A New Perspective on Cemetery Services
Visitors Kiosk Will Put Mount Auburn“ At Your Fingertips”
A New Perspective on Cemetery Services
As Mount Auburn’ s new Vice President of Cemetery Services Sean O’ Regan believes he brings“ a different perspective on client service.” His background includes work in the high technology industry, such as, appropriately, data capture and data conversion for cemeteries. Sean wants to“ meet the various needs” of a diverse and changing public regarding commemoration choices:“ My hope is that Mount Auburn will have a wider mix of buyers who are of broader economic means. Birch Gardens, the Cemetery’ s newest landscape of commemoration, offers such a range of choices.”
Sean sees monuments as giving people“ the opportunity to create a memory and then leave that behind.” This makes commemoration such a personal and sometimes seemingly daunting task( that can be made less daunting with the help of Cemetery Services staff). He stresses that living people can be honored here by endowing a plaque on a bench or tree, and points out that one of Mount Auburn’ s most celebrated memorials— to Civil War hero Robert Gould Shaw— is in fact a cenotaph because his body was interred
with the dead from his regiment at the South Carolina battlefield where they fell.
All cemeteries, Sean believes, must“ come up with a better way of presenting the memorial options for cremation. The perception is:‘ I’ m cremated, so why would I be buried?’ But in fact, burial and commemoration of cremated remains Sean O’ Regan and his wife, Suzanne must be considered.”( See page 2.)
The beautiful grounds and chapels at Mount Auburn are also available for special events, such as wedding services. If you are interested in finding out further information about these or other options, please call Sean at 617-547-7105.
Visitors Kiosk Will Put Mount Auburn“ At Your Fingertips”
By Bree D. Harvey, Director of Education & Visitor Services
Mount Auburn is creating a new interactive, educational kiosk that will give visitors a wealth of general and customized information about the Cemetery. To be housed in the Egyptian Revival Gatehouse at the Mount Auburn Street entrance, it will debut during the fall of 2009. A team of consultants, all experts in the world of interactive exhibits, is working with the Cemetery to complete this exciting project. The kiosk is being made possible thanks to the generosity of the Anthony J. and Mildred D. Ruggiero Memorial Trust. Created by the Small Design firm of Cambridge, MA, the kiosk will have a touch-screen format that marries text, images and maps in a manner that is userfriendly, informative and attractive. It will enable visitors to explore information about the Cemetery’ s history, horticulture, wildlife, art and architecture, and the notable figures interred here. Providing a brief and compelling overview of the subject of the visitor’ s choice, the kiosk will then point the visitor towards some of our printed maps and brochures for further exploration. A burial look-up feature will allow visitors to locate the graves of family and friends within the Cemetery, and will assist visitors interested in finding out more information about attending public programs, joining the Friends, or purchasing burial space. The kiosk
Above: The Egyptian Revival Gatehouse at the Mount Auburn Street entrance, future site of the new kiosk.
Left: The new educational, interactive kiosk will be located and open to the public under the east portico above. Illustration by Filament Design Studio. will be available whenever the Cemetery is open to the public, even at times when staff and docent volunteers are not present, such as when the Visitors Center and Administration Building are closed.
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