Sep 8, 2026 · 39 min · 9 segments
More than 22 million urns are estimated to remain in homes across the United States, often without a plan for permanent placement. In this episode of Monument Matters, Honnalora Hubbard and Garrett…
Hannelore HubbardGuest
Garrett WilsonGuest
Mike JohnsHost
So the Cremation Association of North America, or CANA, recently published, uh, data suggesting that one in four homes have cremated remains Stored on a shelf or a mantle or in a closet, with an estimated 22 plus million, 22 million plus, over 22 million urns left lying about without plans t- for permanent placement.
I, I th- that for, for, we, we have to quit being so nice to one another, Garrett.
W- well, I, I mean, the, the concern is that, you know, if, if, if there's 22 million that are, are left in funeral homes or left on shelves or left in closets, that, that there are many more families that aren't completing that emotional journey.
And I think in, in the mindset of, of where we're at as a society, I think you need to be able to complete that.
And w- you know, one example I have is, is I had a colleague that passed away, and I, we went to the service, a beautiful service.
There was an urn, there was a photo, and, uh, but I didn't have that, I, I didn't, I didn't, there wasn't a body there, right? I didn't have that, that, you know, the sight of just seeing somebody l- you know, that has passed away that I could bring my emotions to, to, to the table, grieve at that moment, and, and move on.
So, but what happened was when, when the memorial was set, that was the moment that I had a chance to go out and, and complete that emotional journey for myself.
And that's where when we started talking about this process, um, and, and just this, this idea of National Commemorative Placement Day and, and the relevance of permanent moror- memorialization, that was what struck a chord with me, is that I finally felt that completed journey, um, and, and was able to move on.
And now it's almost like if, if I was able to do it, then I know that there's others that need to be able to do that as well.
And, and this wasn't even, you know, this wasn't a, a family member or anything like that.
And it's interesting that for you, and I never really thought about this myself because most of my experience is still with, at least in the s- at, at the service, time of service, I should say, we're, we're waking a full burial, a full body.
But the, the fact that you, you said looking at the urn is not the same as looking at that, that body or the casket.
So the Cremation Association of North America, or CANA, recently published, uh, data suggesting that one in four homes have cremated remains Stored on a shelf or a mantle or in a closet, with an estimated 22 plus million, 22 million plus, over 22 million urns left lying about without plans t- for permanent placement.
I, I th- that for, for, we, we have to quit being so nice to one another, Garrett.
W- well, I, I mean, the, the concern is that, you know, if, if, if there's 22 million that are, are left in funeral homes or left on shelves or left in closets, that, that there are many more families that aren't completing that emotional journey.
And I think in, in the mindset of, of where we're at as a society, I think you need to be able to complete that.
And w- you know, one example I have is, is I had a colleague that passed away, and I, we went to the service, a beautiful service.
There was an urn, there was a photo, and, uh, but I didn't have that, I, I didn't, I didn't, there wasn't a body there, right? I didn't have that, that, you know, the sight of just seeing somebody l- you know, that has passed away that I could bring my emotions to, to, to the table, grieve at that moment, and, and move on.
So, but what happened was when, when the memorial was set, that was the moment that I had a chance to go out and, and complete that emotional journey for myself.
And that's where when we started talking about this process, um, and, and just this, this idea of National Commemorative Placement Day and, and the relevance of permanent moror- memorialization, that was what struck a chord with me, is that I finally felt that completed journey, um, and, and was able to move on.
And now it's almost like if, if I was able to do it, then I know that there's others that need to be able to do that as well.
And, and this wasn't even, you know, this wasn't a, a family member or anything like that.
And it's interesting that for you, and I never really thought about this myself because most of my experience is still with, at least in the s- at, at the service, time of service, I should say, we're, we're waking a full burial, a full body.
But the, the fact that you, you said looking at the urn is not the same as looking at that, that body or the casket.
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