The Osoyoos Lakeview Cemetery is the new home of this state-of-the-art columbarium, which has the capacity to hold the ashes of loved ones for 40 families. The Town of Osoyoos has joined the growing list of municipalities across Canada that have erected columbariums. Jim Dinwoodie, the Town’s director of operational services, said columbariums are a very effective use of space in cemeteries and have become more popular as the trend towards cremation increases as opposed to burials. (Keith Lacey photo)

The Town of Osoyoos has joined the long list of municipalities that are offering a new and modern way to offer burial services to members of the community.

Just recently, the Town officially unveiled its new 40-niche columbarium, which is made mainly of granite and provides a safe and secure location for family members to place the ashes of loved ones, said Jim Dinwoodie, the Town’s director of operational services.

“Columbariums have become very popular in municipalities across the country,” said Dinwoodie. “They are a way to use cemetery space more efficiently and effectively.’

The 40 different spaces to place urns with ashes at the Osoyoos Lakeview Cemetery are located within the columbarium, which has been erected on the east side of the cemetery, said Dinwoodie.

The columbarium is made of high-quality granite and the storage space for the urns is made of high-quality plastic material and a steel door is built to gain access to the storage space, he said.

“Those who purchase a spot can open the steel door with a key,” he said. “When an urn is put in place, it can easily be closed and we (staff) can put the cover back on.”

The columbarium in Osoyoos features four rows of storage spaces and each row has 10 storage locations.

Locating the columabarium on the east side of the cemetery was carefully planned as loved ones have access to a beautiful view of Osoyoos Lake when they visit the cemetery, he said.

If response to the columbarium is strong, there are plans to build additional units in the same area and “form sort of an eastern boundary for the cemetery.”

There are already similar columbariums that have been built in Kelowna, Keremeos and Penticton and they have proved to be very popular, said Dinwoodie.

There have been several inquiries about the columbariums from Osoyoos residents over the past couple of weeks and he expects the spaces to sell well in the coming weeks and months, said Dinwoodie.

“Instead of being able to place the ashes for 10 people, we can now have 40,” he said. “It’s an effective use of space and it will certainly prolong the life of the cemetery moving forward.

“I envision us having to build one or more of these columbariums in the future and I think we will be able to build a nice-looking eastern border to our cemetery.”

Once the weather turns nicer this spring, public works crews will be out to plant some grass and other plants to make the new columbarium look even nicer than it does now, he said.

As more and more people choose the collection of their ashes following cremation over traditional burials, facilities like state-of-the-art columbariums will continue to grow in popularity, said Dinwoodie.

“The collection of ashes as opposed to burials is quite a popular trend across North America … and that’s why we’ve seen such a growth in columbariums over the past few years,” he said. “With more and more people being cremated as opposed to full internment, it’s a trend I personally think is going to continue to grow in popularity.”

The fact the columbarium offers a terrific view of Osoyoos Lake is a nice bonus, said Dinwoodie.

For more information, you can contact the Town of Osoyoos at 250-495-6515.

KEITH LACEY

Osoyoos Times