Church Cemetery

The Zion Lutheran cemetery is located in Bensenville on the church grounds. It is owned and operated by the church and has been in use for nearly 200 years

Zion made effective that as of August 1, 1909, the practice of disinterring church members would no longer be allowed. This pertained to members of the daughter congregations requesting that their loved ones be removed from the Zion cemetery to bury them at the cemeteries of their new church. ​

For More Information:
For more information on the graves in the cemetery, you can use this link or contact the church office.

ARTICLE I

Only members of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church of Bensenville (Zion) congregation and such congregations which are affiliated with us in faith may be buried in this cemetery.  Only members using the means of grace at Zion shall be entitled to purchase the right to be buried in a burial plot.

The cemetery is and shall remain the property of our congregation. Any member purchasing the right to be buried here does not receive a title, but only the right to bury there.  Those that have purchased a plot and wish to have someone else buried there will require approval of both the Pastor and the Board of Deacons.

Former members who have relocated outside of the immediate vicinity of Zion may retain their plots and/or be eligible to purchase the right to be buried in a burial plot if they are currently members in good standing of another Lutheran Church Missouri Synod congregation. Former member status will be determined by the Board of Deacons and Pastor. Former members who transfer to a congregation not in fellowship with the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, (L.C.M.S.) forfeit their right to be buried there. Special circumstances require review and approval by the Board of Deacons and the Pastor.

ARTICLE II

Where the burial plot(s) is(are) unused for a minimum of 25 years, and the owner is no longer a member of Zion congregation, all rights to be buried in any and all burial plots will revert to the church.

ARTICLE III

Any pastor serving our congregation at the time of his death will receive for himself and his immediate family (wife and children) graves in Zion cemetery at no charge (If available)

ARTICLE IV

Since our cemetery is a Lutheran cemetery, only such pastors may officiate there as are recognized by Zion congregation. Under no circumstances shall a pastor of a non-Lutheran Church Missouri Synod officiate a burial on our cemetery. This would include any anti-Christian religion or the chaplain of a secret society or lodge, or prayer-leader of a society. Likewise, it is not permitted that lodge members march on our grounds with their regalia or other insignia or badges.

ARTICLE V

It is forbidden to remove or rebury corpses from the cemetery without the knowledge and written consent of the family, Board of Trustees and Board of Deacons. Should this permission be obtained, the owner shall be required to pay the fee then fixed by the Board of Trustees for the leveling of the plot or any other damages done to the property.

ARTICLE VI

Only headstones or markers may be set on graves or plots. After setting of headstones, all remnants of material shall at once be removed from the cemetery. Headstones with un-Christian inscriptions will not be tolerated. Mausoleums, or similar structures, will likewise not be permitted.

ARTICLE VII

The caretakers will not be required to trim grass around headstones or plants on plots or graves. Trees, shrubs or perennials that spread are not permitted. The members of the board of Trustees, or their delegate may remove any such plantings from our cemetery. They shall always keep the cemetery in good condition. Upkeep of the cemetery shall be considered a regular and mandatory expense of the cemetery perpetual find.

ARTICLE VIII

The church office shall keep an exact plan of the cemetery plots and single graves, and keep records of all plots sold, in order to know where the individual corpses lie, and which plots are still for sale. Permission must be obtained from the Board of Deacons to bury cremated remains in a proper container in our cemetery and recorded in the cemetery record book as such.

ARTICLE IX

The cemetery fees, including but not limited to plot cost (as described by the Indenture), burial fees, and burial site fees, shall be set by the Board of Trustees with approval from the congregation. The fees will be used by the office when discussing the burial process. Matters of the physical site shall be handled by the Board of Trustees. All other matters relating to the burial will be handled by the Board of Deacons.

Effective 4/27/2014

DEFINITIONS:

Good Standing: A member in good standing is one that attends church on a regular basis (multiple times in a given month).

Headstones: A headstone that has a base of at least 5 inches of gravel with a 5 inch slab on top that is all still below the ground.

Grave plot: This is defined by the cemetery map and represents a single place in which to store the casket and vault