Archbishop blesses new Stations of the Cross at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery (PHOTOS)

Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron blesses an outdoor Stations of the Cross installation at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield on June 5. The stations and outdoor cremation garden will give families a place to reflect and pray as they visit the cemetery. The archbishop also blessed a walking path dedicated to the late Fr. Timothy Babcock, former chaplain for Catholic cemeteries in the Archdiocese of Detroit. (Photos by James Silvestri | Special to Detroit Catholic)

SOUTHFIELD — Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron celebrated an outdoor Mass on Saturday, June 5, at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield as he dedicated a new cremation garden and marble Stations of the Cross.

The new garden is meant to give families a serene place to walk in nature as they pray and memorialize their loved ones, said Deanne Cortese, outreach director for Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services in Detroit.

“This is what families are looking for,” Cortese said. “We looked at what a lot of cemeteries around the country are doing, and an outdoor Stations of the Cross where you can walk and reflect seemed like a good fit.”

The ceremony also included the blessing of a walking path and monument dedicated to the late Fr. Timothy Babcock, who served as chaplain for Catholic cemeteries in the Archdiocese of Detroit until his death in 2019.

To learn more about Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services, visit https://www.cfcsdetroit.org.

Photos by James Silvestri, Special to Detroit Catholic