Category: PR Media

Executive director of ACTS XXIX delivers a keynote during a national town hall event for Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services

DETROIT – In a culture where people are deeply afraid of death and dying, Christ wants to use those tasked with burying the dead to be a salve to those who are suffering and to remind them of Christ’s paradoxical message — that by dying on the cross, he has defeated death for all.

That was the message delivered to hundreds of funeral and cemetery workers May 12 during Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services’ national town hall event hosted at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament.

Local CFCS workers attended the afternoon event in person, while hundreds of virtual attendees from across the United States watched a livestream provided by the Archdiocese of Detroit.

The retreat began with Mass celebrated by Fr. John Riccardo, executive director of ACTS XXIX, and welcoming remarks from Bob Hojnacki, director of cemeteries in the Archdiocese of Detroit, along with a brief statement from CFCS founder and CEO Robert Seelig.

Seelig, who recently celebrated his 20th anniversary with CFCS, reminded his colleagues that theirs is a ministry of faith to which Christ has called them.

“Christ has shown his hand on my shoulder, and he’s been sending me to do this work for 20 years,” Seelig said. “And so, I’d like you to imagine that when you’re meeting with a family, you’re serving one another (and) that Christ has his hand on your shoulder.”

Fr. Riccardo opened his keynote address by empathizing with his listeners. Priests, like those who work in cemeteries and funeral services, are around death all the time, and it takes an emotional toll, Fr. Riccardo said.

“It’s emotionally taxing to give and to give and to give and to give to people when they’re in their weakest spots, at their most vulnerable spots and when they’re hurting the most,” Fr. Riccardo said. “So I pray that if nothing else, what we’re going to do right now is is something that the Lord will just refresh you with.”

Even with faith, this task can take its toll, Fr. Riccardo added.

“It can still be grating and challenging when infants die, when teenagers throw themselves in front of semi-trucks on the freeway, when spouses don’t go together,” he said. “So it’s good just to be reminded of the fact that God is in control when He has us, and we don’t have to be afraid.”

God hates death, Fr. Riccardo said, but He has done something about it by choosing to go to the cross, freely giving His life.

“(Christ being on the cross) is going to look like something disastrous is happening, but it only looks that way. It’s going to look like life is chaotic, it’s out of control, that there is no point,” Fr. Riccardo said. “It only looks that way. Life is not chaotic. It has a point. There is an author of the drama that is called history, which is ‘His story,’ and He knows what he’s doing.”

From mankind’s viewpoint, it might not always make sense, Fr. Riccardo said. Some might wonder why Jesus chose to be up on the cross, but by doing so, Christ has accomplished three things, Fr. Riccardo explained.

The first thing Christ accomplishes on the cross is show how much he loves us, Fr. Riccardo said.

“The message of the Gospel is really this simple: you matter to God. You’re worth fighting for. In fact, you’re worth dying for,” Fr. Riccardo said. “God just wants you to hear Him address you by name and tell you that He loves you.”

Secondly, Jesus is paying the price for our sins, Fr. Riccardo said. On the cross, Christ is atoning for the sins of everyone who has ever lived.

“We live right now in a culture that’s fond of canceling people,” Fr. Riccardo explained. “God has his own version of cancel culture: He canceled sin, not people. He knows your sin; He calls you by name.”

Our culture defines us by our sin, but Christ makes all things new; he takes our sin and allows us to become the person we wish to be, Fr. Riccardo said.

Finally, Christ on the cross is going to war, Fr. Riccardo said. Jesus is engaging hell, Satan and death in a battle. He allows himself to die so that he can enter death and destroy it from within. Even though we will still die, death cannot hold us because Christ has done something about it.

​​”Over and over again in the Easter season, we say things like, ‘Death has no more dominion over him. He died once; he’s alive now forever.’ Who else do you know you can say that about? So much is this true that the Christian actually taunts death. That’s what St. Paul does in his first letter to the Corinthians. ‘Where’s your sting? Where’s your victory?’

“Until I make sense out of my death, I’ll never be able to make sense out of my life,” Fr. Riccardo said. “I can live my life in such a way that I know death is not the end. Why? Because God’s done something about it.”

This knowledge changes how Christians live and frees them from the fear of death, and allows them to grieve in hope, Fr. Riccardo said.

“Everybody grieves. It’s just a question of how am I going to grieve? With hope or without hope?” he said.

Knowing Christ has conquered death allows those working in Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services to walk with those who are grieving, Fr. Riccardo said, giving them a scriptural lens to make sense of suffering and death by letting Christ shine through them.

