Dawn F.
Yelp
Glendale, CA
John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
John 11: 25, 26 Jesus said to her, " I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
John 14: 1-6 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms, if it were not so I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you with me that you also may be where I am, You know the way to the place where I am going." Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?' Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
Forest Lawn is a place which holds many memories for me and I have enjoyed this property for over 40 years. The calm serene landscape, beautiful European style architecture and immaculate grounds are made to invoke the feeling and inspiration of heaven. I have only visited one other Forest Lawn location to pick something up, but this particular location is a stand out in comparison, it might even be the original location, not sure.
The founder installed many beautiful stained glass replicas and famous works of art, statues and murals, all throughout the property. The Glendale location houses three pieces of artwork to support the founder's vision of providing a glimpse of the inspiration and hope of heaven. The first two works are large paintings of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection which depict the life of Jesus. The mural painting by Jan Styka was so large, that a building was commissioned just to house the painting. During business hours, there is a no charge excellent theatre presentation of the original artwork describing the artwork in full detail. Housed in a different building, the stained glass window replica of Leonardo da Vinci' s painting, "The Last Supper", is the third work the founder installed as inspiration of heaven, with a push button audio presentation describing the work if one desires to listen. The stained glass collection on the premises boasts over 1,000 pieces, one of the largest collections in North America. Over the years, there have been fantastic temporary art exhibits and tributes here has well.
When I was a young child, I lost my father to cancer, he is buried here and his service was held in a small chapel on property, it is a replica of a chapel in Scotland if I remember correctly. The pathways around the chapel, and the little prayer garden are so charming. Fast forward 40 years just shy of one month, and we laid my dearly loved sweet mother to rest last year, just as the lockdowns hit. We were not able to hold a large service for my mom as we had always envisioned, rather it was an intimate graveside service with family due to constantly changing restrictions. I know both of my parents are now reunited in heaven through their faith in Jesus and his finished work on the cross, but this is a place I come now to pay my deepest respect to two of the most amazing people I have been blessed to know.
I have to say that everyone who has provided assistance to us has been extremely professional and most helpful. The staff went above and beyond to accommodate requests and they are extremely responsive to make sure the family has what they need to honor their loved ones in the best way possible. I really can't think of a nicer place to visit the resting place of my loved ones and I am so thankful for the founder's vision so many years ago, to create a place of tranquility, peace, serenity and beauty.