Funeral homes find new life by hosting other events

By Melanie D. Hayes,
The Indianapolis Star
posted jauary 18, 2011

INDIANAPOLIS — Paulita and Tony Flores took their wedding vows in December in an elegant rotunda with marble floors amid glimmering chandeliers and a bubbling fountain.

It didn't bother them that a room down the hall showcased caskets and urns. Or that the building was surrounded by a large cemetery with 100,000 gravestones on 60 acres. Or that on other days, the facility hosts something a lot more somber — funerals.

The Flores' wedding at the Community Life Center at Washington Park East Cemetery here illustrates a growing trend. the rest

Across the USA, funeral homes are building and marketing such centers as not just a place to mourn the dead but as sites for events celebrating the living, including weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, holiday parties and proms.