The world is changing, and the younger generation has different perspectives when it comes to death. For this reason, the deathcare industry has been forced to adjust to cater to these changes. The funeral industry has largely remained unchanged for many years, with many aspects of the grieving process still entrenched in tradition, despite the desire to push forward alternatives to traditional funeral rituals.
Eterneva, a new death care company, is in the middle of this revolution and is uniquely positioned to appeal to the younger generation and millennials by creating beautiful memorial diamonds from the ashes of your cremated loved ones.
Traditional Funerals
Funerals are an essential part of the mourning process for the bereaved friends and family. They allow you to celebrate the person’s life, receive and provide support, and share memories of the loved one with others. Different cultures, religions, and spiritual groups have different funeral and burial rituals that they prescribe to honor their dead and help those they’ve left behind cope with the grieving process.
Three general rituals are often scheduled during a traditional funeral:
1. Visitation
Also known as a wake or a viewing, a visitation involves placing the deceased’s body in a casket and allowing friends and family to say their last goodbyes to the physical body. The visitation ceremony occurs typically at a funeral home, in a church, or at the deceased’s home or their relative’s home.
2. Funeral service
The memorial or funeral service typically involves prayers, readings from relevant faith texts, songs, and a sermon from a spiritual leader on the meaning of death, its place in religion, and the deceased’s spiritual beliefs and that of their family. Close family members or close friends may also give a eulogy that may involve sharing memories of the dead and reviewing their relationships and the things they accomplished while alive.
3. Burial service
After the funeral service, the body is transported to the cemetery or mausoleum. During the burial service, the religious leader and close family and friends say some final words. They also place flowers or items of sentimental value on the casket and shovel dirt on top of the casket. After the family and friends depart the cemetery, staff members will bury the body.
Traditional funerals are often expensive and include many additional fees, including funeral home fees, transportation fees, cost of the casket, cemetery plot, and other funeral goods and services.
Direct Burials
The body is usually buried shortly after death in a simple container. There is no visitation, and the memorial service is often held at the graveside or later.
Direct funerals are often fast and cost less than traditional funerals.
Direct Cremations
Cremations are becoming a popular death care option for many Americans. According to the Cremation Association of North America, approximately 56.1% of Americans opted for cremations in 2020. This number is predicted to rise to 78% by 2040.
During cremation, the body is cremated shortly after death. The remains are then placed in an urn or any other container. The remains can be kept at home, in a crypt, thrown in the sea, or buried depending on the deceased or the family’s wishes.
Several factors have contributed to the popularity of cremations, including their affordability, environmental concerns, and religious restrictions.
Just Not Enough: The Birth of Eterneva
The idea of Eterneva came forth to co-founder Adelle Archer when she experienced a loss in her life. Traditional methods of memorializing her mentor didn’t do justice to the life of someone who has significantly impacted her life. A simple urn to hold the ashes of a person who had touched her life and that of so many more didn’t seem fitting.
In the process of finding a way to memorialize her mentor, Archer and her business partner Garrett Ozar come up with a solution. They used the carbon in the ashes of her mentor and fashioned it into a black diamond, and Eterneva was born.
The Science Behind the Black Diamonds
Diamond is composed of a single element, carbon.
Carbon is extracted from the cremated remains to create a diamond seed. Using a High Temperature-High Pressure (HTHP) process, the carbon is placed under intense heat and pressure for a long time until the synthetic memorial diamond is created. The diamonds are then cut, polished, colored, and the finished memorial diamond is then carved into a ring, necklace, or any other piece of jewelry requested.
Memorial diamonds created by Eterneva are more affordable than mined diamonds because the supply chain is shorter, they are conflict-free, they are an ethical product, and they are environmental-friendly.
Want to Give Your Loved One a Memorable Sendoff?
Eterneva has partnered with numerous funeral homes to give mourners a unique way to remember someone that was truly important to them.
Visit the website today to learn more about the various diamond from ashes packages and get started with your diamond processing.