“For whatever reason, God has placed you, at least at this point in your life, in people’s most painful moments, and he wants to use you as something like a salve, like an ointment that he can pour into their wounds to somehow give them strength and peace and hope in the midst of all their pain,” Fr. Riccardo said.

“This is a brutally hard mission,” he added. “It’s not for the faint of heart, but it is also a beautiful mission. It’s a spectacular mission. And it’s one in which I think if nothing else, the Lord through me right now simply wants to say to each and every one of you very personally, thank you for saying yes to it.”

Fourteen months into Pandemic, Catholic Cemetery Workers Reflect on Difficult Year, Pledge to Walk with Families Suffering Unexpected Loss

DETROIT — During the worst months of the pandemic, Detroit’s Catholic funeral and cemetery workers were among the most “essential” of essential workers.

It’s not how they wanted it, but it’s the reality everyone was dealt.

Long hours, difficult conversations — made more difficult by virus-mandated restrictions — and daily changing job roles made an already unfamiliar situation even more challenging for staff at Detroit-based Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services, whose responsibilities include maintaining a pastoral presence for those grieving the untimely death of a loved one.

Detroit Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron will celebrate a Mass on Thursday at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament in recognition of the dedication cemetery and funeral staffers have shown in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Mass is just one way to show appreciation for those called to help families dealing with loss during a once-in-a-century pandemic.

“Early on in the pandemic, there were so many unknowns of how we were going to do things,” Bob Hojnacki, director of cemeteries for Detroit’s Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services (CFCS), told Detroit Catholic. “Things were changing on a weekly, daily to an almost hourly basis. We had to change a lot of our protocols and safety procedures for our staff, families and how we processed those changes.”

While parishes and schools ceased in-person operations, cemeteries had no such luxury.

Cemetery workers donned special equipment to keep them safe while burying COVID-related deaths. Other funeral staffers worked with families remotely, planning burial services at the cemetery when parishes were closed, establishing live streams so more than 10 people could witness funerals, and at times, being the sole witness of the departed’s burial.

“They were very much front-line workers, but not celebrated in the same way as health care workers,” said Robert Seelig, CEO for Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services, which operates in 15 dioceses across the country.

Seelig, who is based in the Diocese of San Jose, Calif., flew in to Detroit for today’s Mass, one of a series of Masses across the country celebrated for funeral and cemetery workers whose ministry is often conducted behind the scenes.

“On the one-year anniversary of the first COVID burial in California in the Diocese of San Jose, we did a Mass, but we couldn’t have one Mass that would say, ‘the pandemic is over,’” Seelig told Detroit Catholic. “We realized we needed to so a series of healing Masses for the workers, recognizing what they have gone through, but realizing that we’re all going through recovery at a certain level.”

The changing nature of government restrictions and knowledge about the spread and transmission of the virus was something cemetery staffers around the country had to adjust to, as Catholics were looking to cemeteries as one of the few places public worship was being done during the height of the lockdowns.

“We were one of the few, if not the only, ministry of the Catholic Church where employees had to continue to go to work,” Seelig said. “We went into crisis-management mode with daily national meetings with all of our directors and staff. We calmed everyone down and looked at what we could do.”

Turns out, what they “could do” was a lot.

Across the country, Catholic funeral workers changed their daily routines on the fly, meeting with families remotely, having staffers drive in separate cars when showing potential plots and investing in livestream technology to cater to families unable to travel or attend funerals in person.

“Early on, we had the family environmental specialists and grounds crew wear special suits and spray down the caskets when they would come in, and we weren’t allowing families to be around for the burial,” Hojnacki said. “Since then, learning what we know about COVID, we no longer are in suits, but we’re still keeping distances and have special proper equipment to handle the body and caskets. Families can watch the committal from a safe distance — 50 feet — and do a service prior to burial.”

Hojnacki said CFCS Detroit had an estimated 2,700 burials last year, just a bit more than the 2,400 it averages, with 375 of those being COVID-related burials.

Some cemeteries experienced backlogs, both because of the increase in burials and also because of families opting to wait for crowd size and travel restrictions to ease before interring cremated remains in a grove or niche in a mausoleum, Hojnacki said.

Despite the spiritually and physically taxing work, funeral and cemetery workers offered a critical ministry to suffering families often dealing with unexpected loss.

