St. Joseph Cemetery & Funeral Center
“Where do I start? My brother’s cremains were delivered to me last Tuesday and I had read that a funeral home can transfer the cremains from the box they were in to the urn of our choice. I had called a known funeral in home on Barrett Ave and was told that because they didn’t handle his services, they could not help me transfer his ashes. I called St. Joseph, spoke to one of the funeral directors, Eddie De Loa, and he said he’d do the transfer on the same day.<br><br>Eddie was incredibly kind and had a warm/inviting spirit. He took me into a room, had a cloth laid out on the table, grabbed some pallbearer gloves to facilitate the transfer and explained the process the whole way through. He started the transfer with prayer, asked me questions about my brother and extended me the deepest compassion as I wept.<br><br>My little brother struggled with addiction and would eventually succumb to a fentanyl overdose. The way Eddie handled my brother, Fernando, restored the dignity that he was denied along his journey.<br><br>Eddie not only performed the transferring of his ashes into his urn, he ushered him into his final resting place. He allowed me to keep the pallbearer gloves and while it may appear to be a small gesture, my brother didn’t have a funeral - only a viewing. Someone willing to carry his urn using these gloves had such a profound impact on me during this process.<br><br>I will never forget Eddie’s kindness. I will never forget the prayers he said while transferring my brother’s ashes and I will never forget how tenderly Eddie handled this delicate request.<br><br>Ianthe”
