Preneed Cemetery Activities Investment Related Activities (Details) (Cemetery [Member], USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Cemetery [Member]
Investment related activities [Line Items]
Deposits to trust	$ 98,130	$ 98,121	$ 96,864
Withdrawals	98,738	109,382	100,474
Purchases of available-for-sale securities	746,761	595,683	638,368
Sales of available-for-sale securities	700,091	525,534	592,813
Realized gains from sales of available-for-sale securities	87,665	67,167	43,413
Realized losses from sales of available-for-sale securities	$ (29,397)	$ (46,889)	$ (51,771)

The cash outflow to acquire debt and equity securities not classified as either held-to-maturity securities or trading securities which would be classified as available-for-sale securities and reported at fair value, with unrealized gains and losses excluded from earnings and reported in a separate component of shareholders' equity.

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+ Details

- Definition

The cash inflow associated with the sale of debt and equity securities classified as available-for-sale securities.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef

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-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)

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-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

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+ Details