N.S. families thought they buried their loved ones. Officials are now investigating | CBC News

New funeral home owner discovers ‘significant number’ of human ashes in storage

The province and the Nova Scotia regulator of funeral directors are investigating after the new owners of an Annapolis Valley funeral home discovered the cremated remains of a “significant number” of people in storage, CBC News has learned. 

It comes as several Nova Scotia families who used the services of Serenity Funeral Home say they were shocked and horrified to receive calls letting them know that ashes belonging to their dead loved ones had been found. 

“I kind of started internally freaking out because I buried my mom in 2024,” said Kristina Sweeney. 

“I don't even think the shock has worn off yet.… I thought I buried my mom, all of her. I put her in the ground by myself.” 

Sweeney wasn't the only one contacted by East Coast Memorial, which recently purchased the buildings from Serenity Funeral Home. Serenity’s head office and crematorium was located in the small community of Coldbrook. The company also had other locations in the Annapolis Valley.

Michelle Carey and her sister Amanda Sabean used Serenity when they buried what they believed were the cremated remains of their father, Hendrik (Hank) Sabean, in the spring of 2018. On Sept. 8, Carey was informed by East Coast Memorial that her father’s full remains were found in storage.

“Having to, you know, bury him and to do this all over again. It's really hard,” said Carey. 

“There’s a family out there that's missing remains of their family member,” said Sabean. 

In an email, Andrew George, the owner of the new business East Coast Memorial, explained that his company discovered “a significant number of cremated remains that had been left in storage, some for many, many years.” 

George said he and his staff are carefully reviewing the home’s information to “make every reasonable effort to locate and contact families so that these loved ones could be returned to their families or otherwise laid to rest appropriately.”

Sweeney said when her mother, Elizabeth Pelton, died in 2024 at the age of 60, her body was cremated. Sweeney chose a green urn, which she received and buried.