Article By Sarah Rickerd, Frazer Consultants
Welcome to the first installment of our new Friday Finds: Funeral Industry Blog Roundup series, where we’ll be sharing the “best of the best” funeral profession blog posts found across the web. Hope you enjoy the collection of articles!
Looking for some death-related inspiration? Check out the TED talk pictured above on Confessions of a Funeral Directors recent post on “Five Fantastic TED Talks on Death.” (More great TED Talks for funeral professionals here and here on the Frazer Consultants blog.)
Is this the best obituary ever? Connecting Directors shares the final message of Margaret Aitken Holcombe, which includes passages like the following:
“I am beholden to Burke’s Main Street Pharmacy for letting me use their store as a meeting place with old friends; it was the center of my social life. David, the younger and more handsome (his words) and Tim, the older and more intelligent (his words) of the brothers Burke would ask “Can we help you or would you just like to wander aimlessly?” I chose the latter and came to know their stock better than they did.”
Did you know that the ashes of the man who discovered Pluto are on their way there aboard the New Horizons spacecraft? The rocket was launched in 2006 and is expected to reach Pluto in July 2015. Read 10 more weird facts about death on the Confessions of a Funeral Director blog.
Wouldn’t this Egyptian urn be a regal resting place for a beloved cat’s ashes?
The Seven Ponds blog shares a touching story from Marie on her mother’s passing. “My parents spent 60 years of marriage together and as he stroked her hair and called her baby for the last few times I couldn’t help but feel honored to be there with them.”
Would you be brave enough to assist families whose loved ones are dying from Ebola? The Telegraph profiles some of the world’s bravest undertakers and their work in disease-stricken Liberia.
How far can you make it in this 20-photo series chronicling a mother’s love for her dying son before crying? (Hint – if you make it more than two pictures, you’ve got me beat!)
If you’re feeling cynical about the “Ice Bucket Challenge” videos, know that this viral sensation has resulted in $53.3 million in donations (compared to $2.2 million during the same time period last year) and 1.1 million new donors. FuneralWise blogger Jennifer Lane discusses why the challenge is meaningful to her personally in a new post.
Touching. If you’re looking for a little inspiration this Friday, check out the 37 pieces of life advice from dying people shared by Caleb Wilde on his Confessions of a Funeral Director blog.
Still have your old wedding dress lying around? Why not donate it to the NICU Helping Hands’ Angel Gown Program to be refashioned into burial gowns for families that have lost babies (a cause that’s near and dear to my heart)?
As a total SEO junkie, I’m loving this “How Google Works” infographic shared on Connecting Directors!
Congrats to ASD on the launch of their new podcast series for funeral professionals –FuneralProChat. Can’t wait to tune in!
Did you know that you can negotiate your estate settlement fees in advance? Jody Roth shares the story of her father’s forethought in preparing for his eventual passing with savvy negotiating on the Seven Ponds blog.
How is your funeral home responding to increasing consumer debt? “The Funeral Commander,” Jeff Harbeson brings up an important point – that 35% of all Americans are already in debt collections – in a recent post on his site.
I love websites that shed light on the “behind the scenes” working of the funeral profession – so it’s no surprise I’m loving the “What Little MIss Funeral Wears” series on Lauren LeRoy’s Little Miss Funeral blog. Check out her looks for busy Saturdays and office work.
Have you seen another great funeral industry blog post you’d like to share? Leave it in a comment below!
