Trigard Memorials invites cemeteries, funeral home combos and memorial dealers to attend a free 20-minute webinars on Tuesday, June 7, to learn how Memorial Security can help lock in marker sales.
Visit www.trigard.com/security to register for one of three sessions: 9 a.m., 12:30 p.m., and 4 p.m. Central Time.
Memorial Security was developed in response to a challenge in the memorial park that the Darby family owns.
STERLING, VA — The Pet Loss Professionals Alliance (PLPA), a group of more than 200 pet loss providers and related businesses, has created a Cremation Authorization Form designed specifically for pet loss providers and has updated its “Definitions and Standards for the Cremation of Companion Animals.”
The Cremation Authorization Form is an adaptation of the ICCFA Model Cremation Authorization Form for human remains. It includes specific fields for breed and owner, options for selecting private, partitioned or communal cremation, and memorialization options such as a fur clippings, clay paw prints or jewelry.
Developed by the PLPA Standards and Ethics Committee, the “Definitions and Standards for the Cremation of Companion Animals” was produced to promote uniformity and standardization in pet cremation. The original document, released in September 2010, defined private cremation, partitioned cremation and communal cremation. The expanded version also defines active and residual commingling and proposes definitions for anatomical pet remains and medical waste.
The definitions and standards document may be downloaded from the PLPA website at www.myplpa.com. The Cremation Authorization Form is available for download only by current PLPA members at www.myplpa.com.
Founded in 2009, the PLPA is dedicated to providing education and opportunities for professional growth for providers of pet-related death care services. It is a committee of the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA).
Founded in 1887, the ICCFA is the only international trade association representing all segments of the cemetery, cremation, funeral and memorialization profession. Its membership is composed of more than 7,500 cemeteries, funeral homes, memorial designers, crematories, pet loss providers and related businesses worldwide. For more information, visit www.iccfa.com.
Chicago, IL — Funeralwise.com invites photographers across the U.S. to participate in its first annual Memorial Day Photo Contest. This photography contest will recognize and reward photographers whose images convey the meaning and emotion associated with Memorial Day in cemeteries across the United States.
Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, unofficially started during the Civil War as a day of remembrance for those who died in military service. Ladies in both Northern and Southern communities decorated soldiers’ graves, tapping into the general human need to honor our dead. The first official Memorial Day observance at Arlington National Cemetery was held on May 30, 1868.
“People pay their respects in many different ways when they visit cemeteries for Memorial Day,” said Larry Anspach, co-founder of Funeralwise.com and former cemetery owner. “This photo contest will help capture and share the tributes and emotional connections made at the final resting places of our men and women in the U.S. armed forces.”
Cash prizes, with a $500 Grand Prize, will be awarded for images taken between now and the June 15, 2011 submission deadline. Pictures taken by both amateur and professional photographers are welcome. A panel of judges will select 12 finalists from the photos submitted. The finalist photos will be displayed on Funeralwise.com’s Facebook pages at http://www.facebook.com/funeralwise and Facebook fans will be invited to vote for their favorite photos. Winners will be determined by the fan votes.
Send submissions as JPG attachments to photocontest@funeralwise.com, up to 3 images per entry, with the photographer’s name, address, phone number, and cemetery name and location.
For all contest rules and entry instructions, visit http://www.funeralwise.com/photo_contest.
Aiming to provide “Everything You Need to Know About Funerals,” Funeralwise.com features extensive information on funeral-related subjects including funeral customs, funeral etiquette, and grief support. Visitors to the site can subscribe to its “Word to the Wise” series of free guides at http://www.funeralwise.com/free-guides.
A few months ago we launched our “Facebook 101 Video Series” and the very first video we did was titled “Profile vs Fan Page”. We discussed why as a funeral home your presence on Facebook needed to be done through a Facebook Page and not a Facebook Profile.
Facebook profiles are for personal use , where Facebook Pages are set up for businesses and offer many features that a Facebook profile does not.
As I browse around Facebook it is still amazing to me how many funeral homes and funeral industry suppliers are continuing to set up Facebook Profiles for their business and not a Facebook Page. What these funeral homes and industry suppliers do not understand is that by having your business set up as a Facebook profile and not a Facebook Page you are in direct violation of Facebook’s terms of service and they could actually shutdown your profile and ban you from Facebook.
Lacy Robinson, CFSP, Aurora Casket Senior Professional Development Trainer, will speak to the Association of Women Funeral Professionals (AWFP) in a teleconference scheduled for May 27th.
Robinson, also the Continuing Education Coordinator for the AWFP, will offer expertise and advice for funeral professionals serving multi-generational clients in her program Decoding the Generations. The teleconference will serve as a continuing education credit approved by The Academy of Funeral Service Practice for AWFP members who choose to attend.
“Decoding the Generations helps to address the growing concerns of many funeral homes throughout the nation,” Robinson said. “How to market, communicate and serve the many generations that funeral directors interact with on a daily basis is an important aspect of providing the best possible service to families. Funeral directors will learn what communication styles to expect during the arrangement conference as well as tips on adjusting their own communication skills to each generation.”
Zanesville, OH, – Ryan Thogmartin, founder of the funeral service news and information site, Connecting Directors, recently made a significant change to the website. “Originally, site visitors needed to register to obtain wider access to the industry-related news and unique resources within the site, noted Ryan. “That’s all changed. No one needs to be registered anymore to read news, leave feedback comments, or view the job board.
“We’ve effectively flung the doors of Connecting Directors wide open, and invite anyone to step through.”
Aurora, IN — Aurora Casket Company, the largest family-owned supplier in funeral service has recently added industry veteran Calvin Toler as a Strategic Account Manager.
Toler has been a licensed funeral director for more than 30 years and has worked with funeral firms across the country on merchandising and service enhancement. Based in Orlando, Toler will be responsible for business development and key account management throughout the southeast United States.
A paperwork foul-up has cost the director of Visser Funeral Home her job and has led to the mass resignation of the staff at the Langley business.
Jenny Patty, the director of the funeral home, was fired last week after she helped a Langley family transport the remains of their 5Ω-year-old daughter to the Langley Cemetery for her funeral.
Patty’s former coworkers said her dismissal came after the family of the deceased called Visser to ask about services, but then decided to have an in-home memorial instead.
Two days before the funeral, a family member called Visser again to see if someone could be hired to drive a hearse to carry the young girl’s remains from her home to the cemetery.
In Islam, the deceased are to be buried within 24 hours.
This was highlighted in media reports of the death of Osama bin Laden.
Each major religion has its customs concerning burial. Although they vary widely, the one common denominator is respect for the body.
And controversy arose over bin Laden’s burial at sea.
Russell Mohammed, a director of the Mid-America Muslim Cemetery, said the 24-hour burial is not in the Qur’an but is a cultural practice from the faith’s desire to respect the body and to avoid decay.
While doing some research for an upcoming article, I realized that I needed our wonderful funeral director readers to give some input on the software they use to run their funeral home. I’d greatly appreciate it if you could take 5-10 minutes out of your very busy schedules to take this quick survey. All of your input is, again, greatly appreciated.
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