Over the last couple of years that I have published Funeral Director Daily, I’ve written on this topic a couple of times. “This topic” is that of smaller association cemeteries and the financial plights more and more of them seem to be falling into. I limit this discussion to “association cemeteries” simply because church cemeteries,…
It’s Friday and we are heading into the weekend preceding the Thanksgiving holiday. With all of the death care companies reporting earnings reports in the last couple of weeks and our coverage of those we have a few articles that we feel our readers should have access to, yet we are not able to feature…
This article will be published on Friday morning because I figure it won’t be real business like, but it will be something that the reader can carry into the weekend. Lots of people talk about PK’s – Preacher’s Kids – but there is another group of us who grew up in a funeral home or…
A couple of years ago I looked at StoneMor and their operations and told readers that they should, if they had a StoneMor competitor in their market, look at a possible acquisition of that competitor. Quite frankly, I was of the opinion that the way StoneMor was moving would probably lead to a liquidation and…
You can read this article from Australia’s Market Herald that announced that Australia’s largest human funeral and cremation provider finalized a deal to purchase two pet cremation business in the country for a combined price of US $36.44 million ($49.8 million in Australian dollars). We learned that last week, InvoCare, purchased Family Pet Care and…
BUSINESS
Bill back on the table to increase Social Security Lump-Sum Death Benefit
Back in September 2024 Funeral Director Daily let you know that the Social Secuirty Survivor Benefits Equity Act had been introduced to the the United States House of Representatives. While the bill failed to…
The Trend for 2026: Technology keeps on coming
I’ve been thinking about this “Trends” article for the past month. I was going to originally title the article “Back to the Future” on the premise that I’ve seen two trends emerging this…
2025 Business Story of the Year: “Rise of the Regionals”
If you would ask Gemini Artificial Intelligence what percentage of funeral homes will be sold in the next five years, here is the answer that you will be given: “While an exact percentage…
FINANCE
2025 Business Story of the Year: “Rise of the Regionals”
If you would ask Gemini Artificial Intelligence what percentage of funeral homes will be sold in the next five years, here is the answer that you will be given: “While an exact percentage…
The Question: “How does the economy look for 2026?” , The Answer: “Depends on who you ask?”
The overall economy and, more importantly, the way consumers and Death Care clientele feel about their individual situations has some effect on purchases of Death Care products and services– both Pre-Need and At-Need. It’s…
Everstory Partner’s Cedar Hill Funeral Home completes renovations
Everstory Partners, who may be the nation’s 2nd largest Death Care provider by serving over 65,000 families per year, recently announced completed renovations at their Cedar Hill Funeral Home just outside Washington, DC. This…
REGULATIONS
Bill back on the table to increase Social Security Lump-Sum Death Benefit
Back in September 2024 Funeral Director Daily let you know that the Social Secuirty Survivor Benefits Equity Act had been introduced to the the United States House of Representatives. While the bill failed to…
New York audit of state funeral industry finds “Red flags”
A recent report (November 2025) from the State of New York Department of Health with the results of an audit “which covered April 2019 through November 2023, concluded that the state Department of…
Missing body causing problems between family and cemetery
According to details in this article from CBC Canada Royal Air Force glider pilot veteran Gordon Patrick was buried at the Green Acres Cemetery outside of Winnipeg, Manitoba, following his death in 1973. …
CEMETERY
Cremations, and now tariffs creating headwinds for monument dealers
American monument dealers have become accustomed to dealing with the rising cremation rates in the country and the dwindling sales opportunities for cemetery monuments that fact brings. But now, according to this recent…
The Green Funeral movement is alive in New York City
Amy Cunningham is a friend of mine. She was a writer/editor who has become a funeral director and she has teased me that I was a funeral director who has became a writer/editor with…
Opinion: The Jewish Faith and Cremation
I grew up in the very homogeneous community of Alexandria, Minnesota. From this Wikipedia article you can see that the city at the time of my growing up had a population of a little…
CREMATION
Cremations, and now tariffs creating headwinds for monument dealers
American monument dealers have become accustomed to dealing with the rising cremation rates in the country and the dwindling sales opportunities for cemetery monuments that fact brings. But now, according to this recent…
Opinion: The Jewish Faith and Cremation
I grew up in the very homogeneous community of Alexandria, Minnesota. From this Wikipedia article you can see that the city at the time of my growing up had a population of a little…
Does KFC have a template for Death Care?
Alex Fasciano, an analyst for CFRA Research suggests that quick service restaurant player KFC’s (formerly Kentucky Fried Chicken) strategy is “. .centered on driving growth through brand relevance, marketing innovation, (and) operational excellence. .…
PRENEED
More Americans take on debt to cover funerals
I came across this recent article from USA Today titled “Americans are going into debt over death. Here are affordability tips.” Reading that article led me to a survey and results from Debt.com and…
Preneed companies emerge as funeral home lending sources
Morgan Stanley, a global financial services firm that provides a wide range of products and services, including investment banking, wealth management, consumer banking, and brokerage services, recently made this comment in an article, “Life…
Co-op Funeralcare increases “Funeral Plan” sales over 17% despite cyberattack
An April cyberattack which you can read about here probably cost the parent company of Great Britain’s largest funeral home operator, Co-op Funeralcare, about a US$ 107 million profit swing but didn’t seem to…
PRODUCTS
The Trend for 2026: Technology keeps on coming
I’ve been thinking about this “Trends” article for the past month. I was going to originally title the article “Back to the Future” on the premise that I’ve seen two trends emerging this…
Cremations, and now tariffs creating headwinds for monument dealers
American monument dealers have become accustomed to dealing with the rising cremation rates in the country and the dwindling sales opportunities for cemetery monuments that fact brings. But now, according to this recent…
The Green Funeral movement is alive in New York City
Amy Cunningham is a friend of mine. She was a writer/editor who has become a funeral director and she has teased me that I was a funeral director who has became a writer/editor with…
