The Oakdale Cemetery recently added a new addition to the mausoleum with a new columbarium placed next to it on Thursday morning.
While the Oakdale Cemetery is a 50+-acre plot of land that holds many of the resting places of many in Crookston, it also contains a columbarium for people that had chosen to be cremated after their death. The current columbarium in the cemetery’s mausoleum is almost full and won’t be able to take many more additions. “Our old one is just about full, but I didn’t want to wait and make people go through the suffering of losing a loved one more than once, that’s enough,” Oakdale Cemetery President Lester Wilkens explained. “So, with that one just about full, we had to act, and it took about a six-month lead time to get it because of the demand.” Wilkens explained that the new columbarium is an improvement over the last one as while the current one holds 48 niches, the new one can hold up to 100 and can hold two people to a niche, and the whole thing can hold up to 425.
The columbarium has been placed in the center of the three circular pads to the left of the mausoleum in the center of the cemetery, as it is above the War Memorial and is the most difficult spot for them to place currently. “We put the first one on the middle circular pad because that’s the hardest to get to, and it’s above the war memorial. We’ve had some people purchase niches right now, they’re military members, and they want to be above the war memorial, so we’re going to do that,” Lester Wilkens explained. “We’re going to add benches to each one. There will be two benches, one on the north and the other on the south. We’re right in the center of the cemetery, so in about 80% of the cemetery, you can stand and look and see it, and it’s right next to the mausoleum.” Wilkens also says that they will add a second and third columbarium when they are needed in the future as a way to continue their service to the people of Crookston.
When asked about the motivation behind the purchase of the columbarium, Wilkens said that it was something that just had to be done for the people of Crookston. “It just had to happen. There were not a lot of choices. If we’re going to take care of the people of the City of Crookston, it had to happen,” Wilkens said. “We’re a private cemetery. It was started back in the 1800s by a group of civic leaders that had the ware with all to do it, so they bought the property, built the mausoleum, and it was ours and the boards of the past’s jobs to keep it going. So, they had purchased everything, but they probably never dreamed that there’d be cremations like there are today.” Wilkins reported that the columbarium was a fundraised project by the Association that cost up to $100,000. Through their collective efforts, they’ve currently raised $60,000, and through the generosity of ICS General Contracting, Crookston Welding, Bertils Gravel & Excavation, and Mags Ag Service offering supplies and services, they were able to put it in place before they reached their fundraising goal.
The new columbarium is now in place in the center of Oakdale Cemetery and in the middle of the three circular pads to the left of the mausoleum. Oakdale Association President Wilkens thanks everyone who has contributed to the columbarium’s purchase and welcomes them to come and see the result, but the Oakdale Cemetery Association still needs $40,000 to pay for it. If you can spare any funds to help the Association pay for the addition, you can go to the Oakdale Cemetery Office in Jerde Insurance Brokers at 612-328-0293, or you can contact Oakdale Cemetery Association President Lester Wilkens at 218-289-1956. Due to Oakdale being a 501 © (13) charitable cemetery, all donations are tax-deductible if you directly donate to the cemetery from your 401k. Pictures of the columbarium being placed by ICS General Contracting can be seen below-
