My mother signed a contract with the Neptune Society in Seattle, Washington in August of 2001. She passed away last month, June 7, 2015 in Los Gatos, CA. Her body was delivered to the Neptune Society in Belmont, CA for cremation. I signed and faxed papers to Belmont Neptune and gave them my credit card information. They were to mail me mom's ashes. And so I wait. My brother, John and I made plans to throw some into the sea, as was her wishes. John was a park ranger at Pt. Reyes National Park in the San Francisco area. He was granted permission. We had/have plans to do this and then place ashes in our little brother's grave in Mariposa, and at our grandmother's grave in San Jose. And still we wait.
I called Neptune Society (also known as Trident, some were sold as corporate facilities) in Belmont to see where she is, the first week of July. I was told that the crematorium is broken and the gas company has to fix it. They will contact me when it's fixed.
And so I wait. I called this morning, July 14, 2015. The gas company has NOT fixed the crematorium, but they have sent bodies to other Neptune facilities for cremation. He put me on hold to find which one mom went to. They don't know. He said he would call me back when they find her. I called corporate in Plantation, Florida and went into transfers and voice mail. I will call them in the morning. I have not heard back from the Director of Belmont Neptune. I have called an attorney.
I have many fears here, but one is that they will ship me someone's ashes who is not my mother to bring this to a close. Looking into how DNA tests work with this.
Do NOT send a loved one, or even a hated one to Neptune Society/Trident in the San Francisco bay area.