On August 27th, my MIL passed away unexpectedly. She was my second mother since 1987 and a kind soul. She had lost two sons and her husband over the years, and had expressed to be laid to rest in-between her two sons (family plot). This meant she was to be cremated to make this possible as her two sons are buried in caskets next to each other with no room for a third casket between them. She knew cremation was the only way, what she didn't know (non of us either) was the tight parameters we had to follow. This particular cemetery is located in Nogales, AZ and run by the city of Nogales. They require a 20"x20" x24" deep hole for a concrete vault. the urn is placed inside and filled with concrete. That did not sit well with me, knowing my mom would be backfilled in mud.
I was able to come up with a solution not only to keep the urn away from concrete but provided enough room for anther of my MIL wishes. She wanted to have her favorite dog "Lazy" whom died several years back and also was cremated and in a small urn.
The Urn Capsule is 15" long and 8" diameter sch. 40 pipe. This will provide more than enough room for the two urns and any mementos family members wish to place prior to sealing and finally encase in concrete. The services have passes now but the actual burial will be October 8th 2018 allowing all family members ample time to plan for attendance.
I normally don't share personal experiences but having the honor and privilege of creating the vessel that will hold my MIL, and her pup was something created in my shop.
I have mentioned in past writing how the shop time feeds my soul and keeps me sane from nasty images seen during the past 25+ years of emergency work. In short, my shop is my temple and I'm closest to my creator there, second to hiking. I have found balance.
Another personal note, I have lost 8 people this year alone, people that I knew well and loved. From close co-workers to a close neighbor. "Life is short" is understated fellas, find balance any way you can. Enough, my eyes are sweating again....
The large pipe was grooved at both ends. Two round caps where plasma cut to rest nicely against the grooves.
The groove provided a 1/4 lip for a weld fillet.
The top was drilled/tapped to close the lid. A bevel or ramp was filed for the screw to pull down the lid tight against the top groove.
My son who was home on bereavement leave turned the barrel hinge on the new lathe.
The inside was painted white and the exterior painted my MIL favorite color, Navy Blue.
I have pre dug the hole 12" diam X 27". We will fill the bottom with 4" of concrete, place the capsule in and fill around to cover the last 8".
RIP Yolanda Berrones 1937-2018
Paco
