Funeral options
With over 100 years’ experience in the provision of funeral services for members and non-members you can rest assured that AVBOB can take care of all the practical problems and can provide quality products and services. These include:
Funeral arrangements
- Basic caskets or coffins to top-of-the-range caskets and coffins
- Personal, professional consultation with the family about the funeral arrangements
- Transfer of the deceased to the funeral home or mortuary facility
- Advice on wording and placement of notices in the newspapers of your choice
- Liaising with florists for fresh flowers
- Preparation of the deceased
- Use of our private family viewing facilities
- Funeral pamphlets
ADDITIONAL FUNERAL SERVICES CAN BE PROVIDED ON REQUEST:
- Registration of death
- Placement of funeral notice in the local newspaper
- Memorial attendance books for friends and family to sign
- Fresh flowers
- Where available, use of our chapels
- Family cars
- After funeral catering
- Additional chairs and house tents
Burial services
- Grave equipment
- Grave fees
Flame cremation
- Cremation fees
Aquamation (a gentler, greener alternative to flame cremation)
Currently only available at AVBOB Maitland Funeral Parlour, Cape Town
Gentler for your loved one... and our planet.
Gentler for your loved one... and our planet.
- A gentle, supportive process that uses the serene element of water, rather than fire
- A natural biomimicry process with no emission of harmful greenhouse gases or mercury
- A saving of 90% energy compared to flame cremation
- A carbon footprint that is just 1/10th of that of flame cremation
- 20% - 30% more ash remains returned to the family
Since the dawn of humanity, water has been woven into our religious rites, rituals and practices. Holy, cleansing, serene – it is an element that is central to our lives…
We begin life, in so many cultures, with a baptism at birth. So, it seems fitting to offer a final ritual rooted in the gentle, supportive element of water.
Aquamation offers a serene, earth-friendly alternative to flame cremation and burial, using water, rather than fire, to return the beloved’s body back to nature, completing the cycle of life.
A supportive return to nature
Aquamation gently mimics the natural organic process that the body undergoes when it is finally laid to rest in the earth. Aquamation uses a combination of water flow, temperature, and alkalinity to hasten nature’s very own process.
Favoured by families
Aquamation offers families the choice of a kinder, more respectful process, with substantially more ashes of the beloved returned to the family. And, for those who are concerned about the environmental impact of flame cremation, aquamation brings a planet-friendly alternative.
A gentler way
The traditional memorial ceremony and returning of the ashes remain unchanged and uncompromised. In fact, families typically receive an urn filled with abundantly more ash remains. Whether for safekeeping, or for scattering the remains in a ritual requested by the beloved, aquamation offers a dignified and supportive final rite.
A kinder way that's a first in South Africa
We’re proud to be able to offer our AVBOB customers (private customers or policyholders) a more sublime way of seeing off their loved ones. Through the kinder practice of aquamation, both our loved ones and our planet are honoured.
All your questions answered
We begin life, in so many cultures, with a baptism at birth. So, it seems fitting to offer a final ritual rooted in the gentle, supportive element of water.
Aquamation offers a serene, earth-friendly alternative to flame cremation and burial, using water, rather than fire, to return the beloved’s body back to nature, completing the cycle of life.
A supportive return to nature
Aquamation gently mimics the natural organic process that the body undergoes when it is finally laid to rest in the earth. Aquamation uses a combination of water flow, temperature, and alkalinity to hasten nature’s very own process.
Favoured by families
Aquamation offers families the choice of a kinder, more respectful process, with substantially more ashes of the beloved returned to the family. And, for those who are concerned about the environmental impact of flame cremation, aquamation brings a planet-friendly alternative.
A gentler way
The traditional memorial ceremony and returning of the ashes remain unchanged and uncompromised. In fact, families typically receive an urn filled with abundantly more ash remains. Whether for safekeeping, or for scattering the remains in a ritual requested by the beloved, aquamation offers a dignified and supportive final rite.
A kinder way that's a first in South Africa
We’re proud to be able to offer our AVBOB customers (private customers or policyholders) a more sublime way of seeing off their loved ones. Through the kinder practice of aquamation, both our loved ones and our planet are honoured.
All your questions answered
- How does the process actually work?
With aquamation, the beloved’s body is respectfully laid out in a receptacle, which is then placed in a sterile, stainless-steel chamber. A combination of gentle water flow, moderate temperatures and alkalinity are then used to hasten the natural process, and all organic material is benignly broken down into its most basic building blocks. At the end, the sterile process water is released for recycling – our bodies are made of about 63% water to begin with – and only the inorganic minerals remain. These are then lightly processed into powder and returned to the family in an urn.
- Is acid used?
No. Aquamation uses a catalyst called alkali which, in fact, is the chemical opposite of acid. Alkalis are made from sodium and potassium salts.
- Are the alkalis used in this process safe for the environment?
Yes. The water-based process uses a solution of 95% water and 5% alkali (a combination of sodium and potassium hydroxide). By the end of the process, the chemicals will have been completely absorbed and neutralised, and will no longer remain in the water solution.
- Why is this seen as an environmentally friendly choice?
It’s a cleaner, kinder process. With aquamation, there is no direct emission of harmful greenhouse gases or mercury into the atmosphere. It is also extremely energy efficient, with more than 90% energy savings compared to flame cremation, and with just 1/10th of the carbon footprint.
- What is the impact of the water usage?
Virtually none at all. The aquamation process uses as much water as a single household uses in a day. This includes the water used in the actual process, along with the final rinsing of the mineral remains and of the stainless-steel chamber.
- Where is Aquamation available?
Aquamation is currently only available at the AVBOB Maitland Funeral Parlour, in Cape Town.
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