Columbarium Project Launched
St. Andrew's Memorial Prayer Garden and Columbarium approved; Construction planned for this summer
St. Andrew's Church Council and the City of Mahtomedi have given final approval for the construction of St. Andrew's Memorial Prayer Garden and Columbarium. The Columbarium task force, chaired by Peter Nasvik, plans to begin construction of the Garden and Columbarium this summer once the total financial package is in place. The total cost for constructing the first phase of the Memorial Prayer Garden and Columbarium is $325,000. A gift of $200,000 has already been made; the sale of columbarium niches, memorial plaques and other gifts are necessary to complete the funding. No funds from the church operating budget will be used in this project.
A columbarium is an outdoor above-ground structure that contains multiple niches in which the cremated remains of an individual are placed for posterity. The niches have name plates on the outside so that later generations can stop and remember their loved one. Niches can hold up to two urns, and their costs are significantly less than burial plots at a cemetery. The columbarium structures will be placed in a beautifully landscaped garden with handicap-accessible walkways and a special prayer plaza. The garden is immediately north of the Sanctuary behind the pipe organ. Special sculpture art can be added at a later time. In order to encourage people to purchase niches prior to construction, the preconstruction cost of a niche is $1,300. Afterwards, the cost will be $1,500. There will also be an opportunity to purchase memorial stone plaques, which can commemorate a loved one who is buried at a different location. The memorial stone plaques will cost $300. Further information about the niches and the garden is available at the church office after May 4.
St. Andrew's will begin the presale of niches on Sunday, May 4. Informational meetings about the Memorial Prayer Garden and Columbarium will be held Sunday, May 4, at 11:20 a.m. and Sunday, May 18, at 10:15 a.m.
If you have questions, please contact chairperson Pete Nasvik at 651-778-1784; or Church Business Administrator Paul Maeyaert or Pastor John Keller at 651-426-3261.
|