Meet Emily Nelson of Be a Tree Cremation in Sun Valley

Today we’d like to introduce you to Emily Nelson.

Emily, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I worked on the marketing team at a large death care company for several years and always had an inkling that there was a better way for us to return to the earth when we die. However, this idea didn’t become real to me until I had a conversation with my mom. I asked her what she wanted, and she simply told me, “I want to be a tree.” I suggested green burial, but like many Coloradans, she prefers cremation. So, after some research, two clear issues emerged with the current options available:
1. A disconnect from nature and surviving loved ones.
2. A negative impact on the environment.

My mom is not alone in her desire to become a tree. In a survey we conducted, we found that 17% of people in Colorado over the age of 55 believed that being cremated and grown into a tree was the best option. Achieving this in an environmentally-friendly manner is not widely accessible for Coloradans, since a typical flame cremation will emit over 500 pounds of CO2.

In my research I learned about a flameless cremation method called water cremation (or alkaline hydrolysis), which uses 90% less energy and has about 1/10th of the CO2 emissions. It’s legal here in Colorado but the public has not been educated about it due to the death care industry’s desire to maintain higher margins on more traditional methods. I knew that pairing eco-friendly water cremation and the ability to return people back to the earth to foster the growth of trees was the path I needed to follow.

By following my own dreams, I hope I can fulfill not only my mom’s wishes (hopefully many, many years from now), but also provide an accessible, green, and meaningful option for many other families in Colorado.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Like many other businesses, COVID-19 has created challenges for Be a Tree Cremation. With limited access to protective gear and delays in acquiring the equipment needed to open our facility, it’s been a challenging time to create something new in the death care space. However, we’ve remained as committed as ever to bringing this important alternative to Denver families and still plan to open our doors in 2020.

Be a Tree Cremation – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
At Be a Tree Cremation, we vow to give Denver access to environmentally-friendly cremation, returning people to the earth to foster the growth of trees, honoring our loved ones and giving back to the planet. I’m proud of the partnerships we’ve created with other Denver companies, including The Living Urn, who will supply our eco urn products to families, and Grow by Rooney Bloom, who is bringing amazing plant and tree expertise to the organization.

Our online tools will make arranging for the death of a loved one or documenting your own wishes simple and efficient. It’s important that we have these online arrangement options during a time where it can be challenging and dangerous to gather in person. We also heard from the community that many are holding onto the ashes of their loved ones and looking for an affordable and meaningful way to honor them. So, we are also offering unique options to families including full-service scattering and cremation memorial trees.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
The proudest moment in my career was having the courage to leave a secure job to pursue something I believe in.

Learn more about water cremation and find out what kind of tree you’d be by visiting our website.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.beatreecremation.com/
• Phone: 720-782-2782
• Email: care@beatreecremation.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beatreecremation/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beatreecremation/

Image Credit:
Rebecca Slaughter Photography
Audra Zaba Photography

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