On Wednesday, November 2 at 10:00am, the local faith community will meet to remember and say goodbye to the invisible members of our local community.

• The Lazarus Field Memorial Service Project is a ceremony to bury individuals in our community who have died without means to provide for their own burial.

Florida Statute requires that each county ensure the proper final disposition of indigent and unclaimed deceased persons in the respective counties. Each year, Okaloosa County receives an average of 35-40 individuals who die without family support or financial means to cover the cost of interment.

While the County does coordinate with funeral homes and medical examiner for properly processing the indigent deceased, the burial of the individuals is handled respectfully by the local faith based community.

“Because I had worked at Catholic Charities as the director, I realized that the county often took care of those who were forgotten,” said Okaloosa Commissioner Carolyn Ketchel. “In other words, there was nobody to bury them. When I came to the county, I asked the question…’how does this work?’” 

Over the years, Okaloosa County has provided cremation services for hundreds of sets of cremains. The cost for paperwork preparation, cremation and burial of these individuals is $1,795.00. Upon learning that area funeral homes had shelves of cremains, Ketchel says it was decided they would have a funeral to honor the deceased.

In 2016, a coordinated effort was developed to purchase seven burial plots at Beal Memorial Cemetery in Fort Walton Beach. The County initially agreed to pay $7,530.00.

• Area churches took up a collection to help cover the cost, which resulted in a contribution of $5,000.00 to the cost of the plots. Additionally, the clergy were able to contribute $1,481.00 to purchase and place two benches, one at either end of the field

“Having been on Christian radio for many years, I was very familiar with the clergy in our area and we reached out to all of the faith-based communities to discuss how we would take care of these individuals,” said Ketchel. “We had a huge turnout and we decided that every November 2nd, which in some faith communities is All Souls Day, would be the day we honor these individuals.”

The funeral features choirs from different churches along with a number of area ministers. This year, there will be over 30 clergy participating and regularly have 150 residents attend. 

Each set of cremains is held in a box bearing the individual’s name. Prior to the ceremony, the boxes are placed inside velvet bags for display. Those attending the outdoor ceremony can pay their final respects before the ceremony begins.

A printed program is provided which includes the order of worship, music to be shared, and a list of the individuals to be interred. The service includes ringing the cemetery bells, offering prayers, reading scripture, singing hymns and music, a message of faith and hope, and the recitation of each person’s name. 

• The name and date of death of each interred individual is entered in The Book of Remembrance. This book is stored on site for use by relatives and friends of the deceased.

Ketchel says that one misconception of the funeral is that people think the deceased are mainly homeless. She says this is far from the truth.

“We honor everyone from infants to the elderly,” she said. “There are young people as well as old, some of whom may have outlived all of their family members.”

Okaloosa County led the charge on honoring the indigent with a funeral service. Following a presentation that Ketchel made at a Florida Association of Counties meeting, many counties throughout the state have joined in hosting a ceremony. This year, Alachua County held their first ceremony on October 19.

Speaking on the significance of the ceremony, Ketchel added that “this is the last thing that you can do for an individual that you cannot be repaid for.”

• “It’s the last great act you can do for somebody,” she said. “It’s good work, and something they cannot say thank you for. But I think, someday in eternity, we will be thanked for this because we are saying ‘your life mattered’ and we’re going to recognize that.”

The Lazarus Field Service will take place at 10am, Wednesday, November 2, 2022 at Lazarus Field, Beal Memorial Cemetery by the Bell Tower.