Losing a loved one is a struggle most everyone will face at some point in their lives, and having options for choosing an appropriate final resting place can be a comfort during an otherwise overwhelming time.
A new addition at Lakeview Memorial Park is aiming to offer one of those options.
The nonprofit, nonsectarian cemetery broke ground Nov. 10 on the Mausoleum of the Saints, a project five years in the making that will extend from the back of the existing Mausoleum of the Apostles.
“We’re hoping to have it completed in a year, 15 months. It’s dependent on the weather,” Jack Young, Lakeview sales manager, said. “We’re extremely happy to see it. We’re serving the community and it gives people another option for burial.”
As a nonprofit, Lakeview is run by a board of trustees, and several were on hand last week for the groundbreaking. The memorial park was founded in 1930, and over the past 90 years has grown to encompass 80 acres and two existing mausoleums and provide a final resting place to some 30,000 individuals.
Despite the growth, the newest mausoleum addition was much needed, according to Young.
“It’s something that we’ve needed for a fair amount of time,” he explained. “We do have some acreage left, but this mausoleum will allow us to expand for the next 50 years. We can continue to expand with the mausoleums, whereas you’re restricted with the grounds.”
Young added that people are often surprised to find a mausoleum as a final resting place can be a comparable cost to in-ground burial.
“It’s typically about the same cost. Most people are shocked to find that out,” he said. “Sometimes it can even be less expensive.”
With the Mausoleum of the Saints underway, Young said Lakeview will not need to plan another mausoleum for at least a decade.
“You want to give people an option as to how they choose to bury people,” he noted. “Cremation has become very popular, and in this mausoleum, there’s lovely glass-front niches that are used for cremations. Those will be available in the new building.
“It just gives people more options and more choices for the burial.”
To learn more, visit www.lakeviewmemorialpark.com.
