Northern Pyre and Open-Air Cremation
by Ashley
Using the tried-and-true Simon Sinek Golden Circle, here’s Northern Pyre’s business model.
The Why: Much like your life, your death has value.
The How: The tradition of cremation under the sky goes back thousands of years and is a respectful way to honor a person’s passing and grieve their transition.
The What: We provide open-air cremation services.
Northern Pyre was conceived in 2020 as I was reading Caitlin Doughty’s book From Here to Eternity over Thanksgiving break. I was in the middle of my MBA program and had one week free between A-term and B-term classes, so I wanted to catch up on reading and say that I had done something productive besides re-watching the Lady Heather episodes of CSI.
The very first chapter of Doughty’s book told the story of her witnessing a legal and public open-air cremation in Crestone CO, managed by the Crestone End of Life Project (CEOLP).
Stepping back for some context: There are three legal end-of-life options in the US:
Cremation
Burial
Donation
There are different sub-options within these categories (green burial, burial at sea, donation to science vs. medicine, Body Worlds, etc.), but the key takeaway is that a person’s body autonomy after death is limited to these options. No one can elect to have themselves kept at home, or have their body parts de-fleshed and given to loved ones (the notable exception is tattoos, which is a fascinating process in and of itself.)
Doughty’s story of CEOLP outlined their mission and all the roadblocks along the way: Its start as a portable pyre service, the team’s struggle with community acceptance, their unwavering belief in death education. At first blush, open-air cremation seems like it’s a fringe passion project; but its roots in tradition and ceremony go much further back in history than our modern industrialization of the cremation process.
By the time I had read about Crestone, I knew I wanted to be cremated. I also wanted a ceremonial element to it. I was uncomfortable with the current cremation options because they literally and figuratively distance the body. There’s something about seeing a box of ashes and not registering that this was, at one point, a person.
I feel like this is intentional, since death is so stigmatized in the US. We are given very little time with our loved ones after they die, time that could be spent accepting their new state and grieving their passing. We see them at wakes and funerals for a couple of hours, then never again. The cremation is hidden, but our pain is public.
When I first heard about open-air cremation, I knew it was what I wanted. I fully expect that there are some (many!) people who will learn about it and know that it’s not for them - and that’s okay. Northern Pyre can exist as another option for one of the most personal and introspective decisions that a person can make: What should happen with your body when you die?
