Hillig Meer Natural Cemetery in Eext will build a new reception center. Due to the increased demand for funerals in nature, more space is needed to welcome relatives and guests.
The current reception house can accommodate a maximum of 75 people, but the new center should fit twice as many people. The building will also be located on the other side of the busy Provincialeweg, which separates the reception area and the cemetery of Hillig Meer.
“At the moment we still have to call in traffic controllers to cross that road with the funeral procession,” says location manager Lobke Kooistra. “That is sometimes quite dangerous. That is why we are building the new reception house on the same side as the cemetery.”
Natural funerals are becoming increasingly popular, according to figures from trade association Brana. Ten years ago, only 150 people opted for a burial at an official natural cemetery, by 2022 this had already increased to 2,600. No less than seventeen times as much.
According to Brana chairman Walter Kooy, this increase will continue in the coming years. “Two to three natural cemeteries are added in the Netherlands every year. This means that you keep getting new groups for whom natural burial becomes accessible.”
At Hillig Meer they also notice that there is increasing interest in natural funerals. In the beginning, exactly ten years ago, according to location manager Kooistra, nature lovers mainly wanted a place. Now there are more often people with a different reason for being buried in Eext.
“We see more people who come to us for practical reasons. Here you have perpetual grave rest. Surviving relatives therefore do not have to worry about paying burial fees in the future,” says Kooistra.
Watch the video about natural burial at Hillig Meer below