After cremation, what choices are there for disposition of ashes?
Since the point of cremation is legally considered final disposition of a person’s body, very few restrictions apply to the placement or distribution of ashes. A good rule of thumb is you can do almost anything with the ashes, as long as you don’t infringe on someone else’s rights or property. They can be kept at home, buried or entombed, all of which give surviving family a place to go and memorialize. They can be carried on board an airplane to some distant destination, mixed with a spouse’s cremains, scattered at sea, or buried along with another. They typically cannot be placed at public or historic places or landmarks. As with every detail involved in a funeral experience, the final disposition of ashes should be appropriate to the person whose memory we honor, and the family they leave to mourn.
