nor education 11 min read

By TerraCare

What Families Say About Terramation: Real Perspectives on Natural Organic Reduction (colloquially referred to as human composting)

Choosing how to care for someone after they die — or making that decision for yourself — is one of the most practical choices that comes wrapped in an emotional moment. For families who have chosen terramation, also known as natural organic reduction (NOR) or natural organic reduction, accounts have been documented in media coverage, provider testimonial pages, and published news reporting. What emerges from those sources is a consistent set of themes: questions that came before, surprises that came after, and an unexpected clarity about what the soil return meant.

This article draws on publicly available accounts — provider family feedback and news media coverage — to give you an honest picture of what families actually report. All perspectives below come from named individuals in published sources or documented patterns across verified provider accounts.

What do families say about their experience with terramation?

Families who have chosen terramation consistently report three themes: the environmental meaning felt personal and coherent with who their loved one was, the soil surprised them with its volume and earthy, living quality, and the soil return ceremony was unexpectedly healing. The most common surprises are the sheer quantity of soil (approximately 250 lbs) and how meaningful it is to have something tangible and alive to plant or scatter. Many describe the connection to their loved one continuing through the garden or tree they planted.

  • Families consistently describe the environmental dimension of terramation as personal rather than abstract — a final act of coherence with a loved one's values, not a political statement.
  • The volume of soil (approximately one-half cubic yard / ~250 lbs) surprises nearly all families who haven't experienced it — it is far more than anticipated, enabling planting, scattering, and sharing among family members.
  • The soil return ceremony is described by many families as unexpectedly meaningful — a second gathering point around something tangible and alive, often more healing than the initial service.
  • The most commonly cited reason families step back from NOR is practical: living in a state where it's not yet legal, or logistics that feel too complex at the moment of an immediate loss.
  • Families who documented their wishes in advance — including provider contact information and soil preferences — consistently report that this removed the most significant burden from grieving family members.

What Families Most Commonly Value About Terramation

Accounts from NOR providers, and from news reporting by outlets including AARP, WBUR, and NPR, point to three consistent themes.

The environmental meaning felt personal, not abstract. Families describe the environmental dimension of terramation not as a political statement but as a final act of care — for land they loved, for a planet their grandchildren will inherit, or as consistency with the way the person lived. Tim Andruss, whose wife Alenka passed away in 2023, said in a December 2024 AARP article: “Alenka’s soil is so alive…the soil feels like there’s life to it, because there is.” He used her soil to create a perennial garden planted with her favorite color, purple flowers. [1]

The soil made the return tangible. Cremated remains are fine, powdery, and inorganic. The Regenerative Living Soil™ returned after terramation is different: dark, earthy, and alive. The process yields approximately one-half cubic yard of soil. Most families had not prepared for that volume. Families who have received their loved one’s soil consistently describe it as earthy, dark, and alive — unlike anything they expected.

The process matched the person. Dennis Cunningham, a civil rights lawyer and lifelong environmentalist, directed his children to have him composted. His daughter Miranda Mellis told NPR in 2024: “It was totally in keeping with who he was to not make waste, but to use waste.” The family transported his body from California to Washington to honor that wish. [2] For families whose loved one had conservation or nature values, NOR felt coherent rather than unconventional.

What Families Wanted to Know Before They Decided

Families approaching terramation for the first time typically arrive with a similar cluster of questions. These are documented patterns in provider FAQs, published journalism, and consumer education materials.

“Is it dignified?” This is the most commonly cited concern. The word “composting” carries industrial associations that don’t match what families actually experience. Providers document — and journalists confirm in facility visits — a carefully maintained process: an enclosed vessel surrounded by wildflowers and organic material, tended in a climate-controlled environment. [4] Most NOR providers offer farewell gatherings and viewing options before the process begins. Jayme Strasburger, whose mother chose NOR after expressing a lifelong fear of fire, told WHYY in 2025: “Why can’t we be part of the death process? Why does it have to be such a dark thing? It’s beautiful.” She washed her mother’s body, dressed her, and added photos and magnolia flowers before the laying-in. [3]

“What does the soil look like?” The soil is dark, rich, and earthy — indistinguishable in appearance from high-quality garden compost. It does not look like the person, and providers are transparent about that. For many families, this is reassuring. For others, the transition requires a kind of reframing. Provider family accounts document both responses.