“Our staff has really stepped up,” Hojnacki said. “Early on, there were a lot of unknowns and a lot of anxiety, and we turned our switch to focus more on families who were having what we call ‘at-need’ deaths.”

“At-need” deaths are sudden deaths in which no prior arrangements were made. Families work with CFCS staff on planning a funeral, which is a difficult thing for families not expecting to do so.

Patricia Kade, a family service adviser at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield, works with families in pre-need and at-need planning. Normally, she would meet in person with families, walking them through the cemetery grounds or the mausoleum, explaining the options for burial and interment.

Despite meeting with families via Zoom now, Kade knows it’s her job to provide comfort and familiarity as families navigate a difficult and stressful time.

“If presented properly, families understand all the new restrictions and what needs to be done, and they accept it,” Kade said. “We provide compassion to people, answering their questions, guiding them through this process. We explain how we can have a committal ceremony that is socially distanced with people wearing masks, or with people staying in the car. We try to be flexible.”

Even weeks after the funeral, CFCS staffers have been calling families to check in on them, offering a listening ear and compassionate voice.

“We have received so many thank-you notes and feedback from families,” Kade said. “We pray every day for our families, for our staff and the people who just buried a loved one. We ask if there is anything they need, and often they say, ‘Thank you for making this easier.’ I think that keeps us going.”

That sense of gratitude extends to the grounds crew, who are charged with making sure cemeteries look their best as places of gathering and prayer.

“Families are looking for closure, and I believe my team’s job is to help provide that closure and ensure there’s care and love for the one who is being buried,” said Nicholas Acosta, operations manager for CFCS – Detroit, who oversees the grounds crews for all of the ministry’s Detroit locations. “We try to make sure families have the best — which is hard to say — but the best and most respectful manner in laying their loved ones to rest.”

Seeling said Catholic cemeteries throughout the country have embraced their role in providing a critical corporal work of mercy, especially when other Catholic ministries were limited by government restrictions, as an evangelization opportunity.

“Our cemeteries are actually places where Catholics, non-Catholics and non-practicing Catholics are congregating,” Seelig said. “So we have this ministry opportunity, relating to Archbishop Vigneron’s Unleash the Gospel, of how do we invite people back to an experience within the Church? How do we reconnect them? We see the opportunity the Church has to minister to these families. You don’t have to go out and seek people in need; they come to our cemeteries every day.”

SOUTHFIELD — Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron celebrated an outdoor Mass on Saturday, June 5, at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield as he dedicated a new cremation garden and marble Stations of the Cross.

The new garden is meant to give families a serene place to walk in nature as they pray and memorialize their loved ones, said Deanne Cortese, outreach director for Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services in Detroit.

“This is what families are looking for,” Cortese said. “We looked at what a lot of cemeteries around the country are doing, and an outdoor Stations of the Cross where you can walk and reflect seemed like a good fit.”

The ceremony also included the blessing of a walking path and monument dedicated to the late Fr. Timothy Babcock, who served as chaplain for Catholic cemeteries in the Archdiocese of Detroit until his death in 2019.

To learn more about Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services, visit https://www.cfcsdetroit.org.

Photos by James Silvestri, Special to Detroit Catholic

To learn more about Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services, visit https://www.cfcsdetroit.org.

Over the past year, our nation has lost hundreds of thousands of souls to the pandemic that plunged our society into a crisis from which we are only now beginning to emerge. In a culture that traditionally relegates the topic of death to whispered, private conversation, we have been forced to confront head-on the fragility of our lives this side of the Kingdom of God.

Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services fill the void left by a society keeping death at arm’s length. This Church-owned nonprofit was established to walk with every Catholic through the experience of an end-of-life journey, fusing sound business and management principles with a concerted effort to unleash a renewed Catholic vitality, re-evangelizing Catholics about the hope and beauty found in the theology of Catholic end-of-life rites.

Death has been a source of both anxiety and fascination for humanity since the fall of our first parents in the Garden of Eden. Indeed, many find death to be a frightening prospect and spend their lives in search of distractions from its unrelenting finality. The Catholic response, however, has long been to emphasize death as a passage to eternal salvation. Catholic funeral rites, which are composed of the Vigil, the Funeral Liturgy, and the Committal, are designed to imitate and reflect the Christian hope that, in death, we find eternal life with our heavenly father.

