A woman and her pet cat’s ashes have been flown to and spread across space in an extraordinary send-off.
Elizabeth Garcia and her husband, John, loved travelling across the globe and meeting new people.
But there was one destination she had left to tick off; outer space.
The 70-year-old, born in St. Albans but lived in Barnsley, had battled with a heart condition that gave her an estimated two years left to live, and, less than two months after her birthday, she sadly passed away.
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In a bid to live out her final wish, the business owner had arranged to have her ashes scattered along with her cat’s, Chloe, into the stratosphere – creating a unique tribute for her life.
“They [Elizabeth and Mark] enjoyed travelling and socialising,” her sister, Jean, said.
“She was a very generous person helping family and friends without question.
“Her wish was for her ashes to be sent into space.”
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Elizabeth came across Aura Flights, a Sheffield-based space memorial provider.
Elle Lilley, the client care and liaison for the company, said: “It’s extra special doing the launch for someone you’ve spoken with so much – knowing how much she wanted to be scattered in space and being able to fulfil that for her really was a rewarding and heart-warming feeling.”
Her ashes travelled over 100,000 feet above the earth in a scatter vessel, which was lifted by a specialist stratospheric balloon.
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With a photo of Elizabeth attached, her ashes were scattered across space and the world – all captured on film for a memorial video.
As their loved ones watched their final adventure, emotions ran high among family members.
Jean added: “It was emotional, but special, knowing this was exactly what Elizabeth wanted.
“She would have been elated with the outcome, as were we all.”
Since this extraordinary send-off in January 2023, demand for the service has grown significantly over the past year.
More than one launch a week was done last year and the company believe this will only increase.
A spokesperson for Aura Flights said: “When we launched the service, there was already a cultural shift with people opting for cremations over burial and moving away from traditional funeral services towards more personalised, celebratory events.
“That change was massively accepted in the early days of the pandemic when people weren’t able to attend in-person funerals and we saw a massive uptick in inquiries that has only grown stronger since.”
