Beautiful cemetery all around and I have to say the on site staff was so very helpful and kind. I…read morecame in search of an ancestor buried in the oldest part of the cemetery and they kindly offered a staff member to help me locate it. So helpful. This is one of the most beautiful cemeteries I've ever seen. They also have a map, and a list of famous burials. Absolutely gorgeous place.

Kensico was established in 1889 under the Rural Cemetery Act of 1847, a legislative response to…read moreovercrowded urban burial grounds. The cemetery originally spanned 250 acres of rolling farmland. By 1905, Kensico expanded to 600 acres, though it was later reduced to 461 acres when part of the land was sold to the neighboring Gate of Heaven Cemetery in 1912. The grounds were designed with a park-like aesthetic: winding lanes, ponds, shade trees, and statuary that evoke both serenity and grandeur. It is much more peaceful than the flat lawn-like cemeteries but it does make finding your way a bit more challenging. Notable interments include composer Sergei Rachmaninoff, actress Anne Bancroft, author Ayn Rand, and Baseball Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig. [Round number review 24700 overall - 1147 of 2025 - 568 in New York]

When our family needs to hire a funeral home we always turn to Hawthorne Funeral Home. This past…read moreweekend we lost our Mom and once again turned to Hawthorne. Ernie was so kind and caring and put our minds at ease. Because our mom lived in Florida there was a lot of extra arrangements to be made, and once again we were put at ease and everything went so smoothly. He handled everything effortlessly. It is so comforting to know that Hawthorne Funeral Home and their staff are there to help families deal with a difficult time.

From the owner: Conveniently located in central Westchester County on the Taconic State Parkway at West Stevens…read moreAvenue, our funeral home in Hawthorne, NY, is in close proximity to many local hotels and restaurants as well as several major cemeteries, including Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Mount Eden Cemetery, Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Kensico and Sharon Gardens Cemetery, Ferncliff Cemetery Crematorium/Mausoleum, Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, and more. Our funeral home proudly serves families in Mt. Pleasant and surrounding communities such as Hartsdale, Valhalla, Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow, Thornwood, and Pleasantville.

Our family is facing a death of a dear loved one and i had the worst call with this cemetery trying…read moreto make this difficult arrangement. lack of compassion, lack of information and when I requested other assistance, I was refused. this is hard enough without coming across a person who just simply lacked respect. i was also promised a return call today from a manager who can answer questions, she could not, and that hasn't happened either. sad.

I am a fan of these park-like cemeteries. Rolling hills, trees, curving lanes throughout, they…read morebring peace to what could be a challenging and emotional time. I do now know anyone laid to rest at Gate of Heaven, Mrs. K. and I stopped through here to see the final resting places of some famous people. Gate of Heaven and Kensico Cemetery are adjacent to each other but are operated separately. Kensico was founded in 1889 as a non-sectarian burial ground. Gate of Heaven Cemetery, on the other hand, was established later and is owned and operated by the Catholic Archdiocese of New York. Certainly there are more crosses and other religious icons here at Gate of Heaven. We were able to easily find what we wanted to see. New York Yankees coach Billy Martin. Hollywood actor James Cagney. Baseball player Babe Ruth's grave was easy to spot, adorned with ball caps and such. It is a pleasant park-like atmosphere and worth remembering that some people aren't sight-seeing here, so please be respectful. [Review 1148 of 2025 - 569 in New York - 24701 overall]

This is one of the most beautiful and scenic cemeteries I've ever visited. The grounds are very…read morewell-maintained, and the staff were helpful. It's easy to get lost in this place if you're a first time visitor, because it's huge with so many twists and turns. My favorite feature is the pond which is located just south of the main entrance on W Stevens Ave.