“From beginning to end, a funeral evangelizes us, sharing the good news that God is near and that even in our sorrow, difficulties and distress, we can have joyful confidence in his providence,” Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron wrote in his 2018 pastoral note, An Act of Mercy and Faith. “On our end, through participating in the funeral liturgies, we proclaim to those who have little or no faith, or who do not practice it, the good news that God is mercy. We proclaim through our actions that we are certain that our loved ones are not memories, but that they are alive, they will arise and live for all eternity.”

Every detail of the rites is designed to remind those participating of their loved one’s eternal life. The coffin, for example, is clothed with the white pall, a reminder of our baptismal garment and the mark of eternal life. The sprinkling of holy water symbolizes our reverence for a body that will rise to meet its Savior on the last day. Far from a series of bleak gestures, the Catholic funeral rites are, to quote Pope Francis, “an act of great faith.”

They are also acts that fewer and fewer Catholics experience. With a culture ever more focused on clinging to youthful vitality, people today are less prepared to confront the reality of death, in particular the immediate need for a final resting place for the body. Further, the faithful increasingly view traditional end-of-life rites as exceedingly elaborate and overly costly. Shifting preferences and demographics, mounting costs, and an increase in secular competition have given rise to a dramatic shift toward cremation, with many opting to keep or scatter the cremated remains of their loved ones.

Whereas the 1950s saw a booming demand for cemetery plots, the cremation rate today in most parishes averages about 40 percent, with some dioceses seeing cremation rates as high as 75 percent. The 15 years between 2000 and 2015 saw a 30 percent drop in Catholic casketed services and a more than 200 percent rise in Catholic cremation services. And while the Church does not expressly prohibit cremation, its rise in popularity prompted the Vatican recently to reiterate its requirement that cremated remains be buried on sacred ground. Changing behaviors present new opportunities for the Church to reach people.

Amid the ongoing pandemic, it becomes immeasurably more important to accompany the faithful — devout or otherwise — through one of life’s most painful moments. Taking its cue from Pope Francis, CFCS works to evangelize the faithful using the beauty and meaning of Catholic end-of-life rites, which emphasize that the bodies of our dead are not keepsakes for the living, but rather remain temples for the Almighty in the next life. 

Those evangelization efforts are amplified by the application of financial acumen to run diocesan funeral and cemetery programs like a business primed for success. For instance, principles like the 80/20 rule help the typical cash poor but land rich diocese better leverage its assets. CFCS also employs a two-pronged approach of running diocesan cemetery programs like a start-up while using fine-tuned messaging and business savvy, which has taken funeral and cemetery operations from the red to the green in every single diocese where CFCS has been used, without reliance upon perpetual care funds that should be carefully guarded.

CFCS has established a 6 percent annual growth rate in the Oakland, Calif., diocese, for example, increasing available equity by $24 million and ensuring for the care of an aging cemetery system. This not only stabilized that diocese’s funeral and cemetery programs but led to a sizable surplus to subsidize other important ministries. End-of-life pro

Over the past year, our nation has lost hundreds of thousands of souls to the pandemic that plunged our society into a crisis from which we are only now beginning to emerge. In a culture that traditionally relegates the topic of death to whispered, private conversation, we have been forced to confront head-on the fragility of our lives this side of the Kingdom of God.

Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services fills the void left by a society keeping death at arm’s length. This Church-owned nonprofit was established to walk with every Catholic through the experience of an end-of-life journey, fusing sound business and management principles with a concerted effort to unleash a renewed Catholic vitality, re-evangelizing Catholics about the hope and beauty found in the theology of Catholic end-of-life rites.

Death has been a source of both anxiety and fascination for humanity since the fall of our first parents in the Garden of Eden. Indeed, many find death to be a frightening prospect and spend their lives in search of distractions from its unrelenting finality. The Catholic response, however, has long been to emphasize death as a passage to eternal salvation. Catholic funeral rites, which are composed of the Vigil, the Funeral Liturgy, and the Committal, are designed to imitate and reflect the Christian hope that, in death, we find eternal life with our heavenly father.

“From beginning to end, a funeral evangelizes us, sharing the good news that God is near and that even in our sorrow, difficulties and distress, we can have joyful confidence in his providence,” Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron wrote in his 2018 pastoral note, An Act of Mercy and Faith. “On our end, through participating in the funeral liturgies, we proclaim to those who have little or no faith, or who do not practice it, the good news that God is mercy. We proclaim through our actions that we are certain that our loved ones are not memories, but that they are alive, they will arise and live for all eternity.”

