is non-denominational and individuals of
many different faiths have been buried there.
It also includes a Jewish section that was
consecrated by a rabbi. The Jewish portion
also includes a path so that mourners
can stop and pray seven times before
approaching the grave. Penn Forest also
includes an area where cremated remains
can be scattered.
Penn Forest even takes a natural
approach toward maintenance and upkeep.
For example, McQuillin and Chubb use
goats to control the vegetation instead of
resorting to weed whackers or herbicides.
The goats love to eat invasive species such as
privet, an ornamental hedge, and Japanese
knotweed. McQuillin and Chubb also
recently completed a barn and have created
a small farm near the cemetery that includes
ducks, chickens, bees and rabbits. Chubb
says she came up with the idea because her
grandparents had a dairy farm in Robinson
and she later became interested in urban
farming. The two also enlarged a nearby
pond in order to start raising fish and
growing hydroponic crops.
“Anyone who buys a cemetery plot feels
an affinity with the farm,” Chubb says.
The goats have created a lot of interest
and brought visitors to the Penn Forest
complex. McQuillin and Chubb have also
provided space to a local blacksmith who
offers classes on how to repurpose old pieces
of metal and reuse them. Part of the Penn
“
Forest cemetery has been set aside to help
restore native Pennsylvania meadows. In
2015, McQuillin laid down a large plastic
tarp to kill off everything growing in the
area. In March, he removed the tarp and
volunteers began pulling up the dead
plants. Eventually, the goal is to replant the
area with native vegetation. Chubb and
McQuillin also organize an annual memorial
tree planting that helps diversify the canopy
by reintroducing native species. A graduate
student from Chatham University will also
work as an intern over the summer and help
with various sustainability projects.
Future projects include building a
greenhouse and creating a willow tree
garden. The trees could be planted to create
a labyrinth where visitors could meditate.
McQuillin says he also plans to take classes
to learn how to create coffins using willow.
Chubb would like to create a flower garden
so that visitors can cut blooms and place
them on the graves of their loved ones.
McQuillin says green burials are
becoming more popular and sales at Penn
Forest cemetery have been increasing about
20 percent a year. Chubb added that, until
recently, people thought they only had two
options—traditional burial or cremation.
“People want to be more conscientious
about how they use the earth’s resources,”
she says.
For more information visit
pennforestcemetery.com. ■
Penn Forest
is a place for
living—not
a place
for dying.
”
Penn Hills | Summer 2016 | icmags.com 11