2007-08
Angelcrest Newsletter
BURIAL SPACE AVAILABLE TO CHURCHES
As a result of our recent expansion, Angelcrest Cemetery is inviting Valparaiso area churches to take advantage of a unique opportunity. For the first time in recent history, churches will be able to reserve a burial section exclusively for their members.
We have set aside four blocks of approximately 100 graves for church purchases. This offer calls for members of a participating congregation to purchase 50 graves at the cost of just $200 each – a 2 for 1 price. An additional 50 graves would then be reserved for its members for a period of 10 years.
In addition, each grave purchased will include a $200 discount certificate valid toward the purchase of a casket, burial vault or monument at any of our funeral service locations. The certificate will remain valid for 10 years and can also be used toward any new pre-need funeral trust or at-need funeral service purchase.
Letters outlining the specific details of this arrangement have been mailed to area churches. Contact your church office to find out if your congregation has decided to take advantage of this exceptional offer!
GARDEN OF PATRIOTS TO OPEN
As a tribute to our military veterans and public safety personnel, Angelcrest Cemetery is pleased to announce the addition of the Garden of Patriots. This new section, located just inside the main entrance and adjacent to the flag plaza, will be available to any veteran or emergency service professional.
Graves in this section are offered as a burial package that will include burial space for two, burial vault crypts, a shared foundation and monument. The Garden of Patriots is scheduled to open in the fall.
INVOLVED IN OUR COMMUNITY
An important part of our mission is being involved in the community we serve. Our staff holds active memberships in the Kiwanis and Rotary Clubs of Valparaiso, as well as positions on the Boards of Directors of the Porter County Community Foundation, the VNA Foundation of Porter County, the Hospice Advisory Committee, and the Porter County Board of Health. Volunteering our efforts in a variety of community organizations and participating in local events is a privilege we take seriously. Our involvement serves as an extension of our commitment to service.
Martin Moeller rides his new “Bone Shaker” bike in the 2006 Popcorn Parade. Rumor suggests he is planning a cross country trip on it this summer!
HOSPICE REGATTA SAILS ON LAKE MICHIGAN
VNA Hospice of Porter County, in conjunction with the Michigan City Yacht Club, is proud to have established Lake Michigan’s first sailing event to benefit hospice care. The Dunes Cup VNA Hospice Regatta is part of a network of regattas that exist to increase awareness and raise money for hospice programs across the country. By using a unique event, like a sailboat race, hospice regattas aim to educate people about the availability of hospice services, and at the same time, raise money to support those services. In 2006, 26 hospice regattas collectively raised over $1.6 million to support the efforts of their affiliated hospice programs.
The winner of each local regatta earns the opportunity to compete in the Hospice Regattas National Championship which sails on the Chesapeake Bay off Annapolis, MD each spring. The winner of our local regatta will have his or her name and boat name recorded on the base of the perpetual trophy on permanent display at the VNA Horton Hospice Center in Valparaiso. The trophy, “SAILING HOME,” was donated by Angelcrest’s Bill and Karen Higbie, and is a unique work of maritime art that challenges its viewers to consider the relationship between sailing and life as one of a monumental journey that culminates on a distant shore. It stands in tribute to all hospice patients, and their families, of whose lives VNA Hospice has been privileged to be a part.
The third annual Dunes Cup VNA Hospice Regatta will sail on August 11. For more information about hospice regattas, visit the website of the National Hospice Regatta Alliance at www.hospiceregattas.org. Information about hospice care in our community is available at www.vnaportercounty.org. Angelcrest is proud to be a supporter of the fine programs of the VNA of Porter County.
BALANCING THE EQUATION
What does a mathematical concept have to do with life, and death? The following reflection comes from Jim Gilbert, founder of Showboats Magazine. In contemplating the death of his father, he writes, “He showed me the precious value of fully sharing ourselves with those we love by being present with each of them at every moment of our lives. To go in peace, I discovered, one must first learn how to live in peace. The only way to balance the equation of sadness in those we leave behind is with an equal amount of joy we share together while living.” It’s worth considering. Who thought math could be so useful?