A modern Parksville funeral home

Yates Memorial Services has two locations: Parksville and Port Alberni.

The 17,000-square-foot funeral home on Allsbrook Road in Parksville has been beautifully updated to include two large gathering spaces where big groups of family and friends can gather to honour loved ones. Smaller rooms allow for more intimate gatherings.

With soaring ceilings and soft, neutral colours, the Allsbrook Room has flexible seating that's configurable in rows for a more traditional funeral or with tables and chairs for a more relaxed service. Natural light fills the reception room, which has a full kitchen to make food and beverage service easy.

Personalized memorials and celebrations of life

A tribute can be formal, informal, religious, nonreligious—whatever your family desires. Influences such as religious beliefs, cultural traditions, budget and personal preferences make each tribute as unique as the person being honoured. Our associates take the time to get to know you and capture the essence of your loved one to create an event unlike any other.

Perhaps it’s a barbecue to celebrate the pit master, complete with bottles of homemade sauce for guests to take home. Maybe it’s a garden-themed party for a beloved green thumb. Or it could be a quiet outdoor scattering ceremony with the closest family and friends. No matter your wish, no matter the detail, we guide you through the process and your choices with care.

Cremation in Parksville

Ninety-five percent of families in our area choose cremation, and Yates Memorial Services specializes in cremation services that honour loved ones in personalized ways. With the only on-site crematorium in the Mid Island region, the option for an attended cremation and a friendly team who is always here for you, we provide service that is second to none.

Families love our inclusive pricing options, and Yates Memorial Services offers a range of choices to suit your preference:

• a cremation without a funeral or memorial service of any kind.
• a funeral with your loved one present, followed by cremation.
• a cremation followed by a scattering, cemetery memorialization or celebration of life—or all three.

There are many cremation providers from which to choose—they’re not all alike. Here’s what you can expect when you choose Yates Memorial Services for a loved one’s cremation:

• Custody of care guaranteed. Our identification pendant and custody-of-care program help safeguard the identification of your loved one.
• Exclusive custody of your loved one. Once your loved one is in the care of a Dignity Memorial® provider or trusted partner, they’re in our care until they’re returned to your family.
• Licensed, certified, conscientious staff. All Dignity Memorial crematorium operators in British Columbia are licensed and certified by the Cremation Association of North America, or CANA. Unless there are special circumstances and your family has requested otherwise, only one person at a time is cremated. Additionally, the crematorium chamber is thoroughly cleaned before the next person is cremated.

Veterans funerals and burials

We deeply appreciate those who have sacrificed for our freedoms and feel privileged to honour veterans and their families in need of funeral, cremation and burial services. Our experienced funeral directors are dedicated to ensuring that every veteran is honoured in a manner befitting their service and giving their families the support they need.

A peaceful Parksville cemetery

Our beautifully landscaped and impeccably maintained 13-acre cemetery, which is called Yates Funeral Service & Crematorium, is a serene setting for outdoor services and a welcoming place for future visits.

With so many families in Parksville choosing cremation, the cemetery offers a range of cremation properties for in-ground and aboveground memorialization. Cremation gardens are replete with niches, tree memorials, benches, boulders and columbariums. A pond and fountain make the Serenity Cremation Garden a peaceful spot for quiet contemplation. The surrounding hills offer a pleasant backdrop.

The Parksville cemetery also has choices for casketed burial, including sites around a new pond.

Green Burial in Nature Grove

The cemetery at Yates Memorial Services opened in 1995, along with the funeral home. It was envisioned as a place for traditional casket burial and cremation memorialization. However, as the years went by, we saw the need for a more natural burial area and established Nature Grove.

The Green Burial Society of Canada sets the standard for green burial and environmentally sustainable death-care practices in Canada. In 2018, the Green Burial Council of Canada certified our Parksville cemetery. It is Canada’s only green burial cemetery with an on-site funeral home.

For green burial, a loved one's body is prepared in a simple manner, without embalming. The loved one is clothed and wrapped in a biodegradable shroud or placed in a natural burial casket, which is placed directly in the ground, without a vault.

Surrounded by a locally sourced cedar fence, Nature Grove is intended to be a natural environment without a lot of manmade features. To that end, memorialization does not occur on each individual plot, as with traditional burial. Instead, memorial boulders engraved with loved ones' names are placed throughout the garden.

Funeral and cremation planning in advance

In addition to assisting with an immediate need, Yates Memorial Services works with families to make final arrangements in advance. When you plan ahead, you relieve your family from financial and emotional burdens while ensuring your wishes are fulfilled. We offer in-person and virtual consultations, as well as a free Personal Planning Guide.

Grief support and aftercare

The loss of a loved one can be devastating, and many people don’t know where to turn or how to cope. We’re here to help you during difficult times—you aren’t alone. Though the experience of grief can be very isolating, the articles in our grief library can make a difference in your day-to-day life, and families who plan services with us get access to our 24-hour Compassion Helpline (services provided by Charles Nechtem Associates) for up to 13 months after a service. If you prefer individual, local counseling, contact us; we may be able to help you find a mental health professional.

Lean on us

Our dedicated team of experienced professionals is mindful of every need, respectful of every wish and watchful of every detail. They provide exceptional, compassionate service at one of life’s most difficult times. We consider it a great responsibility when families entrust to us the care of their loved ones.

We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Please reach out, day or night, if we may assist with funeral or cremation arrangements in Parksville.