The only thing worse than losing a loved one is having to deal with Valhalla Memorials. For the…read moresake of this review, I won't mention the people I dealt with by their actual names instead I will call them P1, P2 & P3. My father passed away in early October 2021. A few weeks after, I started searching for a company to create his headstone. It needed to be completed by the anniversary of his passing one year later so that an unveiling ceremony could be performed. When I first went into Valhalla Memorials, I told P1 exactly what was needed and showed him pictures of similar graves next to his. I had been told by other dealers that the black granite we needed was hard to get and would take a long time to obtain from India. P1 assured me they had a warehouse full of that type of stone. I also told him that the work had to be completed by my father's death anniversary. That information was included on the original receipt. The order included the headstone in black granite and a concrete planting bed border which goes around the grave. The next step was for them to produce a blueprint drawing of the stone to be approved before the actual cutting would be done. This happened in a reasonable amount of time for the first draft but unfortunately, they made a typo and the drawing had to be done a second time. I brought the incorrect drawing back and P1 submitted the correction. This caused a short delay, no need to worry at this point. After waiting for months, I would call every few weeks and P1 would tell me each time it will be done on Friday or early next week. After multiple calls without any resolution, I went down to see them. This time P1 was not there. P2 whom I had not dealt with before said that P1 wouldn't be working there too much longer and hinted they had problems with him. He assured me he would now be taking care of this. Months and months go by without any updates. Occasionally I would stop by in person to get a status report and P2 always told me they were working on it or it would be finished soon. Come August or so, 10 months after the order, P2 tells me the stone is done and I can come down to look at it. Once I approve it, the installation will be scheduled. I go look at the stone, it is fine. I ask about the concrete planting bed border that goes along with it. After shuffling through the papers, he realizes the concrete planting bed border was never ordered and it was never included in the cost. The blame was put on P1 who was supposed to order the bed and update the bill when I placed the order. P2 now calls P3 who comes into the office. P3 is the owner's son. He looks things over again too and also blames P1 who should have taken care of this at the beginning. P3 doesn't know how much extra this will cost but says he will find out and get back to me. I remind him of the date I need things completed. I receive a call a few days later. P3 tell me the extra cost ($2500) and it will take 3 to 4 weeks. Four weeks go by and I have heard nothing. It's now the end of November. My father's death anniversary has passed. At this point, I have lost all faith in their ability to complete the project. I go down to their office to talk to them, they are very apologetic but have no answers. At this point I tell them I do not trust them, and I have no faith in their ability to complete this. I tell them you missed the death anniversary of my father which you knew was important. Whenever you are ready, do the installation, send me photos of the grave, and I will come down and pay you the balance. Their policy is to have payment in full before they complete the installation. I ask why that is? Is it you don't trust me to pay the balance? I trusted you to get this done on time, but you didn't. You didn't even try to expedite this when you knew there was a deadline and you messed up the order. Finally, 14 months after I placed the order, they installed the headstone and planting border. I was forced to pay them in full before they did the installation. I was tired of dealing with them and needed closure for myself and my family. At one point before the headstone was done, I asked how long it takes to actually engrave the stone. The answer was 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Then why does it take over a year for you to do it? "We are too busy". A company that does this work should be competent enough to get it done in a timely matter without adding extra stress to you. You are the one with the loss and part of their job is to take care of you too. Valhalla Memorials does neither. The only thing they are good for is causing you anxiety. They don't ensure the order is correct at the beginning, they don't expedite when a problem arises and they don't trust you even though they have not earned your trust. I am sorry for your loss. Please spare yourselves more tears and agony. Don't use Valhalla Memorials. There are lots of other good dealers out there.

I requested a memorial for my daughter in September 2017. It's July 2018. It still isn't finished…read more Countless delays. No updates. No info and they're grossly overpriced. The reason for their delays? "Their provider is backed up." Save yourself the headache and go LITERALLY ANYWHERE ELSE. UPDATE, September 2018- They finally finished installing the plaque in August with photo tile. The photo tile was put in the weirdest location (without my review/ approval) on the plaque. Guy at the office says they'll reposition it and let me know. It's been a month. Still no word. I stand by my comment. GO ANYWHERE ELSE.

