It's a new year and we are excited to share what we have been up to these past 6 months.
Some of you might have seen an article about Vermont Forest Cemetery in The Burlington Free Press. (If you missed it, you can read it here.)
Yes, it's official. Our cemetery is named Vermont Forest Cemetery. It is located in the wooded hills of Roxbury, Vermont. And it will be opening to the public in late spring/early summer 2022!
We're offering a free one-hour orientation on Zoom on Saturday, February 5th at 5:30pm. We have been moved to learn that so many people share our passion for natural burial and are considering burial in our cemetery. This is our chance to tell you about the land, meet you, and, most importantly, answer your questions "in person." Email us at info@vermontnaturalburial.org by 2/4/22 to register and/or submit questions.
Our goal is to not only to make Vermont Forest Cemetery the first cemetery in Vermont dedicated to restoring and conserving Vermont Forests, but also ensure that it is both affordable and accessible.
We're hard at work preparing Vermont Forest Cemetery for the public. As soon as weather permits this spring, we will be upgrading the main cemetery trail to accommodate people of all abilities- including those that use walkers, wheelchairs, or need to drive. Our actual opening date depends on when that project is completed. Once we are open, we invite everyone to schedule a visit to tour the cemetery and perhaps even pick out a burial spot.
If you haven't recently, we encourage you to poke around the website. As you can see, it got a major upgrade and there is a lot more information available now.
We'll be putting out our newsletter once a month from now on. The monthly newsletter is the best way to keep up to date with what is happening at the cemetery. It will be the place we announce our formal opening date. We'll provide a quick summary of what has been added to the website. (Like when we add the price lists, planning guide, and handbook we're working on now.)
As always, we need your help! While we hope to have many more articles and news media to share with you in the coming months, we know that we can't reach everyone who is interested in natural burial and what Vermont Forest Cemetery has to offer. Please tell people about Vermont Natural Burial so that they can learn more about us and join our mailing list.
We're also working through the 501c process. Once this happens, all donations will be tax deductible. If you are able to financially support our mission and would like to donate, keep an eye out for the announcement of when that process is complete. We will be extremely grateful for your support.
Creating Vermont Forest Cemetery has been a challenging, yet rewarding, process. We remain committed to following best practices for ecological burial, forest rehabilitation, and working with people. We are honored that you are a part of the journey.