Cemetery board: Revenue, respect needed

What does it cost to inter a loved one in Montana? Per google, it’s between $525 and $2500 for the plot. The cost of a plot at Basin’s Rainville Memorial Cemetery, on the other hand, has long been free – thanks to the generosity of Dr. Rainville and other local supporters over the years.

This practice has always been supplemented by community members giving anywhere from $500 to thousands of dollars to finance the interment of a loved one. Keep in mind that the digging and covering of a grave requires contractors or licensed/insured family members. Once approved by the board, that work has always been paid for by the family member or funeral home. 

But keeping the cemetery free of wild and domestic animals and secure from vandals, while maintaining the fencing and yard requires considerable expenditures. Over the past 25 years, donations have not kept up with our costs. As a result, at the cemetery board’s May 15 meeting, it was decided to increase the cost of interment to $100 per plot, effective immediately (in addition to the cost of digging and covering).