Shown from left are Oakwood Cemetery Board of Regent member Ellen Hoffer, sexton Hal Heagy and board members Ken Locke, Max Mock and Don Guthrie. Photo by Jackie Gorski, Times-Union.

By Jackie Gorski
Times-Union

WARSAW — Oakwood Cemetery is looking at adding more columbariums to the cemetery grounds.

Sexton Hal Heagy told the Oakwood Cemetery Board of Regents Thursday, March 6, an addition for Cremation Garden No. 3 is being planned. Heagy said his first goal was to extend the cremation garden along the fence and put columbariums in there. Cemetery staff have changed the plan a little bit and will continue to the park area.

A columbarium is a structure for the storage of urns holding cremated remains of the dead.

Heagy was talking to administrative assistant Leigh Ann Denlinger and Heagy said there is some property in the old section of the cemetery that hasn’t been touched in 50 years, which means it can be possibly used for columbariums. But the area isn’t big enough for four full-sized columbariums.

Heagy is getting prices on different columbariums, which he hasn’t received yet.

One idea Heagy had was to pour concrete and set two columbariums. Another idea he had was going out in the nonwooded part of the cemetery and making a grid and put columbariums there. He said there’s different ways the cemetery can handle any columbariums, but noted people want to be buried close to where everyone else is. He wanted to plan ahead for cremains so the cemetery doesn’t waste land unnecessarily.

However, Heagy did note cremations are on the rise and the cemetery is running out of columbarium space.

In other business, the board:

• Learned Derry Electric came out to the cemetery to see about underground wiring from the chapel to Legion Circle No. 3 to make it possible to illuminate the military flags in that area. Heagy said he still hasn’t received a quote for the work yet.

• Was introduced to Howard Kistler, the supervisor at Oakwood Cemetery. Kistler has been with the cemetery for six years and was recently promoted to supervisor.

• Learned five loads of wood in the cemetery’s giveaway program were given out in February. People can get vouchers for the program from The Salvation Army.

• Learned spring clean up/maintenance has started at the cemetery.