I arrived here for the first time last Friday. The area is mostly industrial, so I found the…read morelocation unassuming and would have passed it before noticing the address number, had it not been for GPS. However, the parking lot is roomy for the size and easy to navigate.
My experience with cremation has been limited and from what I can tell, there are slight differences between cities, so I can't be sure of the norm in Houston.
With our experience I dealt with another company who handled the death certificates and transport from the hospital. Later, they emailed us that we could pick up the ashes at this location and to call for an appointment.
When I called and spoke to Carol, I found out an appointment was not necessary though, as long as you come within the available hours. The available time frame is 10am to 3pm. I am sure of this because I wrote it down. I want to say it was weekdays only, but to be honest, I was really distracted during the call and I'm just not sure.
It's clear they do the cremation on site and the building is very large. We entered into a small foyer and were greeted by Carol. She directed us into a waiting room to the right where we waited for a few minutes. The waiting room was really lovely and tastefully decorated. It was clearly meant to be a peaceful, calming space. There was a covered window inside, so it may also be a viewing room.
The designated person, either the spouse or beneficiary, will need to provide id and sign off. You are provided with a certificate and a temporary urn that is placed in a leather case and then inside a cardboard box. We were offered the opportunity to view some urns in the back.
We were in the process of making other arrangements, so we declined and I cannot comment on their selection. If you are looking to get something ready before picking up the remains, I can tell you that the dimensions of their temporary urn are 8.5 x 6.25 x 4.75 inches.
I was originally going to give this place 4 stars... and then I realized I didn't know why I was rating that way. I'm honestly not sure how to rate such a place and I do attempt to keep emotion out of my reviews, so I was a little lost on that.
There is also the fact that I have no idea how this place is supposed to measure up to other places in town and frankly, I hope I never have to know that. I can think of several factors that could vary for your experience versus mine.
The entire process for us took about two weeks, however, I am not clear on when the other company made the arrangements with Southeast Texas Crematory. They may operate faster if you go through a funeral home. We actually needed that two weeks to plan the memorial service and handle some other things, so it worked out for us.
I am also not clear on how their prices may change in regards to which place is using them. We paid the other company and our total price included transport, a weight fee, cremation and death certificates. I can tell you it was $901, but not how much of that went to Southeast Texas Crematory.
I found the staff to be very respectful of our loss and everything about this place struck the appropriate tone. In the end, I have no complaints about our experience with them, so a 5 star rating is more appropriate.