Second cremation option now available to district

FORT FRANCES—District residents now will have another option when it comes to preparations of a lost loved one with Rainy River Cremation Services being available at Green Larsen Mortuary over in International Falls, Mn.
Previously, if cremation was selected as the final means of disposition, the body would be sent to Thunder Bay as it is the closest crematorium.
But now with the proper paperwork in place, deceased bodies are permitted to cross the border for the purpose of cremation.
“It saves on mileage and cuts down on travel time,” noted Jason Lilley, funeral director of Northridge Funeral Home on Highway 11/71 just west of Emo.
“It is also beneficial when it comes to holidays and winter conditions.
“And there’s just the convenience of having it done locally,” Lilley added. “I have found that families appreciate keeping it local on both sides.”
“We both came to realize the need for a crematorium in the Borderland and it made sense to offer this service to the Rainy River District,” noted Leif Larsen, a funeral director at Green Larsen Mortuary.
They added their crematorium in January, 2005.
Lilley and Larsen both indicated there is standard paperwork that must be completed for cremation to take place across the border, such as health documents and out-of-province certificates.
“I’m not licensed in Canada, just like [Lilley] isn’t licensed [in the U.S.], so residents must go through a funeral home on the Canadian side,” Larsen noted, adding individuals might try to cut costs by requesting cremation themselves.
“It all has to be done through a funeral home,” he stressed.
“They provide the cremation service and we meet them halfway,” explained Lilley.
Currently in Ontario, a funeral home and crematorium cannot exist simultaneously. But once the Board of Funeral Services amalgamates the Funeral Director and Establishment Act and the Cemetery Act, Lilley might consider adding a crematorium to Northridge Funeral Home.
The amalgamation is scheduled to take place next year.
“It’s an option, but this is what we’ll be doing,” Lilley remarked. “It’s all based on numbers—we didn’t have the numbers to support a crematorium in the district in the past.”
And Lilley stressed the choice to have cremation done in Thunder Bay still will be available.
“We are required to provide that option,” he remarked, noting about 40 percent of deceased bodies locally are cremated, as opposed to earth burials, as a final means of interment.
“We have seen an increase in cremation in the past few years,” Larsen said.
But he also stressed it is just a final means of disposition. Families still are able to have a funeral service with the body present and then instead of going to the cemetery, it would go to the crematorium.
“I think this will be very beneficial for both communities,” Lilley added. “We just want people to be aware of what’s available.”
(Fort Frances Times)