Cornerstone in the Media

New York Post - "Why human composting with ‘green burials’ is the next big thing" - Author Elizabeth Fournier’s book has become a bible of sorts for the green burial movement.

Disruptor News - "Dying to Save the Earth: Eco-Friendly Green Burials Taking Root" - Did you know you could help save the Earth even after you die? Welcome to the “green burial” movement.

Planet Haliburton, 100.9 FM Ontario - "Why Green Burials" - Your Ecological Legacy After Death

Lifehacker - "You Should Have Your Body Composted When You Die" - If you talk the talk about sustainability, green burial practices can help you walk the walk—even when you're dead.

KOIN News TV - "Human Composting a New Business Opportunity in Oregon" - The Oregon Mortuary and Cemetery Board hasn't received any applications to start a human composting facility.

Bloomberg Businessweek - "How I Avoid Burnout: An Undertaker Urges Five Minute Vacations" - Seize downtime when you can and cherish life.

KOIN News TV- "Oregon is the third state in U.S. to legalize human composting" - Cornerstone has given families the option of natural organic reduction since it was legalized in Washington in 2020.

Environmental Directions Radio - Elizabeth Fournier discusses the simplicity of green burial with host Nancy Perlman.

American Cemetery and Cremation Magazine, "New Life in Death" - Elizabeth Fournier, the owner and undertaker of Cornerstone Funeral, in Boring, Oregon, traveled to Herland Forest to assist with preparing the remains for the cemetery’s natural organic reduction.

iPondr, "How Our Bodies Can Become Our Last Gift to Earth" - In Boring, Oregon, Elizabeth provides families with an environmentally friendly burial option and a new way of grieving.

Medium, "The Green Reaper, Introducing Creativity to Death" - Creative inspiration during pandemic mourning.

Sierra Magazine, "Now You Can Compost Human Bodies Too" - The latest eco-burial method.

Jefferson Pubic Radio: "Back to Nature with What's Left of You"- Herland Forest in southern Washington offers an option that amounts to turning a human body into compost.

Authority Magazine, "Elizabeth Fournier: 5 Things You Should Do To Become a Thought Leader In Your Industry" - Compassion. Upcycle. Dare. Mantra. Love.

Natural Awakenings, "The Green Burial Revolution: Sustainable End-of-Life Options" - You can build a replication of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco annually with all the metal placed in the ground. Why would we bury these materials that people could actually be using?”

Tillamook Headlight Herald, "Greening Your End of Life Options" - Elizabeth Fournier, green mortician and eco-educator, will discuss home funerals and natural burials in a Zoom Workshop presented by the Hoffman Center’s Art of Aging/Art of Dying program.

Oregon Public Broadcasting, "Grieving During a Pandemic" - People are struggling to mourn loved ones during a pandemic.

CNET, "Death from a distance: COVID-19 is denying families the right to mourn" - Technology is helping families say goodbye to loved ones, but it's no replacement for the real thing.

Medium, "Why My Funeral Home Offers Viewings in the Family Driveway" - I have become a one-woman traveling visitation service.

Catholic Sentinel, "Mourning Alone" - Funeral directors and families have worked together to cope with the loss of families coming together

Medium, "Home Funerals in the COVID-19 Season of Funeral Cancel Culture" - Death in the time of COVID- 19 means states are banning public gatherings to mourn their loved ones, regardless if their deceased loved one tests negative for coronavirus.

National Home Funeral Alliance's A Path Home podcast, "Bury Me Under the Oak Tree" - Jamie asked to be buried under an oak tree in the yard of her home. Green funeral director Elizabeth Fournier helps make it happen.

LinkedIn, "COVID- 19: The Unfortunate Funeral Cancel Culture" - Funeral cancel culture by virus is alive, but the families I serve are returning to traditional ways to say goodbye to their dead with keeping their loved one at home.

Think Out Loud on OPB, "Funeral During the Pandemic" - Social distancing measures meant to curb the effects of the novel coronavirus are forcing people to rethink what a funeral looks like right now.

Eugene Register-Guard, "Pandemic Changes How We Mourn" - Death in the time of COVID-19 has denied this family their right to mourn with loved ones due to new social boundaries.

Estacada News, "Mourning in the Time of COVID-19 " - Changes that the coronavirus pandemic has brought to the funeral industry.

National Home Funeral Alliance's A Path Home podcast, "Funeral Changes During COVID-19 " - Host Sarah Crews discusses changes to the funeral landscape since the onset of the Covid-19 crisis in the US with Elizabeth Fournier and Dani LaVoire.

