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November 1, 2008

Williams to maintain Cullman Memorial Gardens

Some plot, crypt purchases will be honored

By Trent Moore

Staff Writer

Pre-need cemetery plot purchases and mausoleum crypt purchases at Cullman Memorial Gardens will be honored — for now.

The Alabama Department of Insurance has come to an agreement with Cullman Heritage Funeral Home Manager Doug Williams to maintain the cemetery records and honor both previous plot purchases and mausoleum crypt purchases for the time being.

“I will have copies of the maps, the plot books and the mausoleum books,” Williams said. “If someone wants to be buried there, they can contact me and I’ll help them find their plot or mausoleum crypt. This is a terrible situation, and I’m just doing what I can to help.”

Only the previous plot and crypt purchases will be honored, though, meaning anyone who had previously purchased a casket, funeral services or burial services will not be covered and will be forced to make other arrangements.

“Things such as funeral services, caskets, monument, vaults and opening and closing of a grave they will no longer have,” Williams clarified. “The state is wiping those out.”

As of Friday, Cullman Memorial Gardens has officially been closed by the Alabama Department of Insurance. The department took over the cemetery from Mike Graham and Associates in 2006, when it was facing financial difficulties. Graham is now deceased.

The Department of Insurance has kept the cemetery open and operational for the past two years, all the while trying to sell the business to another buyer. Their efforts were unsuccessful, and without money to continue operating the facility, they were forced to close it.

“Our department is unable to continue financial operations,” Department of Insurance Spokesman Ragan Ingram said in a previous interview.

Williams, who will receive no compensation from the state for his services, said he was happy to volunteer to help.

“The state approached me because they know I’m familiar with cemetery properties and this business,” he said. “I’m doing this because I care about those people that have loved ones they want to have buried there. I couldn’t stand by and see that happen.”

Though this will offer temporary relief to those who have previously purchased space at the Cullman Memorial Gardens, it is not a permanent solution. When and if the state eventually sells the business, the new owners will likely not be required to honor previous purchases.

“It is our hope that we will still be able to find a buyer who will honor those (previous) purchases, but that is no longer guaranteed,” Ingram said in a previous interview.

Another issue that will have to be addressed in the interim is maintenance for the graveyard property, Williams said.

“I’m also worried about who will be mowing the lawn,” he added. “That’s still to come in the future, because the state can’t afford to do it. We may have to ask for donations to get that done, but we’ll just have to figure that out as it comes.”

Exact totals as to how many pending pre-need plots and mausoleum crypts have been sold were unavailable.

Anyone with questions about a previously purchased plot or crypt can contact Williams at (256) 708-0479.

Department of Insurance Spokesman Ragan Ingram was unavailable for comment by press time.



‰ Trent Moore can be reached by e-mail at trentm@cullmantimes.com, or by telephone at 734-2131, ext. 225.

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