I am writing again regarding the correction to my parents' headstone, specifically the engraving…read morefor my mother, which (RON) agreed was improperly done, and he assured me it would be corrected. It has now been nearly a year since this issue was first raised, and I am extremely disappointed that it remains unresolved. I have made multiple attempts to reach Ron at Zimmerman's through phone calls, messages, texts, and by sending photos, but have received no meaningful follow-up. This matter was clearly discussed, and I was assured it would be addressed and made right. At this point, the lack of communication and progress is unacceptable. I would NEVER recommend this company; they disrespect the dead. A total disgrace!

My family had gone to Zimmerman 12 years ago when my father passed & purchased a beautiful India…read morered headstone. The inspiration was beautiful. Recently, my mom passed & we called to have her inscription put on the other half of the stone. The service was still as comforting & professional . Highly recommend this business.

Matthew was amazing , he was professional and patient with us during this difficult time . He was…read moreable to get us want we wanted for our father . Would highly recommend

Matthew had a wonderful and thorough job done on my Family's headstone, which was in need of…read moreadditional engraving and desperately needed a cleaning, being 1000+ miles away, it was a long distance request and transaction, which I am pleased to say went flawlessly. The image of the completed work sent to me showed a job done to my exact specs, and in a very reasonable amount of time. I would recommend Matthew and Grayrock Memorials for any and all of your memorial needs, they provide quality work at a fair price.

Well it is the best during the worst of times. They understand the hardship you are going though…read moreand help however they can. A++

This is the fourth time that I needed the services of the Ballard-Durand Funeral Home. They are the…read moremost professional and kind people in the profession. They outdo themselves every time. It is a comfort knowing that they are there in your time of need.

I highly recommend this business and this wonderful family. We worked primarily with Patrick Jr. on…read moretwo different occasions. Pat's kindness, patience and compassion helped immensely in getting through these emotional times. His professionalism and responsiveness eased the logistical challenges of funeral planning. Overall, the support received from Pleasant Manor Funeral Home and Pat Jr. was beyond expectations.

Very professional people to work with , when they pick up my dad body from the hospital I call and…read morethe son said your dad is with me and I'm treating him like how I would treat my dad that's said all for me .. we did our on line never met them until two days before my dad funeral and my brothers and I was well pleased.. Thank you guys you did a wonderful job the home was cleaned and nice.

I was so pleased with the compassion and care the folks at Ballard-Durand gave me and our family…read moreduring a sad and stressful time. They were responsive to our needs and questions. I was amazed by their ability to walk us through the cremation process in a guiding manner that would make you think they were a part of our family. Mark Press was wonderful to work with he was very accommodating to all of our questions and arrangements. Kaysie Mandel was quick and efficient in posting our obituary and slideshow on their website. I could not have been more pleased with the attention to details that they delivered. Weeks later the "Aftercare" telephone appointment with Kirstin Ferlin provided by Ballard-Durand provided important information regarding steps families need to take after the loss of a loved one. Kirstin is a well-trained Estate Specialist who can walk you through any questions you may have about what to do with your loved one's estate. This appointment usually takes around 20-60 minutes. Even if you have done estate planning (or already have a lawyer) this appointment covers all the little things that lawyers don't usually take care of. The Aftercare Service is an amazing resource that I recommend you take advantage of even if you have previously worked through this process. Thank you Ballard-Durand.

From the owner: Ballard-Durand Funeral & Cremation Services was designed to be unlike any funeral home you've ever…read moreseen; it's truly one-of-a-kind. You can have your service anywhere, and any way, you want. Your choices include the place of celebration, day of the week, and time of day; the musical selection, what prayers will be said or songs you'd like sung. We can arrange to have doves, butterflies, or balloons released at the close of the service. Keepsake gifts of wildflower seeds or a tree seedling can be given. We're here to help you create the most memorable and meaningful service to honor your loved one. We invite you to come see for yourself how we're revolutionizing the way people view funeral services.