Firm Unveils “Green Jacket” Employee Award; Immediately Given to Guy Who Refilled Lobby Coffee Without Being Asked | FFFW 276
We’ve made it back around to another Friday! Now, I don’t mean to be political, but the world is waging a war against Fridays. Fridays used to be the undisputed champion of the week. You could get discounts at restaurants, watch a new movie, stay out late, and catch “Full House” on TV.
Now, because of streaming, you can watch everything all the time, so nobody even goes to the theatre. And restaurants are so expensive even with a free appetizer. Also, they took Full House off the air like 30 years ago.
S, what’s left?
This.
The Friday Funeral Fun Wrap is all we have left. And we’ll continue waging the war to keep Fridays amazing.
Soldier on soldier.
Funeral Director Sent Directly to Jail
(Fails to Collect $200)
Much-loved and well-respected local funeral director, Chance Card, owner of Baltic Avenue Funeral Home, was reportedly jailed after leaving a family’s live stream recording posted on his funeral home’s website.
In what some are calling “an unfortunate misunderstanding of music copyright law,” the charges were ultimately dropped. He’s now waiting for a ride home to his loyal terrier, Mortimer.
But his experience highlights something important:
Tip #2 – It’s not the live stream that raises questions. It’s what happens after.
Leaving recordings publicly accessible can create unintended risks.
While Mr. Card evaluates his options, the solution isn’t about reworking recordings afterward—it’s about handling them correctly from the start.
See the simple shift in how recordings should be handled →
foveo.org/expert-tips
Firm Unveils “Green Jacket” Employee Award; Immediately Given to Guy Who Refilled Lobby Coffee Without Being Asked
Pine Hollow, Georgia — Pine Hollow Memorial Chapel unveiled its new Green Jacket Employee Award this week, created to honor staff members who display initiative, professionalism, and the rare ability to notice something without being told.
The first recipient was Dennis, a funeral assistant who refilled the lobby coffee before anyone had to mention it.
Owner Brad Tennyson presented the jacket Monday morning in a brief ceremony near the arrangement office, calling Dennis “the kind of employee who sees an empty pot and responds with excellence.”
“Anybody can say they care,” Brad said. “Dennis proved it.”
The jacket, a deep green sport coat bought on sale over the weekend, was described by staff as “pretty sharp, honestly,” though some noted it felt aggressive for a man who had technically just made coffee.
Dennis accepted the honor with humility.
“I saw it was low,” he said. “So I made more.”
Still, the impact on company culture was immediate. Within hours, one employee had straightened every chair in the lobby, another was wiping counters with the focus of a hostage negotiator, and a third was seen walking laps through the building, hoping to catch a task in the wild.
By the end of the day, ownership announced the award would be given quarterly to the employee who best demonstrates leadership through small acts of service and “handling obvious things before they become a discussion.”
At press time, Dennis was still wearing the jacket while taking out the trash, while three other staff members were suddenly very interested in the coffee situation.
Ask the Funeral Dude!
Question:
Hey Funeral Dude, how do I politely stop a coworker from telling the same story at every single lunch? – Mr. HeardItAgain
Answer:
Mr. HeardItAgain, this is one of the great quiet burdens of the profession. We prepare with dignity, we serve with excellence, and then at 12:07 p.m. we are once again hearing about the time Randy almost bought a bass boat in 2009.
The polite move is not to stop the story. That rarely works. A man committed to lunch lore cannot be reasoned with. What you must do is redirect with honor. Hit him with something like, “Randy, that is still a classic. Now tell me, whatever happened with your neighbor and that shed permit?” Then he will move to an entirely different story, which is still not ideal, but at least it is fresh.
You can also try strategic interruption through affirmation. Nodding and saying, “That may be your best telling yet” sometimes gives the speaker the emotional closure he has been chasing for the last eleven months.
And if all else fails, become unpredictable. Start telling one of his stories before he can. Not in a rude way. In a respectful, team-building way. If he says, “Did I ever tell you about” you jump in with “the Applebee’s waitress, the flat tire, and your cousin Duane? Yes sir, and it remains powerful.”
That usually buys you two lunches of peace.
GIF OF THE WEEK
Watch some golf and have a good weekend!
