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Stafford company turns ashes into art
Stafford County entrepreneurs launch venture creating memorials from cremated remains
Date published: 4/15/2007
By PAMELA GOULD Helen Tribby lost her son in a house fire six years ago. She lost her daughter last month to an aggressive cancer. Now, both of her children--as well as a grandchild who lived just six hours--will always be with her. The Partlow woman was the first customer for Grotto Inc., a Stafford County company recently formed to offer a new option for the growing cremation industry. Grotto provides a way to memorialize loved ones by using some or all of their ashes in making stone statues, planters or other items for the home and garden. The process also can be done with pets. Grotto is operated by four men: Larry Mervine, whose background is in construction and includes ceramic tile work; Kurt Zimmerman, a stay-at-home dad with an arts background and experience in concrete countertops; and two British transplants--Steve Kelly, a clockmaker who runs two Fredericksburg antiques shops, and his father, Barry Kelly, who spent a career with Price Waterhouse. Mervine came up with the idea last fall after reading an article in Entrepreneur magazine about a company that puts remains into artificial reefs. In December, the men registered for a patent for their process, which combines cremated remains with a mixture of white cement, river stone and light sand. Over the past month, they've been visiting funeral homes from Washington to Fredericksburg, telling directors about their service. The goal is to go nationwide in six to nine months, said Barry Kelly. Already, managers of about a dozen facilities have expressed interest and will be displaying samples for customers to consider. Cremations increasing Sam Found of Found and Sons Funeral Chapels-Cremation Service was the first to get on board with Grotto's concept. "The exciting thing for someone who has been in the funeral business for 20 years is it gives [customers] choices," he said. Found, who with his brother, Scott Found, operates funeral homes in Spotsylvania County and Culpeper, said interest in cre- mations is increasing, especially at the Spotsylvania site. He's seen the number of people choosing cremation roughly double since the Spotsylvania home opened in 1998. Nationwide, the percentage of people choosing cremation has steadily increased since 1965. By 2025, the Cremation Association of North America projects cremations will outnumber traditional burials.
Date published: 4/15/2007
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