INTRODUCTION:
For the mutual protection and benefit of grave owners, the following RULES AND REGULATIONS have been adopted by St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church Cemetery located at 50 S. West Street, Norwalk, Ohio.
 All grave owners and visitors within the Cemetery and all graves sold shall be subject to said RULES AND REGULATIONS, and subject further to such other RULES AND REGULATIONS, amendments or alterations as shall be adopted from time to time.

DEFINITIONS:
The terms “Lot”, “Plot”, “Grave”, or “Burial place” shall be used interchangeably and shall apply with like effect to one or more adjoining graves.
The term “interment” shall mean the permanent disposition of the remains of a deceased person by burial.
The term “inurnment” shall mean the permanent disposition of the cremated remains of a deceased person by burial or by placement within a columbarium niche.
The term “memorial” shall include a monument or marker.
 A monument is above the ground and is placed at the head of the grave.
 A marker is level with the ground and is placed at the head of the grave.
The term “management” shall comprise the persons constituting the St. Paul Cemetery Board duly appointed by the Parish Pastor.
The term “care” shall apply to the entire Cemetery provided by either a permanent care fund or by St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church.

GENERAL RULES AND REGULATIONS:
St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church Cemetery is owned and operated in accordance with the laws of the State of Ohio and the rules and discipline of the Roman Catholic Church. It reserves the right to refuse admission to the Cemetery and to refuse the use of any of the Cemetery’s facilities at any time, to any person or persons whom the Management may deem objectionable to the best interests of the Cemetery.
The Cemetery is intended for the burial of Catholics and members of their families who are entitled to Christian burial according to the rules and discipline of the Roman Catholic Church.  Any question of the burial of a non-Catholic member of a lot owner’s family or of any person not entitled to Christian burial shall be decided by the Pastor.
Religious ceremonies other than those of the Roman Catholic Church are not permitted in the Cemetery unless the consent of the Pastor has been obtained.

LOT AND LOT OWNERS:
No grave shall be used for any other purpose than for the burial of the human dead.
The Cemetery disclaims all responsibility for loss or damage from causes beyond its reasonable control, and especially from damage caused by the elements, an act of God, common enemy, thieves, vandals, strikers, explosions, insurrections, or order of any military or civil authority, whether the damage be direct or collateral, other than as herein provided.
Grave owners are granted only the right of interment in their graves. The Cemetery reserves the right to refuse to permit the interment of anyone who was not at the time of death the owner of the grave or a relative of the owner by blood or marriage.

CORRECTION OF ERRORS:
The Cemetery reserves and shall have, the right to correct any errors that may be made by it either in making interments, disinterments or removals, or in the description, transfer or conveyance of any interment property.

CARE OF GRAVES:
The Cemetery will give such care as it can, the care to consist of cutting the grass and general preservation of the grounds.  The general care assumed by the Cemetery shall in no case mean maintenance, repair or replacement of any vase, basket, memorial, flowers, or other objects placed upon a grave or of the memorial marking any grave.

BURIALS

INTERMENTS:
No “Interment” of a body will be made in a grave which is not fully paid.
The Funeral Director, upon arrival at the Cemetery, must present a valid burial permit.
Once a casket containing a body is within the confines of the Cemetery, no funeral director nor his embalmer, assistant, employee, or agent shall be permitted to open the casket, or to touch the body without the consent of the next of kin or of the legal representative or the deceased, or of an order signed by a court of competent jurisdiction.
Special care must be taken to properly mark the grave with the individual’s names when 2 bodies are interred in the same space.
No interment of a body may be made unless the remains are contained in either a casket and vault,  or urn and vault

INURNMENTS:
The inurnment or burial of a set of cremated remains must be contained in a suitable container and is allowed under certain conditions which must be approved by the Pastor.
No inurnment will be made in a grave or niche not fully paid for.
The person bringing the cremated remains to the cemetery must give a “Certificate of Cremation” to the cemetery representative who is present.
Once a container containing the cremated remains of a body is within the confines of the Cemetery, the container shall not be opened without the consent of the next of kin or of the legal representative of the deceased, or of an order signed by a court of competent jurisdiction.
Inurnment of a set of cremated remains into a grave where a body has been buried or of two sets of cremated remains in one grave is permitted. When this occurs, special care must be taken to properly make the graves with the individual’s names.

CEMETERY DECORATIONS:
Natural decorations such as potted plants in an approved plant stand, cut flowers evergreen wreaths and artificial decorations such as silk flowers are permitted.
Boxes, toys, shells, rods of wood or metal, loose wire, glassware of any kind, chairs, benches, trellises, rustic work, and other so-called ornamental objects are strictly prohibited and will be removed.
It is not permissible to plant anything on the lot, nor to use any other forms of artificial decorations without permission of the management.
The Cemetery management has the right to remove any or all decorations when deemed necessary.