Penny Hoarder, "These Eight Alternatives to Traditional Funeral Will Save Your Family Money " - If you’re the loved one left behind to handle funeral planning and expenses, it can help to know what you’re getting into.

Mother Earth Living, "Green Burial Shrouds" - Learn what materials to look for and how to prepare a loved one’s body for an eco-friendly burial from a green burial expert.

Mother Earth News, "The Green Burial Guidebook: Cremation" - Find out about the best environmentally-friendly methods of cremation, remains storage and unique ways to honor the departed.

Good News Network, "As First U.S. State Approves Human Composting, 'The Green Reaper' Has Your Guide To Eco-Friendly Burials" - Offering woven caskets is just one of the things that makes Fournier’s mortuary business particularly remarkable.

U.S. News & World Report, "Funeral Costs to Plan For" - Planning ahead can help mitigate the financial toll on loved ones.

Catholic Sentinel, "Green Burial" - Rather than choosing financial and ecological burdens, more families opt for green burials."

Camas-Washougal Post-Record, "Washougal Considers Allowing Green Burials" - Workshop by Elizabeth Fournier of Cornerstone Funeral Services will help gauge interest.

Sierra Club, "Make an Eco-Conscious Final Exit"- After devouring The Green Burial Guidebook in one sitting, Sierra called up the Green Reaper to discuss climate-conscious changes within the funeral industry and greener ways to go about dying.

Portland Tribune, "Boring Mortician Shares "Green Burial" Secrets in New Book" - Elizabeth seeks to help those dealing with death, provide multiple options for burial.

Reader's Digest, "14 Creepy Things Found in People’s Houses" - Fournier has been privy to her share of secrets that only the dead can tell.

Penny Hoarder, “Forget the Rising Cost of Living. Funeral Costs Shot Up 227% in 31 Years” - Elizabeth Fournier advises looking at family-run or independent funeral homes if you’re trying to keep costs down.

Next Avenue, “Dogs in the Funeral Home Offer Comfort for the Grieving” - Angel is the official mascot and unofficial therapy dog at Cornerstone Funeral Services.

Earth.com, “Good News! A Round-up of Environmental Progressive Progress” - Undertaker Elizabeth Fournier became known as funeral professional not afraid to go non-traditional—and more earth-friendly in her services.

Natural Awakenings Magazine, “Forever Green - Eco-Burial Options Grow” - Natural burials allow those that lived their principles of an environmentally sound life to complete their days in a planet-friendly, personalized way.

Chicago Tribune, “Who Gets the Ashes?” - There are solutions that can attempt to sidestep the problem for everybody involved.

Animal Wellness, “Saying Goodbye to Pets” - So, what’s the best way to invite friends and family to a funeral for a dog or cat without feeling awkward?

Good News Network, “She is the 'Green Reaper' changing the expensive funeral game” - That’s why one mortician in Boring, Oregon decided to make a difference—bringing her big heart and lower-cost biodegradable options to the funeral business in her small town.

People Magazine, “Oregon's 'Green Reaper' Is on a One-Woman Crusade to Change the Way We Bury Our Dead” - Working out of a remodeled goat barn in the small town of Boring, Oregon, [pop. 8,000], Elizabeth Fournier is doing her part to change the way Americans bury their dead.

Business Insider Australia, “People are ditching traditional burials en masse for a cheaper and easier option” - The death of a tradition.

P & G Everyday, “9 Ways to Help a Grieving Loved One” - Practical advice on supporting someone after a loss.

U.S. News & World Report, “How to Handle Funeral Costs” - Funeral expenses can reach thousands of dollars. Here's how you and your survivors can prepare.

Portland Tribune, “O, Death Spare Me Till We Talk About It” - Death Cafes tackle the taboo topic to help folks make most of their lives.

Holly Pruett, Life Cycle Celebrant Blog, “A Burial Outside the Box” - Jamie lived her life with a respect for the environment. She wanted to show that same respect in death, too.

Portland Monthly, “Death Becomes Her” - The “Green Reaper” of Boring, Oregon finds a calling—and a fresh start for an industry in flux—with wicker caskets, backyard burials, and free baby hugs.

Naturally Savvy, “Spiritual Green Burials: An Eco Afterlife with the Earth” - As we maneuver along our spiritual path, we ultimately discover that death truly links us to life.