Every detail of the rites is designed to remind those participating of their loved one’s eternal life. The coffin, for example, is clothed with the white pall, a reminder of our baptismal garment and the mark of eternal life. The sprinkling of holy water symbolizes our reverence for a body that will rise to meet its Savior on the last day. Far from a series of bleak gestures, the Catholic funeral rites are, to quote Pope Francis, “an act of great faith.”

They are also acts that fewer and fewer Catholics experience. With a culture ever more focused on clinging to youthful vitality, people today are less prepared to confront the reality of death, in particular the immediate need for a final resting place for the body. Further, the faithful increasingly view traditional end-of-life rites as exceedingly elaborate and overly costly. Shifting preferences and demographics, mounting costs, and an increase in secular competition have given rise to a dramatic shift toward cremation, with many opting to keep or scatter the cremated remains of their loved ones.

Whereas the 1950s saw a booming demand for cemetery plots, the cremation rate today in most parishes averages about 40 percent, with some dioceses seeing cremation rates as high as 75 percent. The 15 years between 2000 and 2015 saw a 30 percent drop in Catholic casketed services and a more than 200 percent rise in Catholic cremation services. And while the Church does not expressly prohibit cremation, its rise in popularity prompted the Vatican recently to reiterate its requirement that cremated remains be buried on sacred ground. Changing behaviors present new opportunities for the Church to reach people.

Amid the ongoing pandemic, it becomes immeasurably more important to accompany the faithful — devout or otherwise — through one of life’s most painful moments. Taking its cue from Pope Francis, CFCS works to evangelize the faithful using the beauty and meaning of Catholic end-of-life rites, which emphasize that the bodies of our dead are not keepsakes for the living, but rather remain temples for the Almighty in the next life. 

Those evangelization efforts are amplified by the application of financial acumen to run diocesan funeral and cemetery programs like a business primed for success. For instance, principles like the 80/20 rule help the typical cash poor but land rich diocese better leverage its assets. CFCS also employs a two-pronged approach of running diocesan cemetery programs like a start-up while using fine-tuned messaging and business savvy, which has taken funeral and cemetery operations from the red to the green in every single diocese where CFCS has been used, without reliance upon perpetual care funds that should be carefully guarded.

CFCS has established a 6 percent annual growth rate in the Oakland, Calif., diocese, for example, increasing available equity by $24 million and ensuring for the care of an aging cemetery system. This not only stabilized that diocese’s funeral and cemetery programs but led to a sizable surplus to subsidize other important ministries. End-of-life programs are now becoming financial lifelines for ministries and programs supporting school children and families.

Perhaps more significantly, CFCS found a model that might serve the Church’s many noble nonprofit initiatives seeking to share and educate on foundational Catholic theology. In the Detroit archdiocese, CFCS programs are integrated in support of the region’s overarching mission to “Unleash the Gospel.” Departments and resources that were once siloed are now integrated and mutually supportive. 

Pope Francis once warned that “if the Church is not on the move, she decays, she becomes something else.” CFCS took the principle of “innovate or die” to the changing business of death, giving it a new life of its own and helping to shed the light of Christ on the specter of death so that the bereaved and all the faithful may see it clearly for what it is: the passage to eternal salvation with Christ. 

Robert Seelig is the CEO of Catholic Funeral & Cemetery Services and Fr. Jeffrey Day is the Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia, Archdiocese of Detroit.

grams are now becoming financial lifelines for ministries and programs supporting school children and families.

Perhaps more significantly, CFCS found a model that might serve the Church’s many noble nonprofit initiatives seeking to share and educate on foundational Catholic theology. In the Detroit archdiocese, CFCS programs are integrated in support of the region’s overarching mission to “Unleash the Gospel.” Departments and resources that were once siloed are now integrated and mutually supportive. 

Pope Francis once warned that “if the Church is not on the move, she decays, she becomes something else.” CFCS took the principle of “innovate or die” to the changing business of death, giving it a new life of its own and helping to shed the light of Christ on the specter of death so that the bereaved and all the faithful may see it clearly for what it is: the passage to eternal salvation with Christ. 

Robert Seelig is the CEO of Catholic Funeral & Cemetery Services and Fr. Jeffrey Day is the Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia, Archdiocese of Detroit.

Archbishop Vigneron pauses to bless a life-size statue of St. John Paul II inside the new mausoleum.

Brownstown Township — Outside of churches, cemeteries are the most sacred places in the Church.

With cemetery staff and loved ones of those who’ve passed on to the next life in the congregation, Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron spoke of the importance of cemeteries during the June 18 dedication Mass of the new St. John Paul II Mausoleum at Our Lady of Hope Cemetery in Brownstown Township.

