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Parma woman says she didn't know mother's cremains were inside box she returned to store
By Kathy Antoniotti
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Friday, Aug 07, 2009
The mystery of the misplaced ashes has been solved.
Erin Lemasters of Cuyahoga Falls said a Parma woman called her Wednesday and claimed what she said were her mother's remains.
On Sunday, Lemasters received a Willow Tree Keepsake Box as a birthday gift from her mother, Jan Stansberry of Tallmadge.
Inside, Lemasters found a baggie filled with what appeared to be human remains. Stansberry had purchased the box Saturday at Carlton Cards at Summit Mall.
Jennifer Seredich said she was astounded to find out that she inadvertently had taken her mother's cremains to a store at Great Northern Mall when she returned a Willow Tree Keepsake Box she had purchased.
''It was like a roller coaster of emotions,'' said Seredich, who called Lemasters on Wednesday night after learning about the mistake. She said a friend from Amherst called her after seeing the story on a television news broadcast.
''Please tell me you have your mom's ashes,'' her friend said.
She said her friend recognized handwriting on the box as hers, Seredich said.
Written on the outside of the box were the words: Jen 8oz. It was the only clue Lemasters had to go on as she tried to unravel the mystery.
Seredich said she was pregnant with her second child when her mother was diagnosed with gastric cancer Oct. 5, 2007.
''She was always my No. 1 supporter,'' Seredich said Thursday. ''During her
sickness, I was trying to be hers.''
Mary Anne Nancarrow, of North Olmsted, died four weeks later. She was 58-years-old.
The death was so sudden and painful to the family, making arrangements for the funeral was difficult, Seredich said.
She remembered a conversation in which Nancarrow said she thought it was ''cool [that] you can make a 'life gem' '' with a person's cremains, Seredich said.
The LifeGem Web site describes the item as a ''certified diamond created from the carbon of your loved one as a memorial to their unique life.''
It was with that idea in mind that she asked the funeral home to divide her mother's ashes into four separate packages for her relatives. She bought four of the 5-inch oval boxes to hold the remains.
''We were sitting there and I asked if Ziploc bags would work. My mom kept everything in Ziploc bags. She was really a neat person,'' Seredich said.
But for a LifeGem, Seredich needed 8 ounces of ashes — an amount that wouldn't fit inside the small box.
The funeral home divided the ashes — smaller amounts for the other relatives and a larger package for Seredich. The funeral home put the larger portion inside a velvet satchel and gave all the packages to Seredich at the funeral.
Seredich never looked inside any of the packages and returned the box she bought for herself — thinking it was empty because she had received her portion of the ashes in the satchel — to an American Greetings store. That store has since closed, she said.
After learning about Lemasters' find, she said she called the funeral home Wednesday and was told her mother's ashes had been divided into five packages, not four.
Mystery solved.
Seredich said Thursday that she and Lemasters will meet soon so she can get her mother's remains.
She said the crazy thing about the whole episode is that shopping was one of her mother's favorite activities.
''How appropriate that she's been hanging out at the mall for two years. It's like she's saying, 'OK. I'm done shopping. You can come get me now.' ''
Kathy Antoniotti can be reached at 330-996-3565 or kantoniotti@thebeaconjournal.com.
The mystery of the misplaced ashes has been solved.
Get the full article here.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
akron, OH
Posted 03:09 AM, 08/07/2009
Classy of the Beacon to print a photo of the ashes...
Although without the story being printed this probably never would have been solved....
WADSWORTH, OH
Posted 06:39 AM, 08/07/2009
This is why I want to be cremated-you can take me anywhere you want to...
and I swear,I will not talk back.
Tallmadge, OH
Posted 07:06 AM, 08/07/2009
I'm glad that this story had ended as it should.
Canton, OH
Posted 07:42 AM, 08/07/2009
i want mine thrown out in Disney World - but i won't complain if they get put elsewhere.
medina, oh
Posted 08:50 AM, 08/07/2009
So much for the "divine intervention" huh?
Akron, OH
Posted 09:01 AM, 08/07/2009
@Bec - I agree. Erin did not go off the deep end over finding ashes. It seems like she handled it in a dignified manner and I bet when the two meet, there will be a lot of laughing and stories shared.
Posted 09:08 AM, 08/07/2009
This is a wonderful story with such a happy ending. I also had ashes created into a memorial diamond. I had been researching companies and came across DNA2Diamonds they had wonderful people working with me and the experience was so nice. The diamonds were a bit less expensive and the packaging it arrived in was beautiful. I recommend you look into this company for your memorial diamond.
Mogadore, OH
Posted 09:42 AM, 08/07/2009
@GOPH-just the opposite. I was doubtful that this would ever be solved. What are the chances that the right person would see the news story?
Methron, OH
Posted 09:49 AM, 08/07/2009
Gophater, dont mess up a good story, it makes you look a d**k but good morning to you and all Ohio.
cuyahoga falls, Oh
Posted 01:46 PM, 08/07/2009
GOPHater
medina, oh
Posted 08:50 AM, 08/07/2009
So much for the "divine intervention" huh
I'm glad you posted because it saved me the time from going back to find your post from the other article.
This absolutely is indeed divine intervention. The purchaser could have returned the package to the store as they had requested and they would have covered everything up and this would not have been a story at all.
But as it were, the story got out and now the store is closed as it should be for this foul up.
So you can drop the "Gop" and maybe change it to "Stop" as in "Stop the Hating" or maybe just change it to "Hater"!
Canton, Oh
Posted 03:19 PM, 08/07/2009
Glad that this ended well.
akron, oh
Posted 04:41 PM, 08/07/2009
creepy....glad you got your mom back
not many deceased end up at the store.
Posted 11:20 PM, 08/07/2009
Great story! You can't make this stuff up!
Cuyahoga Falls, OH
Posted 01:02 AM, 08/08/2009
You know, with all the jerks on these chat boards, I'm really starting to hate people in general. How can some of you live with yourselves... do you think you're being witty? Or are just thousands of times smarter than everyone else?
Behind the anonymity of a keyboard everybody is smarter than Stephen Hawking and tougher than Chuck Liddell, I guess.
McAlpin, FL
Posted 10:21 AM, 08/09/2009
Noone would understand the immense importance of this story, I'm her sister. This is definitely divine intervention because ALL the pieces had to be put together just "so" for it all to come together. Her passing left her whole family with such a void that hearing something like this just brings a smile to our hearts because Mar was "the shopper". So for her to take one last shopping trip was so appropriate prior to coming home and resting. Many thanks to Jan, Erin, Jen's friend and to the Akron Beacon Journal for helping Mar get home.
Cuyahoga Falls, OH
Posted 12:10 AM, 08/10/2009
Finally, something to smile about!