“Can we still have a gathering or ceremony?” Many families assume terramation means forgoing a traditional service. When they learn that farewell services, viewings, and memorial ceremonies are fully compatible with NOR, uncertainty often resolves. NOR provider family accounts describe intimate laying-in ceremonies with family members placing houseplants, handwritten letters, and favorite items into the vessel alongside their loved one — often with music and eulogies, followed by a soil return ceremony weeks later. [3]

“What if it’s not available where we live?” Terramation is currently legal in 14 states: Washington, Colorado, Oregon, Vermont, California, New York, Nevada, Arizona, Maryland, Delaware, Minnesota, Maine, Georgia, and New Jersey. Note that California (operational January 1, 2027), New York (regulations still finalizing), and New Jersey (estimated operational approximately July 2026) are legal but not yet operational. Families whose loved one died in a state where NOR is not yet legal frequently ask whether transport to a legal state is possible — most NOR providers confirm that it is, though logistics and costs vary. For a full state-by-state breakdown, see our guide to states where NOR is currently legal.

For guidance on navigating the conversation with family members who are unfamiliar with NOR, see our article on how to talk to your family about terramation.

What Surprised Families After Terramation

The gap between expectation and experience is well-documented. These are the surprises that appear most often in the public record.

The volume of the soil. Almost universally, families report not having anticipated one-half cubic yard of material. For families who had been through cremation previously, the contrast is significant — cremated remains are a small, sealed container; terramation soil is a wheelbarrow-full presence. Jayme Strasburger’s family received approximately 250 pounds of soil. She used it to grow sunflowers — her mother’s favorite flower — and planned to plant a magnolia tree. She also scattered portions in a rose garden in Madrid and planned to bring some to Italy. [3] The volume makes multiple meaningful uses genuinely possible.

How significant the soil return was. Most NOR providers offer a return ceremony when the process is complete. In documented family accounts, many describe this moment as unexpectedly meaningful — a second opportunity to gather, to mark the transition, and to receive something tangible. Families who expected a straightforward transaction — picking up a container — often describe something more like a ritual.

The connection continued. Roberta Vollendorff, whose son Sean died by suicide, buried all 240 pounds of soil beneath a sitka spruce tree on the farm where her family was raised. She told AARP: “The magic was having my son under the tree he grew up with…I wasn’t losing him. I was having him be with me.” [1] Miranda Mellis, daughter of Dennis Cunningham, buried a portion of her father’s soil in the woods behind her home and created an altar. “I meditate here and sometimes I talk to him here,” she told NPR. “I think of this like a telephone booth to the afterworld.” [2]

What Families Do With the Soil

Publicly documented uses of terramation soil fall into a consistent set of categories.

  • Planting a memorial tree or garden. The most commonly documented use. Families plant trees, perennial beds, wildflower patches, vegetable gardens — any living thing that will grow from the soil and continue to grow. One family planted a dogwood tree visible from their son’s childhood bedroom window, describing it as “a spiritual place where we go to talk to him.”
  • Scattering in a meaningful location. Similar to how families handle cremated remains, some choose to spread terramation soil in a place of significance — a hiking trail, a stretch of forest, a family property. Dennis Cunningham’s family spread most of his soil on a forest floor in Southwest Washington; Miranda, his daughter, buried some in woods behind her home and created an altar with rocks and shells her father had collected. [2]
  • Donating to conservation land. Some NOR providers offer families the option to donate a portion of the soil to conservation forests. Approximately half of families who use NOR services retrieve the soil for private use; the other half donate it to conservation efforts. [4]
  • Keeping a portion at home. Some families keep a small amount of soil in a vessel or container, particularly while deciding how to use the larger volume, or simply because they want a physical presence at home.

