San Pablo Cemetery Adds Funeral Center, Vineyards

When Bishop Allen Vignernon presides at the dedication of the new Holy Angels Funeral Center at St. Joseph Cemetery in San Pablo on May 3, he will launch a new chapter in the life of one of the diocese's six final resting places.

The dedication service, which begins with Mass at 11 a.m., officially marks the completion of the new funeral center, which cost approximately $4 million. The cemetery also underwent a $2 million renovation that included resetting thousands of gravestones and repaving of roads.

The new funeral center is designed to reflect traditional styles while embracing contemporary needs. A plaza forms the entry and there is an interior courtyard as well. "The idea was to give people space to gather both within the facility and outside of it," said Robert Seelig, diocesan cemetery director.

Inside the 13,000-square-foot facility are a main chapel, two smaller chapels and a reception hall. The main chapel has five stained glass windows that were salvaged from earthquake-damaged St. Francis de Sales Cathedral before it was razed in 1993. The stained glass had been saved for use in a new cathedral and several pieces were left after the mausoleum at the new Cathedral of Christ the Light was built, Seelig said.

The stained glass is at eye level and it appears as if the saints depicted in the glass are "sitting there staring at you," Seelig added. "It's just gorgeous. . . . it is literally quite striking."

The small chapels are arranged so they can accommodate a small group of 20-30 people or a larger gathering of up to 200. "It was very important for us to provide a church-like feeling in the chapels, but also to design the smaller chapels to allow a family to feel like they are not in a cavernous church when there may only be 10 or 20 people at a smaller service," Seelig said.

The reception hall can seat more than 100 people and its French doors lead to a patio space and grassy area for large receptions.

The new funeral center allows families to make both funeral and cemetery arrangements at one place. There are four rooms where cemetery staff can meet with families and a display room for choosing caskets, urns and memorial books. Unlike traditional casket rooms which contained 10-15 full-size caskets, the funeral center will be using quarter-cut caskets that show the wood or metal finish.

Preparation of the body or cremation will take place at Holy Angels Funeral and Cremation Center within Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Hayward, Seelig said. But families using the San Pablo funeral center are not required to go to Hayward for any part of the arrangement process.

The viewing/visitation of the deceased and the vigil or wake portion of the funeral service will take place at the San Pablo site. The funeral Mass, coordinated by the center, will take place at a local parish church with burial following at St. Joseph Cemetery. After the vigil or funeral services families can use the reception center.

The funeral center at St. Joseph Cemetery can accommodate 600 funerals a year, although it will more likely conduct about 300 this year, Seelig said.

Like its counterparts in Hayward and Antioch, the renovated San Pablo cemetery now has eight acres of vineyards. The cool climate and soil conditions in the San Pablo region are best for growing Pinoit Noir, Seelig said. Cemetery officials are also looking at planting Sangiovese - an old world variety from Italy - and there are discussions about planning Syrah.

"These varieties will help complement the Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel planted in Antioch and the Chardonnay, Zinfandel, Pinot Noir, and Primitivo planted in Hayward," he said.

It is too soon to know if any of the San Pablo vineyard will lead to successful wines. Seelig described the plants as decorative and "very symbolic" of the changes made at the site. "We feel that it is very important to bring life into the cemetery and the vineyard serves an important part of that symbolism - from the wine of the Eucharist to the tending to the vines."

Written by Carrie McClish, The Catholic Voice.