Secret Santas & Coffin Experiences | 4M #165

Welcome to the hundred-and-sixty-fifth edition of Morticians’ Monday Morning Mashup, 4M #165, where we’ll serve up bite-sized, easily-digestible nuggets of the deathcare news you need to crush conversations in the week ahead. Bon appetit!

Ongoing investigation update

Medical examiners at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation are still working to complete the identification of the 18 deceased individuals discovered in late October at Johnson Funeral & Cremation Services in Douglas, Georgia. Our hearts go out to the families who are still waiting to learn if their loved ones were among those who were never buried or cremated as promised by the facility’s owner, Chris Johnson, who has been charged with 17 felony counts of abuse of a corpse. Here are a few of the latest updates on the ongoing investigation:

• Johnson is still in custody, but has been relocated to other jails TWICE “for his safety.”
• Authorities searched the woods behind the facility last week, but told reporters the search was just “a box that needed checking off,” and nothing was found.
• Twelve of the 18 bodies have been identified, according to the GBI.
• The GBI is also testing cremains presented to families to determine if they are indeed human remains.
• Johnson’s bond hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, November 19.
• The district attorney is planning to ask for a continuance of this hearing until January 8, 2025 in the hopes that  all the bodies will have been identified  by then and family members can attend the hearing.

Dare you not to cry

The holidays always bring beautiful stories of generosity, and this one definitely does not disappoint. Last week, an anonymous “Secret Santa” gifted an Idaho woman with $1,000 in grocery gift cards, a car, and … a check to purchase a gravestone for her son.  A team from the East Idaho News presented these items to this sweet lady, identified only as “Theresa,” at the assisted living facility where she worked. The story explained that Theresa had lost her 21-year-old son just a few months ago to an asthma attack, and although she paid for his funeral, she was unable to afford a gravestone. If you don’t mind shedding a few happy tears, you can watch the heartwarming video here. By the way, the anonymous donor has designated a total of $1 million for all of these Secret Santa missions!

Try before you buy

A 120-year-old Japanese funeral home has added a new service to its offerings: an “into-the-coffin-cafe” experience that lets visitors lie as long as they’d like in one of three “elaborate coffins designed by the maker ‘Grave Tokyo.’” The owner hopes that the opportunity will help people feel “reborn” as they climb out of the coffin. He also believes that this experience could be especially helpful for depressed people or those considering suicide. 

Coming to Queens

Last week the Department of Veterans Affairs announced its 156th national cemetery; it’s the first to be opened in the past two years and also the first in the department’s urban initiative program. The cemetery, St. Albans National Cemetery and Columbarium, will open next spring in Queens, New York and will house 3,700 cremated remains.