Naturally Savvy, “Hanging Coffins And Natural Burials” - The people of Sagada in the Philippines follow a unique burial ritual.The elderly carve their own coffins out of hollowed logs and the coffins are brought to a cave for burial. Instead of being placed into the ground, the coffins are hung either inside the caves or on the face of the cliffs, near the hanging coffins of their ancestors.

Naturally Savvy, “Green Flameless Cremation” - Methods that are efficient, cost-effective and minimize impact upon our environment are what our society needs. Even though many people assume there’s only one form of cremation a new "green" method is rising in popularity.

Funeral Home and Cemetery Executive Briefing, “The Upswing of Creative Funeral Services” - Funeral service consumers are seeking a service that is as unique as the person who died. The idea of personalization has resulted in an explosion of unique and meaningful services being held.

Funeral Home and Cemetery Executive Briefing, “How to be Green in the Afterlife” - Families aren't always aware that many options exist other than the synthetic preservatives and impermeable caskets expected to resist the likely forces of decomposition.

Funeral Home and Cemetery Executive Briefing, “Backyard Burials Growing in Popularity” - There's something appealing about the return to family cemetery plots on land where the decedent lived. And there's obviously a very, very long tradition of this.

Naturally Savvy, “DIY Natural Wood Casket (Yes, Casket!)” - Richard’s quick steps of how to make a casket and help bring back the historic charm of wooden caskets.

Catholic Sentinel, “Green Burial Option Kinder to Earth” - Green burial can be completely consistent with Catholic beliefs.

Naturally Savvy, “Scattering Ashes - Safe for the Environment?” - The rich mineral concentrations in cremated remains can also have a bad effect on the soils and eventually on the plants. We greenies often advise people not to dump ashes on mountain tops, where ashes can affect fresh plant life.

Naturally Savvy, “How To Bury Your Pet, Naturally” - Over the years, burials at pet cemeteries have become more socially accepted as they model themselves, in large part, on human cemeteries and attend to maintenance, landscaping and supportive services.

Naturally Savvy, “Aquification is a Greener Cremation” - So what choice does a greenie have who really does not want to be put in the ground? A little-known method is on the rise and scratching the surface of the U.S. market—water resomation.

Old Rockers, “Lessons Learned From Sesame Street” - Kids can handle the truth. They can handle death. It’s adults than need happy stories to ease their discomfort.

Naturally Savvy, “Sacred Medicine Wheel” - Many religious ceremonies are specifically tied to a specific location, and to harm that place would be contrary to Native American beliefs. Because of this, Native American funeral practices have always been eco-friendly.

ienhance, “What Happens To Breast Implants When You Die?” - For women who opt to be cremated when they die, they pose a unique dilemma for the funeral service provider.

Public Library Association, “Electronically Preserving Obituaries” - These little newspaper gems can bring a vast amount of new information to you about your ancestors.

Huffington Post, Artificial Solutions, A Non-Profit Charity, Recycles Artificial Hips From Cadavers”- That old saying when a person dies, "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust," doesn't quite work if they have artificial hips, knees or dental prosthetics.

Naturally Savvy, “Vertical Burials are a Greener Option” - New green think-tankers believe we should move away from our practice of digging horizontal burial plots in favor of a more space-conscious, vertical burial plot. If this were the case we could bury twice as many people in the same space.

Naturally Savvy, “Sustainability Becoming a Part of Mourning Meals” - When the crowds come to show their respect, they descend upon the grieving household, their favorite recipe prepared in a dish that need not be returned—even if it is vintage Pyrex in avocado green or tangerine orange.

The Oregonian, “Oregon's voices in the green-burial movement see increase in interest” - The green burial movement is still small but those involved in the business of death are seeing a steady uptick in interest as people who previously leaned toward cremation are hearing about returning their body to the elements, essentially composting it.

AOL News, “Green Reaper Wants US to Be Green to the Grave” - Spend eternity without harming Earth by creating urns out of leftover laundry lint.

AOL News, “Earth Day: How to Create an Urn From Dryer Lint” - You can make a very personal urn for you or your loved one for pennies just by using leftover laundry lint.

Naturally Savvy, "Ecopod: Biodegradable Burial with Style” - When it is time for my last prance down the catwalk, I want to be encased in something as sleek as an eel skin platform pump, and as glamorous as a Mongolian lamb vest—but an obviously greener and cruelty-free version.

Alternatives Magazine, “Green Burial” - I live in a lovely, rural county in Oregon where we are allowed to bury our loved ones in our own backyards. Yes, I said backyards. And as the undertaker overseeing five small towns, I have personally buried people in their own backyards.

