$23,500 has been donated so far to transform a site along Sarnia's waterfront into a more peaceful location to say last goodbyes.
The money, collected through fundraising efforts, was presented to Sarnia Mayor Mike Bradley Thursday morning.
It will allow the city to move forward with a plan to construct a platform with side railings and cut stone steps leading down to the water's surface on the west side of the Point Lands -- an area that was specifically designated earlier this year to scatter cremated remains over the St. Clair River.
Sarnia resident Jaggi Singh was really surprised by the support.
"Apart from Sarnia, we have donations from London, from St. Thomas, from Alexandria, Virginia, from San Jose, California, Toronto," says Singh. "Its been an eye opener. A real eye opener."
He says the area was needed in southwestern Ontario.
"Especially with the Indian community from India, mostly the Sikhs and Hindus" says Singh. "They do not bury, they cremate and they do not believe in the burial places where you go and mourn or remember loved ones. It's a final goodbye. When it's done, you put the ashes in floating waters and that's the final goodbye."
DJ Robb Funeral Home's Tom Wolfe thinks construction may begin soon.
"The gazebo portion is probably best in the spring," says Wolfe. "As for the main platform, once the details get finalized and the funding, that can proceed in this kind of weather. It's hard on the workers, but it's easier for the project because the ground is firmer."
In Ontario, it is legal to spread human remains on Crown Land, in the Great Lakes and at provincial parks, unless signs are posted saying otherwise.