Hillcrest Funeral Home helped Parting Stone pioneer a new form of human remains
Hillcrest Funeral Home in Vankleek Hill has partnered with Parting Stone, a Santa Fe, New Mexico, based start-up that will be featured on an upcoming episode of the ABC television show ‘Shark Tank’, airing on April 7.
Parting Stone invented a comfortable alternative to cremated remains for families choosing cremation. Instead of receiving ashes following cremation, local families have the option of receiving 100 per cent of the remains in a form that resembles a collection of 60 to 80 stones that can be touched, held, and shared. The appearance of each person’s solidified remains varies naturally from person to person, with the process often resulting in unique textures or colors such as blue, green, or even speckles.
“Hillcrest Funeral Home partnered with us early-on because they recognized the value this would bring to grieving families in the community–they helped us prove that people wanted an alternative to ash,” says Parting Stone founder Justin Crowe. “It’s a profound healing opportunity for everyone in the family to hold their loved one again, but the look and feel of cremated remains makes that experience deeply uncomfortable. We developed a new form of solidified remains that resemble stones to help families feel a connection with their departed loved ones.”
Following the death of his grandfather, Crowe realized that living with conventional cremated remains can feel uncomfortable, so in many households, they often end up hidden in a closet for decades. Parting Stone worked with material scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory to develop solidified remains to help create a more positive experience for grieving families with a form of remains that can be touched and held.
You can watch the Parting Stone episode on ‘Shark Tank’ on Friday April 7, from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. on ABC.
