City of Oaks Funeral Home & Cremation

Obituary
Dr. Herbert G. Zerof

Rockingham, North Carolina

Age 88.
Died 08/23/2022.

Dr. Herbert G. Zerof
Dr. Herbert Goddard Zerof passed away peacefully on Tuesday August 23, 2022 at the age of 88 surrounded by his loving family. Herb was preceded in death by his parents, Albert and Mary Jane Zerof and his brothers Selwyn and Bernard Zerof. He is survived by his loving wife of 63 years, Aletta McDonald Zerof; daughters Linda Zerof Oglesby (Boyce) and Cheryl Zerof Russell (Tommy); grandchildren Michael Boyce Oglesby (Lauren), Samuel Lee Oglesby (Rachel), Abigail Anne Russell and Allison Marie Russell; and many nieces and nephews.

Herb was born on August 18, 1934 in Brooklyn, New York. He had an insatiable thirst for learning and shared his knowledge with others. He graduated from Miami High School and received a Bachelors in History from Stetson University, a Masters in Theology from Southeastern Theological Seminary, and a Doctorate of Education (EdD) from the University of Pennsylvania. He began his career as a Baptist minister, serving churches in Oxford and Creedmoor, North Carolina. From there he became the Associate Director of pastoral care at Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Winston-Salem. After receiving his doctorate, he served as Chief Psychologist at Episcopal Hospital Community Mental Health Center in Philadelphia, PA. He taught at University of Pennsylvania’s school of medicine as well as other institutions, including Swarthmore College and University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Herb had a private marriage and family practice in Charlotte, NC for over 20 years. He served as the President of the NC Association of Marriage and Family Counselors and the Director of the Marriage and Family Institute. He was a consultant to the US Navy, training many chaplains across the globe. He also served as the Director of Community Education for the National Institute of Mental Health in Washington, DC working on suicide prevention studies. Herb was the author of “Finding Intimacy, The Art of Happiness in Living Together.”

Herb and Aletta retired to Richmond County in 1992 and enjoyed cultivating their land with long leaf and loblolly pines, working with the NC Forest Service. Herb was an active member of the Richmond County community serving on the historical society, the Sandhills Landtrust and performed in several Richmond County Playhouse productions. He enjoyed the serenity of their land, naming it “Walden II”. Herb had a lifelong love of travel and exploring the world that he generously passed on to his children and grandchildren.

A celebration of his life will be held at Cary Presbyterian Church on September 4, 2022 at 2pm for family and friends. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Transitions LifeCare Hospice Home in Raleigh, the dear angels that cared for Herb in such a loving way.

Transitions LifeCare, Philanthropy Dept. | 250 Hospice Circle | Raleigh, NC 27607
https://www.transitionslifecare.org/donate/

Cary Presbyterian Church, 614 Griffis St, Cary, NC 27511

For additional information or for service details, please reach out to the family directly.


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City of Oaks Cremation and Funeral Home is a full-service funeral home in Raleigh, serving all of North Carolina and beyond. We provide an alternative to costly funeral homes and every day we help families in Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and all over North Carolina make simple, affordable funeral arrangements.

Simply having to reach out to a funeral home can feel overwhelming. Our goal is to simplify the entire funeral home experience and make the process as easy as possible. We hope to eliminate any unnecessary surprises by publishing our total cost and the services we provide directly on our website. All of our obituaries are provided free of charge as a way to help families celebrate and commemorate the lives of their loved ones.

Our Promise

Apples to Apples

Just like all other licensed funeral homes in North Carolina, City of Oaks Cremation, LLC is regulated by the NC Board of Funeral Service.


The same laws that apply to the big corporate funeral homes also apply to the modest independently owned firms like ours. All crematories in North Carolina, regardless of who owns them, are inspected annually by the state and must adhere to the same rules and laws.

Genuine Care

We're committed to providing families within our community unsurpassed service before, during and after the time of loss.


Our staff will provide clear communication to your family through each step as we move forward from the original phone call notifying us of a death to the time we deliver the urn back to your family. We will treat your family with the utmost respect, as we honor the wishes of your loved one.


We promise to make this process affordable and as endurable as possible.

State Wide

Our Funeral Home is located in Wake County NC; however, we provide our services to families throughout the entire State.


Unlike other funeral homes, we don't charge an additional mileage fee. Regardless of what county you live in, we can help your family with making simple, affordable funeral arrangements. From Asheville to Wilmington, we're proud to help families statewide.

Our Services

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Direct Cremation

$1196.75

Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. We include everything you need for a simple or direct cremation. Simple, affordable and reliable. We have not changed the cost of our direct cremation service since we opened City of Oaks in 2012.

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Cremation with Solidified Remains

$2875.66

We offer the option of choosing how you receive your loved ones remains. Selecting our Direct Cremation with Solidified Remains option is a beautiful way to transform cremated remains into 40-60 “stones” that you can hold.

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Cremation with Visitation

$1917.84

City of Oaks Funeral Home and Cremation provides an affordable cremation option with onsite visitation. Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. Simple, affordable and reliable.

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Immediate Burial

$2497.50

An immediate burial has the same end result as a traditional burial; however, we have eliminated the extra (sometimes unnecessary) services prior to getting to the cemetery. Not everyone wants an open casket for viewing or a limousine for the family. Despite the term immediate, we can move as fast as you need or as slow as you like. This option simply allows you to save money by eliminating some of the fancy extras at the funeral home.

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Traditional Funeral

$6081.48

We offer the same traditional funeral services as the big corporately owned funeral homes in the area; however, we cost about half the amount. You might consider a traditional funeral service if your family is looking for an open casket visitation, a traditional church service or a funeral service in the funeral home's chapel. A traditional funeral service can be altered to fit the needs of your family.

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Green Burial

$3033.75

This establishment is one of a select number of funeral homes who meet the criteria for providing green funeral service by the Green Burial Council; a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization working to encourage environmentally sustainability in the field of funeral service. Our Green options allow for a funeral to take place without the use of toxic and non-biodegradable materials/chemicals.

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Aquamation

$2640.59

As an alternative to traditional cremation, City of Oaks Funeral Home also offers Aquamation. The Aquamation process, often referred to as alkaline hydrolysis, uses a solution of water and potassium hydroxide to facilitate natural decomposition.

City of Oaks Funeral Home & Cremations