COLUMBUS (Terri Sullivan) — A local funeral home is helping central Ohio families cope with the loss of a loved one by saving a bit of the past for the future. In some cases it could be lifesaving.

It’s called a DNA memorial.

Schoedinger Funeral And Cremation Service has offered it for about a month. A swab is used to collect cells from inside the mouth, which, along with a snippet of hair, is sent off to a lab for processing.

“I think one of the big reasons people are starting to do this is the technology continues to evolve every year on what we can do with genes and dna genetics and so forth,” said Michael Schoedinger. “And what we’re learning is the cremation rate is approaching 50%. Once a person’s been cremated, we can’t reverse the process and collect their DNA. It’s destroyed forever.”

The minimum cost for retrieving a sample, sending it to a lab for processing, then returning it to a relative for storage, is almost $300. For $600, you can have the sample permanently stored at the lab.

Schoedinger said the reasons people opt for the service vary. Some use to it determine their risk of disease or certain medical conditions, others want to know more about their family history.

Schoedinger says in many ways it’s a gift from the past to future generations.

You can learn more here.