The business of death, from funerals to burials, is changing as more Americans — and even more Coloradans — are moving away from conventional customs and increasingly opting for cremations and less-traditional commemorations of the passing of loved ones.
Reporter takes a look at this trend, which, locally, includes everything from Bob Marley-themed potlucks to cemeteries that host yoga classes and car shows. Industry experts point to changing attitudes about life’s end — including environmental and cost concerns, as well as a desire for more personalized ceremonies — to help explain this shift.
“What I see,” one cemetery operator tells Hernandez, “is a lot of our families out here choosing to focus on life, not death.”
— Matt Sebastian, Denver Post enterprise editor
As trends shift, Colorado cemeteries and funeral homes look to inject life into the commemoration of death
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Five of The Denver Post’s best stories this week
Denver Post listening tour: Greeley sees a renaissance, but has its worries, too
The Denver Post continues it’s listening tour across Colorado: On a recent Tuesday afternoon, downtown Greeley was thriving, with restaurants full and a steady stream of foot traffic on the city’s sidewalks. On the outskirts of town, large new homes back up to the expansive farms that have long defined this area. Read more from Justin Wingerter, Nic Garcia, Saja Hindi and John Aguilar here.
Past listening tour stops
- Leadville is having a boom but mine’s closure looms as mountain town looks to diversify beyond “scrappy mining town”
- “Yuma County is a 21st-century community that respects people”: Residents don’t want the state butting in — especially when it comes to land rights
As metro Denver home prices continue to rise, one builder’s answer is to go smaller
As everyone knows, the real estate market in the Denver metro area is hot, hot, hot right now. According to data from Clever Real Estate, the median home price is more than five times the median household income. A general guideline is to not spend more than 2.6 times your household income on a home.
With that in mind, Mission Homes Colorado is choosing to build smaller houses starting in the mid-$200,000 range. That’s attracting young couples and those looking to downsize, said founder David Gregg. Read more from Aldo Svaldi here.
RELATED: Only one in 20 houses in Denver is affordable for teachers, study finds
Threat of hepatitis A outbreak among Denver’s homeless prompts a massive response
Denver has vaccinated about 3,500 people in the past 18 months in preparation for a long-feared outbreak of hepatitis A, reports Andrew Kenney. The city is now ramping up vaccination efforts after five cases were reported.
State auditors investigating whistle-blower claims about fraud in Judicial Department
Colorado auditors since late May have been investigating allegations of spending abuse and fraud in the state’s Judicial Department after an anonymous whistle-blower letter that laid out those claims, reports David Migoya.
RELATED
- Colorado’s chief court administrator resigns amid Denver Post investigation into contract
- Second state judicial department official resigns amid Denver Postap contract probe
Vail housing proposal spotlights growing threat to habitat of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep
Colorado’s declining bighorn sheep population faces increased competition as Vail developers plan to build worker housing on habitat east of town, a conflict pitting economic interests at a ritzy mountain resort against wildlife in once-pristine high country, reports Bruce Finley.
Quick Hits
+ Denver airport upbraids Great Hall contractor for safety violations, deficiencies in minority hiring
+ Jonelle Matthews investigation: Chronicling the 34-year search for missing Greeley 12-year-old
+Tiny-home villages could be allowed across much of Denver
+More growth caps are threatened along the northern Front Range
+ Colorado’s Supermax prison now occupied by El Chapo is “worse than death,” ex-warden says
+ Denver’s middle-of-the-country location set to make it a key part of Slack’s empire
+ Vail Resorts to acquire 17 ski areas owned by Peak Resorts in $264 million deal
+ A repeal of Colorado’s new national popular vote law appears headed to the November 2020 ballot
Photo of the Week
Clint Vider quit his job a couple weeks ago at the Kersey Family Dollar up the road from his humble yellow house, having decided to devote his life to his angels — his name for the 52 white homing pigeons he considers his professional and personal saviors.
Vider raised the birds from hatchlings and houses them in “apartments” he built in his backyard. Through his one-man business, White Doves Memory Chain, Vider shares his precious birds with the public, offering their unique ability to burst forth in a snow-white flock from hand-built cages for life’s momentous moments: weddings, funerals, graduations and the like.
Read the full story from reporter Elizabeth Hernandez here.