The new chapel will serve as the cemetery’s indoor mausoleum, complementing the outdoor mausoleum the cemetery has near the entrance of the grounds.

The archbishop referred to cemeteries as the “gateways” to heaven, a transition point between a person’s time on Earth and being called up to heaven.

Before blessing the altar, Archbishop Vigneron reminded the congregation that it’s the same altar at which their loves ones were baptized, confirmed, received Communion, where married and ultimately, were buried, since Jesus Christ unites them all.

“It’s right to read Scripture, to read about what God has said, regarding what we will see and do in a few minutes,” Archbishop Vigneron said. “This building is more than a room or auditorium, it’s a chapel with an altar. This chapel is where the sacraments happen on this altar. Isaiah writes that God destroys death forever on the altar. But this altar is the same as the one in Jerusalem, because Jesus Christ made all altars Jerusalem through his death.

”After Mass, Fr. Tim Babcock, liaison for the archdiocesan cemeteries and a board member of Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services of Detroit, thanked staff and planners who worked on the four-year project, complete with a life-size bronze statue of St. John Paul II and a stained-glass window from now-closed Our Lady of Lourdes Church in River Rouge, a nod to the Downriver

Fr. Tim Babcock, liaison for the Archdiocese of Detroit’s Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services, speaks during the June 18 dedication of the St. John Paul II Mausoleum at Our Lady of Hope Cemetery in Brownstown Township. Behind him is a stained glass window transported to the new mausoleum from the now-closed Our Lady of Lourdes Church in River Rouge.

Photos by Dan Meloy | The Michigan Catholicfamilies who remember worshipping at the parish.

“This is a historic, momentous day for Our Lady of Hope Cemetery,” Fr. Babcock said. “On behalf of all those who worked on this project, providing sacred, beautiful rest to the loved ones buried here and all who visit who feel that rest, we hope you find the peace we look to provide.

”During the Mass, the archbishop sprinkled holy water on the altar and statue — pausing to stare into the statue’s eyes and pray — and circle the building, dosing the outer walls with holy water.

Follow Mass, the congregation was invited to an outdoor reception to celebrate the dedication of the mausoleum.

“Four years ago, Fr. Babcock had the idea for this chapel,” said Deanna Cortese, location manager at Our Lady of Hope Cemetery. “We have an outdoor mausoleum, but it’s at capacity. We needed to provide more space and have an indoor mausoleum, so Fr. Babcock led the way with how it should look.

”Along with statue, the mausoleum features glass niches where loved ones can commemorate peoples’ lives with pictures, small statues or mementos, all of which help them find closure and serenity when visiting, Cortese said.

Our Lady of Hope first opened the mausoleum on Mother’s Day for people to come and see the chapel, and Cortese said around 200 people visited.

“It’s such a beautiful place for people in the Downriver community to come to be laid to rest, and there is so much history with Our Lady of Lourdes in the area,” Cortese said. “People comment on seeing the window when they were younger, so it’s great to incorporate it into the design of the chapel and have the window in the Downriver community where it belongs.”

Memorial service part of National Day of Remembrance for Aborted Children, one of 180 such services held nationwide

SOUTHFIELD — In a somber ceremony on a bright sunny afternoon at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield, nearly 80 people gathered near two tiny graves marked by a single carnation each.

Beneath the marble slabs, gently covered by tiny blades of grass, lay the remains of 37 infants, resting in eternal peace.

“We really are at a very special place,” said Monica Miller, Ph.D., director of Citizens for a Pro-Life Society. “It is special irrespective of whether there are aborted babies actually buried here, because this is the infant section of the cemetery.”

The memorial service at Holy Sepulchre was one of 180 such services held around the country Sept. 14 as part of the National Day of Remembrance for Aborted Babies, an annual event co-sponsored by the Michigan-based Citizens for a Pro-Life Society, Priests for Life and the Pro-Life Action League.

At the Holy Sepulchre service — one of five services in Michigan — Miller recalled being struck by the differences between the inscriptions on the graves of adults versus those of children.

“On adult graves, it might just say, ‘Joe Smith, father,’ and that’s about it,” Miller said. “No endearments, all very stark. On the babies’ graves, I remember one grave marker said, ‘Tread lightly, for a dream is buried here.’”

