BROOKFIELD, Wis. — At its annual fall meeting the Funeral Service Foundation’s Board of Trustees elected three new trustees to a three-year term. The newest members are: Steven Gackenbach, Group President, Matthews International Corporation, Pittsburgh; Anthony Guerra, Vice President, Guerra & Gutierrez Mortuaries, Los Angeles; and William “Bill” Wappner, CFSP, Owner, Wappner Funeral Directors and Crematory, Mansfield, Ohio.
“Our newest trustees join a committed group of funeral service leaders who share a desire to enrich our profession and to make a difference in our communities,” said 2015 Foundation Chair Steve Shaffer. “Steve Gackenbach, Anthony Guerra and Bill Wappner are solid additions to the board, and their dedication is already evident as we work together to steer the strategies and priorities of our profession’s leading philanthropic voice.”
The Board of Trustees, 60% of whom are NFDA funeral directors, includes representatives from across the funeral service profession. Foundation trustees volunteer their time and talent to advance the Foundation’s mission to fund the projects and programs that support all of funeral service in building meaningful relationships in the community.
Front row left to right: Steve Shaffer, Gerard “Jerry” Schoen, Michael Quinn, Randy Schoedinger, Mike DiBease and Diana Kurz.
Middle row left to right: Executive Director Kathy Wisnefski, Victor March, Sr., Sheri Richardson Stahl, Linda Darby, Anthony Guerra and William “Bill” Wappner.
Back row left to right: Bob Arrington, Ralph Buckner, Dave McComb, Steven Gackenbach and Jay Dodds.
2015 Funeral Service Foundation Board of Trustees
Executive Committee
Chair: Steve Shaffer, Homesteaders Life Company, West Des Moines, IA
Chair-Elect: Gerard “Jerry” Schoen, III*, Lake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home, New Orleans, LA
Secretary/Treasurer: Victor March, Sr., CFSP*, March Funeral Home, Baltimore, MD
Trustees
Bob Arrington*, Arrington Funeral Group, Jackson, TN
Ralph Buckner, CFSP, CPC*, Ralph Buckner Funeral Home & Crematory, Cleveland, TN
Linda Darby, Trigard, Danville, IL
Mike DiBease, Batesville Casket Company, Batesville, IN
Jay Dodds, CFSP*, The Signature Group, Houston, TX
Steven D. Gackenbach, Matthews International Corporation, Pittsburgh, PA
Anthony Guerra*, Guerra & Gutierrez Mortuaries, Los Angeles, CA
Diana Duksa Kurz*, CFSP, Newington Memorial Funeral Home, Newington, CT
David McComb*, D.O. McComb & Sons, Fort Wayne, IN
Michael Quinn, Aurora Casket Company, Aurora, IN
Randy Schoedinger*, CFSP, Schoedinger Funeral & Cremation Service, Columbus, OH
Sheri Richardson Stahl*, CFSP, The Island Funeral Home and Crematory, Hilton Head Island, SC
Bill Wappner, CFSP*, Wappner Funeral Directors and Crematory, Mansfield, OH
* Indicates NFDA Funeral Director
About the Funeral Service Foundation – FuneralServiceFoundation.org
The Funeral Service Foundation is the leading public foundation dedicated in perpetuity to serve the funeral service profession. Central to its mission, the Foundation supports all of funeral service in building meaningful relationships in the community by commissioning innovative research, funding programs and professional development, administering scholarships and assisting communities in crisis.