MEMORIAL WORK:
No memorials may be placed on any grave that is not fully paid.
Lot owners may erect proper memorial work on their respective lots subject to the approval of the Management. All monuments shall be set on foundations built of concrete and of the size and depth prescribed by the management.
Memorials may be placed only in the designated areas.
No coping, curbing, fencing, hedging, borders or enclosures of any kind shall be allowed around any grave and no walks of brick, cinders, tile, terra cotta, sand, cement, gravel or wood shall be allowed on any grave.  Management reserves the right to remove the same if so erected, planted or placed.
Workmen employed in placing or erecting memorials and other structures or materials shall operate as independent contractors but must do so under permission from the pastor.
The right is reserved to the pastor to refuse to permit such work, unless the grounds are thoroughly settled and in good condition.

St. Paul Church Cemetery reserves the right to stop all work of any nature, whenever, in its opinion,
 —-proper preparations have not been made.
 —-or when tools and machinery are insufficient or defective.
 —-or when work is being executed in such a manner as to threaten life or property.
 —-or when the monument dealer has been guilty of misrepresentation.
 —-or when any reasonable request on the part of the pastor is disregarded.
 —-or when work is not being executed according to specifications.
 —-or when any person employed on the work violates any rule of the Cemetery.
When any memorial work has been set in place, it shall not be removed without due process of law or written
permission of the management.

MARKERS
At each grave one single wide marker is permitted or on two adjacent graves a double wide marker is permitted.
 —Single wide makers shall be 24 inches long, 12 inches wide and not less than 4 inches in thickness.
 —Double wide markers shall be 42 inches long, 12 inches wide and not less that 6 inches in thickness.
The marker may not extend into the grave of another owner.  A marker shall be readable from the foot of the grave.

MONUMENTS
The monument shall rest on a base. The overall size of the monument and base shall be defined as follows:
 —Large monuments: 24” to 42” long and 8” to 12” wide and 13” to 36” high
 —Small monuments: 24” to 42” long and 8” to 12” wide and Up to 12” high
The monument and base shall rest on a concrete foundation. The foundation shall extend 4 inches beyond the perimeter of the base. A large monument will have a foundation which is 48 inches deep; a small monument will have a foundation which is 24 inches deep. The foundation may not extend into the grave of another owner.
A monument shall be readable from the foot of the grave.

TRANSFER OF TITLE
Written consent from the Church of St. Paul the Apostle is required for any sale, transfer or assignment of lots.
The Church of St. Paul the Apostle will buy back unused lots at the original cost of those lots.  Title to graves descends by Will, Trust Agreement or Statutes of the State of Ohio.

• One casket with vault 
  • One urn with vault may be added but will incur an additional lot fee ($500)
• One urn with vault
  • One additional urn with vault may be added but will incur an additional lot fee ($500)

• In order to ensure continuity of design, all lettering on columbarium niches will be completed by an engraver chosen by the cemetery management.
• At the discretion of the Pastor, perpetual care fees may be waived for Priest, Religious, or infant.
• All in-ground burials, whether casket or urn, require a vault.
• Lots may be purchased at any time and payment plan options are available.  The purchase price must be paid, in full, before a burial is carried out.
• Perpetual Care fees are collected at the time of burial, not at the time of purchase of lot/niche.
• Currently, lots are available for purchase in Sections 15 and 16.
• St. Paul Cemetery lots may not be sold to a third party; if the lot is no longer needed, please contact the St Paul parish office to discuss your options.

These prices/policies will go into effect October 1, 2021.  St. Paul Cemetery management reserves the right to modify prices and policies at any time.

Last updated October 2021

Definitions

Burial - The act or ceremony of putting a dead body in its final resting place; also, interment, entombment
Casket – Vessel for storage of non-cremated body
Columbarium – A structure containing niches for the inurnment of cremated remains
Disinter - To remove a casket or urn from its resting place
Funeral Mass – A Mass for the deceased at which the remains (casket or urn) are present
Inurnment – The act or ceremony of placing an urn containing cremains in its final resting place
Mausoleum - A stone building with places for the dead bodies of several people
Memorial Mass – A Mass for the deceased at which the remains are not present
Perpetual Care Fee – Fee collected at the time of burial which is invested to ensure the cemetery will be cared for well into the future
Urn – Vessel for storage of cremated remains
Vault – Lined and sealed outer receptacle that houses the casket

Prices effective November 1, 2021.

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