Named 2017 “American Cemetery Excellence” Winner

NEWARK, N.J. – Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum in North Arlington, New Jersey, a property of Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Newark, is the winner of the 2017 American Cemetery Excellence (ACE) Award. The award is presented by American Cemetery & Cremation magazine, a leading publication serving the funeral and cemetery industry, and recognizes the most outstanding cemeteries both within the United States and abroad.

According to the magazine’s December issue, in which the winner was announced, “far more than just a final resting place, Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum offers a park-like setting, exquisite artwork, modern technology and a faith-inspired atmosphere. It’s easy to understand why Holy Cross Cemetery & Mausoleum has been selected as our seventh annual American Cemetery Excellence award winner.”

“We received dozens of entries from cemeteries – all of them doing great things to serve their communities,” said Allison Sullivan, publisher of Kates-Boylston Publications. “But Holy Cross stood out in so many ways, and it truly exemplifies that cemeteries can continue to be relevant and beautiful.”

“It is an honor to be recognized with this prestigious award,” said Andrew P. Schafer, Executive Director of Catholic Cemeteries. “It recognizes our team’s commitment to our mission of faith and to the excellent service provided to bereaved families and our Catholic community. We are very proud of this distinction.”

Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum offers an environment in which families feel welcome and comforted at a time when they need it most. Established in 1915 to meet the needs of Catholic families, almost 300,000 individuals are interred in the 200-acre cemetery.

The artwork, headstones and private family mausoleums at Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum are evidence of timeless Catholic traditions that are deeply intertwined in the cemetery’s heritage. However, the cemetery also has moved full-speed ahead with cutting-edge technology and architecture, innovative product choices, excellent customer service and unsurpassed beauty and grandeur. The cemetery is a unique and holy place that allows families to memorialize and remember their departed loved ones in a beautiful, inviting and faith-filled atmosphere. It is a holy place with a museum-like characteristic and is recognized as one of the most magnificent cemeteries in the country.

Central to the cemetery is its 250,000-square-foot mausoleum – a modern marvel that spanned 37 years of construction and expansion. The Genesis Mausoleum Chapel, which was completed in 2013, features 90 major works of art, including numerous original statues, 100-year-old stained and etched glass and accompanying liturgical works of art.

The breathtaking mausoleum expansion combines ancient scriptures and contemporary art in an effort to transform the unsettling reputation of cemeteries and mausoleums into a welcoming place filled with beautiful and meaningful symbols that inspire faith and hope.

According to Schafer, it is the commitment to families and attention to detail that has contributed to the cemeteries unique and special qualities. “It’s all about finding out what the needs are and filling them,” Schafer said. “Over the years we have tried to respond to our families’ needs to the best of our ability in a respectful, dignified way.”

The cemetery was featured prominently in media coverage last fall when the town of North Arlington was named as one of Money magazine’s top 10 places to live in the U.S. According to The Record newspaper, “the working-class Bergen County municipality may be best known to outsiders for its vast Holy Cross Cemetery…”

Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum was an ACE Award runner-up in 2016, as was Maryrest Cemetery and Mausoleum in Mahwah, New Jersey, one of Newark’s Archdiocesan cemeteries, which received the runner-up distinction in 2013.

To learn more about Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum and the Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Newark, visit www.rcancem.org<http://www.rcancem.org>.

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Photos are available at the following links:

You can view “Chapel.jpg” at: https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/96c2cfe2-fc94-4c9f-b7ba-8183fc05cdb3
You can view “Holy Cross building pic.jpg” at: https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/5c018fa4-14df-457f-a3da-093f224690e1
You can view “Pieta statue.jpg” at: https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/12c2ed85-b5d9-405c-9d9a-8bf7b5c4fd14
You can view “Canopy under which Saint John Paul II celebrated Mass.jpg” at: https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/bbdefc85-1138-4e68-bc7c-dc1c6cd6e223

Photos courtesy of Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Newark

The Genesis Chapel in Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum features more than 90 major works of art contributing to its museum-like characteristic. [Holy Cross landscape pic]
An exterior view of the Genesis Chapel addition to Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum in North Arlington, New Jersey.

[Pieta statue]
A 15-foot marble statue with wooden cross of the Rondanini Pieta was imported from Italy and is now located outside of Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum.

[Canopy Under which StPopeJPII Celebrated Mass]
Saint John Paull II celebrated the Eucharist beneath this steel canopy in 1995 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The canopy is now located on the grounds of Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum in North Arlington, New Jersey.

Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Newark

… Holy Cross Cemetery & Mausoleum, North Arlington, NJ
Voted #1 Cemetery in America (American Cemetery Excellence Award 2017-2018)
… Gate of Heaven Cemetery & Mausoleum, East Hanover, NJ
… Saint Gertrude Cemetery & Mausoleum, Colonia, NJ
… Maryrest Cemetery and Mausoleum, Mahwah, NJ
… Holy Name Cemetery & Mausoleum, Jersey City, NJ
… Christ the King Cemetery, Franklin Lakes, NJ
… Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, East Orange, NJ
… Mount Carmel Cemetery, Tenafly, NJ

We Remember. We Believe!