For over 25 years, Goes Funeral Care has made it a mission to serve Northern Colorado families in ways that align with their wishes. With the recent introduction of water cremation, Goes is adding to that legacy of service, offering an environmentally sensitive alternative to traditional cremation.

Soon after water cremation (a process formally known as alkaline hydrolysis) was approved for use in Colorado, “Our community began asking for it,” explained co-owners Chris and Stephanie Goes. “People had concerns about greenhouse gases and climate change; understanding water cremation was a gentle, environmentally friendly means for returning the body to the earth gave them even more of a reason to want it.”

Practiced safely for over two decades, water cremation has long been embraced by noted medical facilities – such as the Mayo Clinic – which have recognized its many benefits. But when South African Nobel Peace Prize-winner Bishop Desmond Tutu requested his remains undergo water cremation when he died in December 2021, the ecological value of water cremation was unveiled to the world.

Our bodies are made up of about 65 percent water, and water cremation bears similarities to many physiological processes that occur naturally in the body. Because it does not require combustion, water cremation does not produce toxic gases or air pollutants. The cremains are reduced to a powder consistency and returned to the family.

In 2021, as Goes Funeral Care made plans to expand its operation in Fort Collins, it sought approval from Larimer County to issue the necessary permits. While no one at the county had previously heard of water cremation, the Goes said, “They liked that the Mayo clinic had used it for over 20 years, and were excited for this option to become available in the county.

“Since it’s the first facility in Northern Colorado – one of only a three in the state – there were challenges for the building department to figure out how to comply with the codes so we could house it in our building. It took about two years to get everything approved and operational, but now the entire staff is elated Goes can finally offer water cremation. Everything we do is aimed at honoring people’s lives, and this latest service is one of many options we provide to families.”

In choosing water cremation for her father-in-law, Denise Johnson said the environmental benefits of working with Goes provided a sense of peace. “The main reason for choosing the water cremation for my father-in-law was that it gave the family comfort in knowing that the process in which the body is cremated followed more of a natural process, the way nature intended the body to break down, as it would if buried in the earth,” she said. “The water cremation seemed more peaceful to us.”

“Working with Chris at Goes Funeral Care made a very difficult situation much easier to handle,” Johnson continued. “He was wonderful in showing us both the water cremation and fire cremation and providing thorough details of both processes, putting my family at ease, while answering our many questions. The decision we made was right for our family.”

As people look to be more environmentally conscious in all aspects of their lives, those values are making an impact on how we want to leave the world for our loved ones. To meet those needs, Goes Funeral Care is on the leading edge of the funeral industry. Water cremation is a gentle means for returning the body to the earth. It does not require a burial plot and can be performed with carbon footprint that’s 90 percent less than that of flame cremation.

“I chose water cremation because I loved that it was more ecologically sound – used 90 percent less energy than burning cremation and didn’t put more pollution into the atmosphere,” shares Donna S. who asked to not publicize her last name. “My husband Wade was a competitive man, and he would have loved that he was the first water cremation for Goes.”