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 A Place for You

The Church ministers to us in special ways at all the significant turning points in our lives—birth, baptism, marriage, times of crisis, and sickness. It is also a sacred responsibility of the church to minister to its people at the last significant point in the cycle of life here on earth. It is fitting that those who have been part of the community of faith at Franklin First United Methodist Church have the opportunity to be buried at the church as well.

For this reason, the Memorial Garden at Franklin First United Methodist Church is designed as a place to celebrate life. It is a living memorial to members of the Church who have gone on before and their families. Located along the cedar-lined path south of Wesley Hall, the Memorial Garden provides a place for inurnment of cremated remains of Church members, clergy, staff, and their immediate families, as well as a place for meditation, prayer, reflection, and remembrance.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Congregational Care Ministry and the Funeral Guild of the church provides a loving and caring relationship with families during trying times. The mystery of end-of-life time is better experienced when the church family is there to give support. The church of caring members is a source of comfort to families when it provides essential services. Some of these services include a completely planned memorial service and a burial plot with a close connection to those who once passed through the church doors—all provided at a reasonable cost.

The Memorial Garden is located just east of the Children’s Memory Garden on the south side of the parking lot, beside the cedar-lined lane.

Use of the Memorial Garden shall be limited to the deposit of the cremated remains and/or approved momentoes of a person who was a member of the Church, the immediate family of a Church member, clergy/staff who served at the Church, the immediate family of such clergy/staff, or a person approved by the Senior Pastor of the Church. Persons who may be inurned shall be designated in connection with the submission of an application, a signed right-of-use agreement, and applicable fees.

“Immediate family” shall include the following relations: a spouse (at the time the right of use is purchased or at the time of the death), mother, father, child, daughter-in-law, son-in-law or grandchild. The church may add to this list on an individual basis.

Yes, you can reserve your choice from the available in-ground spaces or columbarium niches.

You can choose from the available spaces/niches; however, each space or niche only holds one person’s remains.

The Memorial Garden will include a circular garden for in-ground burial of biodegradable urns and a columbarium containing wall niches for urn placement. The circular in-ground garden will contain 332 spaces for urns. The columbarium will accommodate up to six banks of niches. Each bank will contain 54 niches for urns (space for 1 urn in each niche). A map will be maintained with details and history of each space.

In the circular garden, individual bronze name plates will be attached, at the time of inurnment, to a memorial plaque on the accent wall at the Memorial Garden.

In the columbarium wall, the granite faceplate of the niche will be engraved with the name of the person inurned in the niche.

At this date, Summer 2019, the cost for the right to use an in-ground space is $1000 per space, and the cost for the right to use a columbarium niche is $2000. Check with a member of the Memorial Garden Committee for details regarding the reduced price. (Additional scholarship assistance may also be available—contact a member of the pastoral staff.)

The fees outlined in item 8 are inclusive of inurnment costs, including:

  • the right to use the designated in-ground space(s) and/or columbarium niche(s)
  • name plate added to bronze wall plaque for in-ground spaces; engraving of niche granite faceplate for columbarium niches
  • urn for use in columbarium or biodegradable urn for in-ground burial
  • initial opening and closing of the specified space(s) for inurnment of the remains
  • maintenance of the Memorial Garden.

  • Cremation services are not included.
  • Funeral service costs (e.g., musician, audio technician, flowers) are not included.

No, fees for the right to use a burial space are not tax deductible.

You can now reserve spaces in the Memorial Garden

You can reserve the right to use designated spaces and/or niches by completing an application and associated documents, and submitting these documents along with the required fee to the church. Contact the church office or a member of the Memorial Garden Committee for further information.

Regular maintenance of the Memorial Garden will be taken care of by the church. A Memorial Garden fund will be established to accept contributions to be used for emergency issues and/or maintenance to self-fund the Memorial Garden.

You may reserve the right to use the specific space(s) that you select. Reservations will be taken on a first come, first served basis.

The church is not obligated to return any fees for unused spaces.

Begin the Process

The Memorial Garden at Franklin First United Methodist Church (hereinafter called the Church) is designed as a place to celebrate life. It is a living memorial to deceased members of the Church and their families. Located along the cedar-lined path south of Wesley Hall, the Memorial Garden provides a place for inurnment of cremated remains of Church members, clergy, staff and their immediate families, as well as a place for meditation, prayer, reflection, and remembrance. The Memorial Garden is composed of a circle garden for in-ground burial of inurned remains and a columbarium wall that contains niches for the placement of cremation urns.

Regulations
Application & Instructions
Make a Donation to the Memorial Garden Fund Here