For the victims of abortion buried at Holy Sepulchre, that dream was turned into a nightmare at the hands of two local abortionists: fourteen were killed by Michael Roth and were found in the trunk of his car in September 2015, Miller said; the 23 others were victims of Alberto Hodari, buried in 2008.

The “Roth babies” were buried at Holy Sepulchre last fall, Miller said, in a ceremony presided over by Auxiliary Bishop Robert Fisher. An additional Roth victim was buried last fall at Holy Spirit Parish in Brighton.

Joining those mourning the loss of the infants, Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron was on hand to bless the grave marker covering the Roth victims’ resting place.

Addressing those gathered, the archbishop reflected upon the purpose of Catholic cemeteries as places where the souls and remains of the deceased are entrusted to God’s mercy.

“We believe that cemeteries are temporary places,” Archbishop Vigneron said. “This is where we entrust the remains of our beloved dead until the second coming of Christ. It’s only for a time that the dead are buried.

“Christ died and rose precisely so that his words of invitation, his words of inviting trust would be real and not a simple aspiration,” the archbishop continued. “We entrust these children to the ever open and ever tender heart of Christ.”

Apart from being a way to memorialize those who had been discarded and forgotten, the memorial was a reminder that abortion continues to victimize the most innocent and helpless human beings among us, Archbishop Vigneron said.

“For us, this can be a day of another kind of entrustment, to entrust to the Lord our aspiration to make abortion in our country once again illegal,” Archbishop Vigneron said. “It ought not to be legal.”

Miller, who is one of the key organizers for the nationwide prayer vigils, added that the 37 babies buried at Holy Sepulchre are some of the few abortion victims who are even afforded the dignity of a reverent burial.

Still, all those who suffer indignity are united with Christ in his blood on the Cross, Miller added.

“The unborn, killed by abortion, will on this side of heaven always remain strangers to us,” Miller said. “We don’t know them. I don’t know them. But I believe that we will see them someday. And we’re going to know whose broken arms those belong to, and to whom whose severed legs belong. Those crushed hands, whose hands are they? We’re going to know.

“Maybe it’s my personal theology, but I believe that when someone suffers an injustice that is imposed upon them, and they are incapable of doing anything about it, they share in our Lord’s suffering on the Cross,” Miller continued. “They’re with him. They are participating in his crucifixion, and that’s redemptive for them. And I believe they’re saved by that. So we can take comfort that we will see them someday.”

After the service, which included hymns and readings from Scripture, attendees were invited to place carnations on the two grave markers, and a petition was circulated to collect signatures for the Michigan Values Life petition drive, which seeks to ban dismemberment abortion in Michigan.

In addition to the Holy Sepulchre service, memorials were held at Assumption Grotto Parish Cemetery in Detroit, White Chapel Cemetery in Troy, St. Joseph Cemetery in Lansing and Holy Spirit Parish Cemetery in Brighton.

On the evening of September 13, Holy Sepulchre Cemetery is set to honor Blessed Solanus Casey with a new cemetery section that will bear his name. Bishop Donald Hanchon will dedicate the new Blessed Solanus Casey section and an hors d’oeuvre reception including wine from the Bishop’s Vineyard will immediately follow.
Blessed Solanus Casey, born Bernard Francis Casey, was a priest in the Capuchin Order and served in Detroit. Throughout his life, he had a special bond with the poor and celebrated special masses for the sick. In 1929, Blessed Solanus Casey helped found the Capuchin Soup Kitchen that still serves meals to Detroit residents in need.

The Capuchin Soup Kitchen Choir will provide entertainment for guests during the dedication’s wine tasting reception. The choir is made up of patrons, volunteers and supporters of the soup kitchen. Anyone is welcome to join the choir if they feel moved by the spirit, and guests will surely feel the choir’s joy during this special event.

Holy Sepulchre is a Catholic cemetery, founded in 1928, and located in Southfield, Michigan. Its natural beauty of trees, flowers, ponds and ample birdlife fill visitors with a sense of peace and comfort in knowing their loved ones are reverently being housed on sacred grounds, awaiting the promise of everlasting life.

At the wine tasting event, Holy Sepulchre will share information about its unique mission program. The Catholic Funeral & Cemetery Services Blessed Solanus Casey Endowment Fund provides financial assistance to bury the ashes of unclaimed remains, as well as for burial plots for unclaimed remains at no cost. In addition, the fund will provide no cost burials for children under the age of two, including miscarriages. This program highlights Holy Sepulchre’s commitment to help the greater community.

At age 13, James Williams was facing $9,000 in expenses.

