Crown Memorial Centers Join Foundation Partners Group
Orlando, Fla. – Foundation Partners Group, a leading provider of innovative funeral and cemetery experiences and products, today announced the acquisition of Cascade Funeral Directors Inc., an Oregon-based deathcare business with eight locations throughout the Portland and Salem metropolitan areas. The acquisition, which includes all six Crown Memorial Centers, Canby & Molalla Funeral Chapels, Autumn Funerals Cremation & Burial, Dignified Pet Services and other related businesses, increases the Foundation Partners Network to a total of 25 locations in the state.
Cascade Funeral Directors Owner Randy Tjaden bought his first funeral home in 1985, and over the next 35 years, grew the business to become the largest provider of deathcare services in Oregon. Noticing that consumer needs weren’t being met by the traditional funeral home model, in 2003 Tjaden opened Crown Memorial Centers to offer affordable burial and direct cremation services. “Trends were changing, and the industry hadn’t changed to keep up,” he said. “We designed Crown Memorial Centers to be fully independent with all infrastructure built and controlled in-house.”
In 2000, Cascade expanded its business when it opened Dignified Pet Services. “We have businesses that meet every need for pet-owners, but at the time, we didn’t know of any pet funeral homes,” Tjaden said. His husband Michael Remsing led and grew the business to become the largest provider of pet cremations in Oregon. Dignified Pet Services now operates three pet crematories throughout the state.
The Tjaden family will remain active in the business, with Randy’s son, Nic Tjaden, and daughter, Tara Tjaden Pascoe, continuing in their roles. “We will now have stronger support and more resources for our business and our employees with Foundation Partners,” Tjaden said. “Given the size of our company, it’s too large of an operation for us to manage alone, and Foundation Partners is the only company I would trust with our legacy.”
Tom Kominsky, Foundation Partners Group chief financial officer, said, “Our acquisition strategy is to partner with independent operators in the funeral service profession who believe in providing the highest quality service for families regardless of the final disposition method they choose. The Tjadens have been innovators in meeting the ever-changing needs of Oregon families and we are honored they chose Foundation Partners to carry on their legacy.”
About Foundation Partners Group
Foundation Partners Group is one of the industry’s most innovative providers of funeral services. The company owns and operates a network of nearly 160 funeral homes, cremation centers and cemeteries across 21 states. Our organizational structure allows us to embrace and grow the legacies of the local funeral homes we acquire while leveraging the economies of scale, deep understanding of technology, and our ShareLife® customer experience-centered approach to deliver truly innovative and compassionate care to the families we serve. Visit www.foundationpartners.com to learn more.
