has risen from approximately 5 percent to nearly 35 percent. According to projections by the Cremation Association of North America (CANA), cremations will lead across the country by 2025. But in Lee County, Florida alone, cremations accounted for 64 percent of final arrangements made in 2008, almost twice the number of burials and entombments combined.

Economy, ecology, and geography fuel cremation trend
In addition to the reasons commonly cited for choosing cremation – such as lower costs, environmental concerns, and religious customs, for example – Florida’s geography may also contribute to the Sunshine State’s increasing cremation rate. Funeral directors say that people who relocate to sunny coastal areas often leave behind their social networks; without friends and family nearby, traditional burial in a traditional cemetery doesn’t have the significance it might have in one’s hometown.

Florida also offers some unique alternatives for the final disposition of cremains, rather than placing a stationary cremation urn in a columbarium niche or on a library shelf. For the adventurous, Celestis, Inc., a Houston-based company, will handle cremation arrangements and send the cremated remains into space via private-industry satellites launched from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral. Water lovers and those who are looking for an environmentally friendly alternative to burial, on the other hand, can have their ashes buried in artificial coral reefs in the ocean floor.

Florida is also the original home of the Neptune Society, an organization that assists people in planning their cremations in advance. Founded in Fort Lauderdale in 1973, the Neptune Society now has offices in 45 locations throughout the country.

Baby boomers, many of whom are now retiring to Florida, also contribute to the growing support for cremation in Florida and elsewhere. According to Silvia Marchini, a sales manager for the Neptune Society in Fort Myers, boomers are “not as traditional” as their parents were.

Neptune Society, Inc. – an organization that provides simple cremation services for people who want cremation but don’t want to deal with a funeral home – is the company, and Las Vegas couldn’t be a more appropriate place for its meeting. Why? Because Las Vegas is the cremation capital of the nation.

Las Vegas cremations 2 to 1 above national average
According to the Cremation Association of North America, 70 percent of all final dispositions in Las Vegas in 2007 were cremations. That’s twice the national cremation rate of 35 percent, according to Shawn Myers of the National Funeral Directors Association.

Las Vegas funeral directors and national analysts alike attribute the city’s ranking to its large transient population. (Few families in Vegas are able to claim several generations buried in a given cemetery.) And while Las Vegas is the clear cremation leader, cremations in all western states except Utah outpace the national average. (Utah’s large Mormon population eschews cremations for religious reasons.)

National cremation rate also shows growth
The national cremation rate, on the other hand, has risen gradually over the past 10 years. Dion Joannou, the CEO of Neptune, believes the change can be linked to deaths among Baby Boomers, who are less likely than their parents to adhere to traditional customs. Others point out a simple matter of economics – many people choose cremation because it less expensive, while others are selling burial plots for cash and opting for cremation instead of burial.

Recession influences cremation urn choices
Jim Lee, funeral director at Hites Funeral Home & Crematory in Henderson, Nevada, says the effects of the economic recession can also be seen in the cremation urns people choose. Hites offers a range of cremation urns, from inexpensive plastic urns to expensive, hand-cut crystal urns, but according to Lee, “People maybe see urns like cars: You can get from point A to point B in a Cadillac but also in a Kia.”

Source: Las Vegas Sun