The Niagara Mutual Funeral Society (also known as the Virgil Mutual Burial Society), Virgil, Ontario, was an outgrowth of the Vineland Burial Society, forming a separate organization in 1942. As of March 1956 it had 2,146 members from various Mennonite branches in all areas of Canada. It covered total funeral expenses and in 1953 paid out $1,329.75.

In 2003 the leadership of both societies explored merger options, since matters of distance and communication were no longer issues. On 10 May 2008 members present at a special joint meeting voted unanimously to merge the Vineland and Virgil Burial Societies into one society, the Mennonite Burial Society. Peter Janzen (Virgil) and Tim Siemens (Vineland) were presidents of the societies at the time of merger; Siemens served as the first chair of the new society.

See also Mennonite Burial Society

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 1112. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.

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