Naturally Savvy, “Green Burials Reunite the Body with the Earth” - When someone dies we immediately call the undertaker to "under take" all planning and preparation of the body. But some families are now moving away from merely passing their loved one on to a professional, and are seeing the value in lovingly carrying out the preparations themselves. It is their final gift to their loved one.

Attribute Magazine, “Take Green to Your Grave” - Environmentally harmful dispositions and other ecologically unfriendly practices have caused a new generation of death care professionals to green up the funeral industry with burials that tread lightly on the terrain.

The Huffington Post, “Why to Have a Green Burial from The Green Reaper” - Eschewing big profits to prophet old-school burial practices that are kinder to humans and the Earth.

The Huffington Post, “The Ultimate Gift: A Green Goodbye” - How green to make a burial is left up to each family.

Daily Vanguard, “To Die A Green Death: Oregonians Take Going Green To The Grave” - Not all of us will graduate college, give birth, win a Rose Bowl or even cook a Thanksgiving dinner, but we all will eventually die. Our own mortality and that of our loved ones is not something we spend a lot of time thinking about and planning for, but it should be.

The Oregonian, “Death Goes Green with Eco-Friendly Burials” - No-frills funerals start at $6,000. Toss in extras such as high-end caskets, viewings, in-chapel services and motorcycle escort to a cemetery, and the bill can run easily double that. Green burials aren't necessarily cheap but can trim total costs by about half.

Community Seeds Eco-Magazine, “Planning For The Eco-Friendly Burial” - A green burial not only saves money, but open space is preserved as well. Allowing people to feel as though their last act on earth contributes to a positive purpose connects them in an almost holy way to this concept.

Love to Know Magazine, “Choosing Green Burial” - As people have become more aware of their impact on the planet, more are choosing green burial options for themselves and those they love. However, many who are interested in planning an earth-friendly burial have no idea where to start. Fortunately, there are resources available that will show you how to start your planning process.

Green Living Journal, “Greening Your Finale” - Humans plan many aspects of their lives. It can be difficult to consider our own life's end. We should all take a little time to plan our final eco-friendly act — our own burial.

Green and Save News, “Green Burial” - Environmentally harmful dispositions and other ecologically unfriendly practices have caused a new generation of death care professionals to green up the funeral industry with burials that tread lightly on the terrain.

Goodness Magazine, ”Women Who Care For Life After Death” - I often hear that I don’t look like a funeral director, but historically in the United States, women were the first caretakers of the dead. They were called “layers out of the dead.”

Living Green Magazine, “Meeting the Green Reaper: Natural Burial Favored by Seniors, Gives Families an Intimate Experience” - A recent AARP poll asked: "Which type of burial is most appealing?" Only 8% wanted a traditional cemetery burial, and only 18% chose cremation. Over 70% of those polled through the AARP website chose Green Burial.

Green Girls Global, “Green is The New Black” - A green goodbye means no toxic embalming chemicals such as formaldehyde, and no glitzy, semiprecious metal caskets. This is, perhaps, the final gesture of reuse and renewal. We’re talking simply green, but nowhere does it say it can’t be done in screamin’ style!

Oregon Business, “Twitter, Don't Be A Quitter” - While there are many benefits to a rural lifestyle, getting attention and building a vibrant business in an out-of-the-way place are not easy, and that’s why Fournier uses social media in a different way: as an economical, effective branding tool.

KGW - Portland: “'Green reaper' offers environmentally friendly burial”

KATU - Portland: “Green Living: Environmentally Friendly Funerals”

Wisconsin Public Radio, "Eco-Friendly Burials Reflect Old Interment Practices" - Without Embalming Or Ornate Caskets, Green Burials Are Becoming A More Popular Option

Jefferson Public Radio: "Being Kind To The Planet In Funeral Planning"

Green Divas Radio Show: “The Charming Green Reaper discusses choices in more eco-friendly funerals”

KBOO Radio Book Interview: Elizabeth Fournier talks with Sarah Murray, author of “Making an Exit: From the Magnificent to the Macabre—How We Dignify the Dead”

KBOO Radio Book Interview: Elizabeth Fournier interviews Marilyn Yalom, author of: “The American Resting Place: 400 Years of History Through Our Cemeteries and Burial Grounds”

KBOO Radio: Elizabeth Fournier discusses “Death & Dying: Green Funeral Options in Oregon”