For years, the Renton Junior High School student housed the cremated remains of three loved ones in his New Boston bedroom.

His mother, Barbara McGuire Williams, died in 2011. His father, James Allen Williams, died last November. Grandfather Aaron McGuire died in 2008.

James and his aunt/guardian of 10 years, Lucinda McComb, wanted to inter the cremains, but the cost was prohibitive.

McComb called several cemeteries over the last two years and got prices of $3,000 each for a crypt and $475 each to scatter the ashes.

A single mother of four, McComb also is the adoptive parent of three children. She couldn’t afford the fees, but she knew James needed peace.

“He’s a little boy. He’s carried around three loved ones’ ashes. For him, it wasn’t closure,” said McComb. “He feels responsible for his family. He doesn’t have to carry these ashes.”

On Friday, James and McComb interred all three relatives for free at St. Joseph Cemetery.

Through the Archdiocese of Detroit’s “Gather Them Home Program,” people of all faiths can inter cremains at no cost. No questions are asked, and families do not have to prove hardship. Cremains can be interred all year long but, four times a year, a memorial Mass in the cemetery’s Chapel of Light takes place before the interments.

Friday’s Mass coincided with All Souls Day, which was Monday. All Souls Day is a day to remember the deceased.

About two dozen people attended the memorial service celebrated by the Rev. Giancarlo Ghezzi from Sts. Mary and John Catholic Churches.

Eleven others also were laid to rest Friday: Louis Ambrose, Garret Wayne Eastes, James Imhoff, Peter Francis Knapp, Gary A. Maschke, John R. McKenzie, Lisa Schaffenberg, Joseph Sommers, Lillian Christine Van Riper, Elton Dale Zeemer and an unknown person.

Nine of them were brought by Rupp Funeral Home.

“The most tragic cases are where we have accepted unclaimed cremated remains from local funeral homes or the remains of unidentified deceased or deceased who had no known next-of-kin from Monroe County or outside counties,” said Rachel Lazere, family service advisor at St. Joseph Cemetery.

In his homily, Rev. Ghezzi said the church remembers all who have died, even if they have been forgotten by people.

“The church always remembers and prays for all our faithfully departed brothers and sisters,” he said.

At the end of the Mass, Rev. Ghezzi blessed each person’s urn of cremains with holy water. Then they were taken outside, where each was placed in the cemetery’s community All Souls Remembrance crypt.

James’ aunt learned about the “Gather Them Home Program” from her daughter, who saw it on social media. She knew it was the answer they’d been looking for.

“I think the program is amazing,” said McComb. “This program is so important. They don’t even know us. My boy is nondenominational. Rachel said it was no problem. She was so caring and supportive. I needed that.”

Days before the burial, James and McComb were shown the crypt, and James was given a candle with each loved one’s name on it.

The teen said he feels at peace, knowing his family members are at rest.

“It’s a beautiful place. I’m very grateful to have them here,” said James.

“This is a big thing. It’s a weight lifted off his shoulders,” added McComb. “It’s a relief for him. He’ll never have to worry. He’ll have a place to go visit them. It’s a blessing. This is giving James closure. I can’t say enough.”

The “Gather Them Home Program” was started by the Archdiocese of Detroit in 2016.

Families take part for various reasons.

“The most common reason we hear is that the family can’t afford to bury their loves one, but realize the importance of sacred remains being laid to rest in a cemetery,” said Rachel Lazere, family service advisor at the cemetery.

“In other cases, families come to us years after their loved ones passed and they have been keeping the cremated remains at home on their mantle or in their closet because they were not ready to let them go, but now are ready to create final resting places on consecrated grounds.

“Most families openly share their reasons and the stories of their loved ones with us. Sharing their stories is often crucial in their grieving process.”

Families can bring remains for interment any time. Memorial Masses are held periodically at each of the six AOD cemeteries: Our Lady of Hope in Brownstown Township (the third Friday of each month), Holy Sepulcher in Southfield, St. Joseph in Monroe (quarterly), Mount Carmel in Wyandotte and Holy Cross in Detroit.

To date, about 4,000 have been interred through the “Gather Them Home Program,” including 88 at St. Joseph Cemetery in Monroe and about 1,500 at Our Lady of Hope in Brownstown Township, said Ted Butkin, outreach manager for AOD Cemeteries.

“We are always looking to help any and all families at each of our locations,” said Butkin. “For many families, this is an opportunity to provide closure. We know it is a difficult decision, and we want to help any possible way we can.”