1982

1982.03.12.05

MOUNT TOBY BURIAL GROUND & BURIAL COMMITTEE DUTIES�� 3/12/82

1. The Burial Committee will be responsible for the burial ground, for physical arrangements of burials, for legal oversight, and for the keeping of Meeting burial records.

2. The burial ground will be a plot of land, 70' by 150 , located southeast of the meeting house, as shown in the plan submitted to tie Town of Leverett. Each grave plot will be 31/2 by 7�� By law, graves are to be dug five feet deep (to the bottom of a coffin).

�In case of cremation, grave plots may be used for the ashes of more than one person. Members of the same family may choose to have their ashes buried in the same plot. Tops of containers for ashes are to be deep enough for markers to be placed above them.

There will be no standing headstones, only flat markers--of a standard size chosen by the Burial Committee--that will permit mowing over them.

Grave plots will be numbered in accordance with the plan submitted to the Town.

No plot may be reserved in advance, except for a single plot for the spouse of someone already buried.

3. Burial in the Meeting burial ground is for members of Mount Toby Meeting, and for their family within one generation (i.e., a member's spouse, parents, or children). Also eligible will be locally resident members of other Friends Meetings who have been active in Mount Toby Meeting. Exceptions will be granted rarely; they may apply to faithful attenders who have made major contributions to the life of our Meeting.

Any exceptions, as well as other immediate decisions about burial, will be decided on by one or more available Overseers, acting in consultation with available members of the Burial Committee. In .view of the urgency and the uniqueness of each such decision, no such exception to the eligibility rules is to be later construed as a precedent that encourages subsequent exceptions to the usual rules.

4. There will be no charge for a burial plot, but families will be responsible for expenses for the burial or for funeral arrangements. The Burial Committee will suggest a suitable donation to the Burial Fund, which will pay for the maintenance of the burial ground and associated expenses. This Fund will be under the care of the Committee, subject to an annual report to the Meeting Finance Committee.

5. The Burial Committee will keep a permanent record book of Meeting burials. Its form will become definite after some experience is gained. Families or friends may also place a simple brass plaque on a wall at a location as yet to be decided on. Such plaques will be of a standard size to be determined by the Burial Committee.

A printed brochure wilt be prepared to describe these and related rules for interested persons.

�� The Burial Committee