For more on what Regenerative Living Soil is and how it can be used, see our article on what is Regenerative Living Soil after terramation.

What Helped Uncertain Families Decide

Decision-making accounts from families who initially hesitated but ultimately chose terramation show a few recurring factors.

Speaking directly with a provider. A phone call, a facility tour, or a meeting with a care coordinator consistently resolved more uncertainty than reading alone. The AARP article notes that Tim Andruss emphasized having end-of-life conversations before the death occurs — so family members can honor those wishes without confusion during grief. [1] Most NOR providers welcome pre-arrangement conversations as standard.

Learning that ceremonies were still possible. Many uncertain families assumed NOR meant forgoing a service. When they learned that viewings, laying-in ceremonies, and soil return gatherings are fully compatible with the process, uncertainty often resolved. See our article on whether terramation is right for your family for a full look at those considerations.

Pre-planning in writing. Families who documented their wishes ahead of time — in an advance directive or pre-arrangement — consistently report that having it in writing removed burden from the people they left behind. Providers document this as one of the most meaningful practical steps a person can take.

Ready to explore terramation options? Contact TerraCare Partners

What Families Who Did Not Choose Terramation Said

Not all families who inquire about NOR proceed with it. Providers and journalists covering the field have documented the reasons families step back.

Location and logistics. For families in states where NOR is not yet legal — or not yet operational — the choice is sometimes simply logistical. Transporting a loved one across state lines adds cost and complexity that some families are not prepared to take on during an immediate loss, even when the idea appeals to them.

Religious or cultural considerations. Some families have faith traditions that prescribe specific care for the body after death, and NOR may not align with those practices. Providers document this as a genuine reason some families do not proceed, without judgment. [3]

Unfamiliarity at the moment of death. Some families who inquired ultimately returned to cremation or traditional burial because those options felt more known. Coverage of early NOR adoption in Washington documented this pattern: emotional readiness at the time of an actual death can differ from theoretical openness. [5]

Terramation is the right choice for some families and not for others. What other families experienced on both sides of the decision is useful information, not a verdict.

For a full picture of how the terramation process works from the first call through the soil return, see our complete guide to natural organic reduction vs. cremation.

Find a funeral home offering terramation in your state

Sources

  1. Flanigan, Robin L. — “Natural organic reduction: A New Take on the ‘Green’ Funeral.” AARP, December 6, 2024. https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/basics/green-funeral-human-composting/

  2. Dembosky, April — “The ultimate green burial? Natural organic reduction lets you replenish the earth after death.” NPR / Maine Public, March 22, 2024. https://www.mainepublic.org/npr-news/2024-03-22/the-ultimate-green-burial-human-composting-lets-you-replenish-the-earth-after-death

  3. Mueller, Sarah — “‘Back to the earth’: Natural organic reduction offers families an eco-friendly death care option for loved ones.” WHYY, September 2, 2025. https://whyy.org/articles/human-composting-delaware/

  4. Young, Robin; Miller-Medzon, Karyn; Hagan, Allison — “Why some people are opting for natural organic reduction, an alternative to cremation and standard burial.” WBUR Here & Now, January 9, 2023. https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2023/01/09/human-composting

  5. Husseman Brandt, Casey — “Natural organic reduction Turns Five: Reflections on Progress and Innovation.” People’s Memorial Association, January 16, 2025. https://peoplesmemorial.org/aboutpma/pma-blog.html/article/2025/01/15/human-composting-turns-five-reflections-on-progress-and-innovation

  6. National Funeral Directors Association — 2025 Cremation & Burial Report statistics. NFDA, updated September 2025. https://nfda.org/news/statistics

  7. Washington State Legislature — Washington Administrative Code Chapter 246-500, Natural Organic Reduction regulations. app.leg.wa.gov. https://app.leg.wa.gov/wac/default.aspx?cite=246-500&full=true

  8. NFDA — Natural Organic Reduction provider and consumer resources. nfda.org. https://nfda.org/resources/alternative-disposition/natural-organic-reduction