WAUNAKEE, WI — June 16, 2026 — Tribute Technology recently wrapped up Trend ReCON 2026, its annual ReCONference for funeral professionals, held June 3-4, 2026, at Hotel Noelle in Nashville, Tennessee. The two-day event gave funeral directors and funeral home owners from across North America a chance to sit down together, share what’s working, talk through what isn’t, and build the kinds of relationships that are hard to find anywhere else in the profession.
Funeral directors are used to showing up for others. What they don’t always have is a room full of people who truly understand what that work looks like day to day. Large industry conferences can be overwhelming, and the sheer size of them often makes it difficult to have real conversations or build real connections. Trend ReCON was designed with that in mind. By keeping the event intentionally small, attendees had the space to actually talk to each other – over sessions, over meals, and in the hallways in between. Many of the funeral professionals who walked into Hotel Noelle on June 3rd had never met before. By the time they left on June 4th, they had exchanged numbers, shared advice, and made friendships that will likely last well beyond this event.
“What we observed were the connections our funeral home partners were making with each other – sharing advice, talking through challenges, and leaning on one another. Real stories, speaking to like-minded professionals who are all going through similar things. We felt there were some solid friendships made in that room.”
— Lindsay Martin & Jules Green-Fournier, Tribute Technology
That sense of connection extended to the sponsors as well. Rather than a traditional trade show floor, Trend ReCON brought sponsors and funeral home partners together in the same room, in the same conversations. Sponsors noted how much they valued the chance to connect directly with attendees in a setting that felt personal and relaxed. The boutique atmosphere of Hotel Noelle in Nashville set the tone perfectly – a venue that encouraged people to slow down, engage, and get to know one another.
The sessions themselves reflected the same spirit. Some of the most powerful moments came not from polished presentations but from funeral professionals sharing their own experiences directly with others in the room – talking candidly about the challenges of staffing and burnout, the decisions they’ve made to grow or restructure their firms, and how they’re thinking about the future. That kind of peer-to-peer honesty is rare, and it was one of the defining features of this year’s event.
Sessions at Trend ReCON 2026 covered the topics funeral directors care about most right now: using AI to work smarter and serve families better, building a marketing strategy that actually brings in calls, managing staff and running an efficient operation, making the most of your funeral home’s website and online presence, turning obituary pages into meaningful digital experiences through social media and search, and how new technology is changing the way families preserve and share memories of loved ones.
Funeral professionals presenting and participating in sessions included Lindsay Granson, Chief Operating Officer of Heritage Family Funeral Home; Will Andrews, Chief Executive Officer of Anthem Partners; John Butler, VP of Digital Marketing at Treasured Memories/Altmeyer; Minh Reid, Manager of Website Strategy and Digital Marketing at Carriage Services; Matt Thompson, owner of Chippewa Valley Cremation Services and Celebration of Life Center; Thomas J. Tierney, owner of Tierney Funeral Home; David Hernandez, owner of Jersey Memorial Group; Bob Arrington, Founder of ObituaryShare; Rehan Choudhry, Founder and CEO of CHPTR; and Charlie Greene, Co-Founder and CEO of Remento, as seen on Shark Tank. The Tribute Technology team was also on hand throughout, including CEO Craig Greenseid, CTO Matt Powell, and members of the company’s sales, marketing, and customer success teams.
A highlight of the event was the Tech-Enabled Funeral Home Awards, presented on the evening of June 3rd during a rooftop cocktail reception at the Rare Bird Rooftop Bar at Hotel Noelle. The awards recognized funeral professionals who are leading the way in how they use technology to care for families. This year’s recipients were:
David Hernandez of Jersey Memorial Group, who received the Innovation in Operations Award for his work streamlining the way his firm operates day to day.
Minh Reid of Carriage Services, who received the Digital Experience Award for her work improving the online experience for families across Carriage Services’ locations.
Matt Thompson of Chippewa Valley Cremation Services and Celebration of Life Center, who received the AI Innovation Award for his early and thoughtful AI adoption tools such as Mortem AI to serve families and run his firm more effectively.
Trend ReCON 2026 also shone a light on CHPTR’s national public service campaign, “The First Call,” which is working to raise public awareness and appreciation for funeral directors – the professionals who step in after first responders to help grieving families through one of the hardest moments of their lives. The campaign struck a chord with attendees and reflected the shared sense of purpose that brought everyone together in Nashville.
Tribute Technology is grateful to the sponsors who helped bring Trend ReCON 2026 to life and who share a commitment to supporting funeral professionals: ASD, OneRoom, Cremation Recycling, elevia, Legacy Touch, Homesteaders Life Company, C&J Financial LLC, Treasured Memories, Life Celebration, ObituaryShare, Family Shield Credit, and CHPTR.
Trend ReCON exists because funeral directors deserve a space that is built for them — where they can learn from each other, be honest about the realities of their work, and leave feeling supported and connected. Tribute Technology looks forward to continuing to build that community and to welcoming everyone back for the next one. For more information, visit www.tributetech.com.
