Information for Funeral Homes

Hillcrest ceased operating as a legal business entity in the mid-1990's. The owner granted us permission to take over operations during her lifetime, and she has since passed. Below is information on interments under these circumstances:
  • On-site availabilty: The primary contact with deep knowledge of the cemetery, Kevin Hudson, now lives in Athens, GA and is not generally available to visit to mark graves, especially on short notice. We can, however, email annotated aerial photos showing locations and lists and placement of adjacent marked burials. If you are also remotely located, we may sometimes be able to send this information to a local volunteer to mark a grave and send photos to us to verify proper placement. Visit this page for contact details.
  • Lots available: We have a limited number of lots available that have been donated to our association for resale to assist our non-profit. This includes two large and nice areas in Section B and the Circle Section which were recently donated by the heir of a family who obtained these areas decades ago. We have set some aside for single burials. They are mostly 4- and 6-space lots but can be split or combined. Out current rates are $600 per space in the main section and $500 per space in the bronze section across the street.
  • ​Notification: Please inform us of planned services so that we can assist as needed, notify you of any issues in the immediate area, avoid double-scheduling, and adjust mowing and volunteer events as needed. In addition, please email us a link to obituaries and consider including scans of burial permits so that we can add them to our files for future reference.
  • Records: We have most of the records and can research contracts and past burials, but please know our information is incomplete and not guaranteed accurate. We recommend probing for previous burials before opening.
  • Maps: Section maps with details for the blocks and lots within them are available here. Space numbering in all sections begins at 1 by the adjacent walkway or outer edges of a pair of lots.
  • Vaults: Hillcrest Cemetery required vaults for burials. We do not own Hillcrest and can not enforce this, but we recommend it since Hillcrest is not perpetual care and future settling may not be remediated.
  • Opening, Closing, Paperwork: All physical and legal requirements for burial should be handled by the funeral home.
  • Fees/Donations: We can not and do not charge any fees, but all maintenance is funded through donations and volunteers. We request that you inform families of this so that they may opt to contribute towards the maintenance funds either as part of their overall funeral arrangements, with in-lieu-of-flowers contributions, or in the future. Details on how to contribute to our work are available here.
  • Maintenance level: Since we are reliant on donations, mowing is infrequent. grass may be up to a foot tall during the growing season, especially if rainy weather has delayed scheduled mowing. About 15% of Hillcrest is at least slightly overgrown—a few areas are much worse, but most of these are full single-burial areas on the outer edges. We can not provide any direct services for a fee or donation due to our tax-exempt status and bylaws. If a service is planned in an area that is overgrown or in bad shape, we can try to get some volunteers out, but it would be best for you and/or the family to hire a professional to clear an area on short notice. We may be able to make referrals to our mowing contractor or others.
  • Excess dirt: There are two locations where dirt can be disposed on site. Both are overflowing and affecting both driveways and graves. Please ask your vault company to use the location in the northeast corner of the cemetery, in back of sections 8 and 9, and to push it as far back as they can. We are looking for a company to haul off some or all of the excess dirt. Referrals for that are appreciated!
  • After care: We suggest that you or the family arrange for after care, including flower disposal, leveling, and matching seed or sod at the time arrangements are made. We can not provide these services, though our limited volunteers often end up doing so when families do not plan ahead.