Forest Lawn Cemetery

Generations of Trust

By Janette Calabro

​

Forest Lawn Cemetery has served the Omaha community for generations, providing outstanding service when people need it most. They are the largest non-profit cemetery and an independent funeral home in the Midwest. Family Service Director Angela Erickson has worked in the cemetery and funeral industry for 25 years, and she is grateful for every day that she can help make a difference with compassion and empathy.

“While challenging emotionally, my career is also rewarding in many ways,” Angela says. It’s a privilege to be able to help families through some of the most difficult days of their lives.” As she points out, death is something that we’re all going to face at one point or another. “Nobody wants to talk about death! It’s a hard subject, but it’s so important. I believe that everybody should have some sort of plan in place. At least have that conversation with loved ones so they’re able to follow your wishes.”

The Forest Lawn cemetery and funeral home are a combination facility where all arrangements are made at one location. During a stressful time, many families don’t relish the tasks of choosing a standalone funeral home or cemetery and then searching out a reception hall in addition. Forest Lawn offers all services on site at 7909 Mormon Bridge Road.

“Forest Lawn is a full-service funeral home, cemetery, mausoleum, and, most recently, a pet cemetery,” says Angela. “We offer families the convenience of making all their end-of-life choices at one location. We have everything from full traditional funeral options to a variety of cremation options.”

Forest Lawn cemetery has been serving area families since 1885. In 2015, a funeral home was built on site, in response to the needs of the community and feedback from families. In 2020, Forest Lawn opened their doors to a new mausoleum to accommodate innovations such as glass-front niches.

“Glass-front niches are like a shadow box of someone’s life,” explains Angela. “It’s the only form of burial where you can walk up and learn what was important to the individual and learn about their lives because there are memorabilia keepsakes on display. Every niche tells a story. It’s so neat to walk up and see pictures of a person’s family or see a veteran’s medals…things that you know were important in that person’s life.”

Though the mausoleum can also be a crypt for full traditional casket burials, Forest Lawn decided to also offer glass-front niches to respond to industry trends and the growing rate of cremations. “When you walk into the mausoleum, you can see the glass fronts with all these stories. It’s like reading chapters in a book,” Angela says.

In 2023, Forest Lawn created a peaceful place for the community’s cherished pets to rest. On 10 acres of beautiful landscape, the Forever Friends Pet Cemetery opened to honor some of our best friends. “That was in the works for a long time, based on requests from the community,” Angela says. “There are no other options in Omaha for people to lay their pets to rest. We are a perpetual care cemetery, maintained by our grounds crew, and that includes the pet cemetery.”

There are multiple steps in planning a funeral, but the compassionate professionals at Forest Lawn are here to guide families through the process. It begins with a conversation that follows a planning guide. Important details like obituary information, statistics, last wishes (like traditional burial versus cremation), memorials, service songs, and so much more are documented in the guide. The next phase of planning navigates the family through cemetery arrangements. The recorded information helps families relieve emotional strain and serves as a very helpful guide for loved ones on the day of the service.

Angela hopes that everyone can discover a career that they love as much as she loves hers. “My advice for anybody, no matter what field you’re in, is to choose a career that you’re passionate about. That passion is what will make you successful because it really doesn’t feel like work,” she says. “I think everyone who works here at Forest Lawn is passionate about what they do. We are all caring individuals who really just want to take care of families.”

Whether you are planning ahead or have an immediate need, the staff at Forest Lawn can guide you through all the choices that need to be made, from burial options to monuments to creating a beautiful memorial service. Since 1885, they have been serving the families of the Omaha area during some of the most difficult days of their lives, and they are ready and waiting to serve your family whenever the need arises. For more information, please visit forestlawnomaha.com or call 402-451-1000.

​