In a press release out of Park Lawn Corporation headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, today, the company announced that it had acquired the assets of two-location funeral business John L. Ziegenhein & Sons Undertaking, Inc. According to the press release that you can read here, the Ziegenhein Funeral Homes were acquired for a purchase price of…
Houston based funeral home and cemetery consolidator and operator Carriage Services reported its 1st Quarter 2019 results yesterday. Their report somewhat parroted industry leader Service Corporation International’s report from a week ago in that “Same Unit” revenues dropped. In Carriage’s case, however, even with new acquisition revenue added in, their 2019 revenues of $69.1 million…
I read an interesting article the other day published by Reuters out of Tokyo, Japan. It piqued my interest because I have seen in the recent past and believe going forward that new crematory facilities will continue to be a challenge to get built in locations across North America. My belief stems from the fact…
North America’s largest funeral home and cemetery operator, Service Corporation International, reported 1st Quarter 2019 results last week and you can see their press release on those results here. The company’s CEO, Tom Ryan, issued the following statement in the report. “We are encouraged as we start of 2019 on par with prior year earnings…
Washington Park Cemetery sits in suburban St. Louis, Missouri. It is a cemetery that opened in 1920 and has not accepted new burials for almost three decades according to this article in the San Francisco Chronicle. Wanda Brandon is among a group of volunteers who tend to the cemetery. She has filed a lawsuit against…
BUSINESS
Recollections of 9/11. . . 25 years later
So today, September 11, 2026, marks the 25th anniversary of the 2001 terror attacks on America. For those of us who are baby boomers, that day is seared in our memory as are…
Endswell expanding into another community and location
Endswell, the 2022 Death Care start-up that brands itself as “A modern funeral home, is expanding their services to Chapel Hill, North Carolina. And, it won’t be your mom and dad’s funeral home. According…
“It’s good enough” — That’s an attitude bound to bring disaster to your business
Last Saturday morning my wife, Angie, and I were having our morning coffee and she was paging through the local newspaper. She made the comment that our recent county fair had a record attendance…
FINANCE
Death Care Index (DCI) once again trails major indexes
Over the years I’ve seen many family funeral homes explode in value as they built more market share, acquired more facilities, and simply built a culture of enhancing revenues while at the same…
Matthews International names new President/CEO
It didn’t take long for Death Care conglomerate Matthews International to name a new President and CEO following this August 4, 2026, press release indicating that current President/CEO Josepah Bartolacci would be retiring after more…
A.S. Turner & Sons has a busy summer — adds a funeral home and terramation service line
A.S. Turner & Sons has served the population of Decatur, Georgia, and the greater Atlanta area for more than 120 years. Funeral Director Daily recently mentioned the firm in this article about The Natural…
REGULATIONS
Groundbreaking research from Parting Stone may help you get cremated remains permanently placed
Recently I received a press release from Parting Stone, the solidified remains company, that enlightened me as to some of the reasons so many survivors continue to hold on to cremated remains in…
Oklahoma family business gets initial court win to move forward in casket sales case
According to this recent article from the Institute for Justice the District Court of Oklahoma County has ruled that Casket of Honors owners Candice Mentink and Todd Collard may proceed with their case against…
Empty grave case still perplexing, legal issues pending
Back in December 2025, Funeral Director Daily, in this article, informed you of the case of the empty grave of CBC Canada Royal Glider Pilot Gordon Patrick. If you read the article you…
CEMETERY
Recollections of 9/11. . . 25 years later
So today, September 11, 2026, marks the 25th anniversary of the 2001 terror attacks on America. For those of us who are baby boomers, that day is seared in our memory as are…
Nicole Kidman, Sandra Bullock visit cemetery movie screening
It’s interesting to me that when I look at the financial results of the public companies in Death Care and also try to understand the continual business potential of Death Care, I seem to…
Everstory Partners aims for more of the “Upper K”
Not every consumer is looking for the $999 direct cremation service. And, the good operators in the Death Care space know that. There are plenty of ways to buy a burger in many different…
CREMATION
Recollections of 9/11. . . 25 years later
So today, September 11, 2026, marks the 25th anniversary of the 2001 terror attacks on America. For those of us who are baby boomers, that day is seared in our memory as are…
Endswell expanding into another community and location
Endswell, the 2022 Death Care start-up that brands itself as “A modern funeral home, is expanding their services to Chapel Hill, North Carolina. And, it won’t be your mom and dad’s funeral home. According…
Groundbreaking research from Parting Stone may help you get cremated remains permanently placed
Recently I received a press release from Parting Stone, the solidified remains company, that enlightened me as to some of the reasons so many survivors continue to hold on to cremated remains in…
PRENEED
Death Literacy: “Concerns over the rapid rise of Direct Cremations”
“Death Literacy” is something you may be hearing more about in the days to come. This article from SABR-A Care Collective mentions that “Raising death literacy aims to equip people with the skills not…
Pure Cremation exec: Is the “At-Need choice” death market contracting?
The number of deaths in the United States is expected to grow 26.3% from 2019 (the last year prior to the pandemic) until 2040 by certain estimates. Estimates for the number of deaths in…
Anthem Partners announces strategic partnership with Family Shield Credit
In a press release from earlier this week funeral home operator Anthem Partners announced that they have formed a partnership with Family Shield Credit in order to provide families with “flexible, budget-friendly payment options while…
PRODUCTS
Endswell expanding into another community and location
Endswell, the 2022 Death Care start-up that brands itself as “A modern funeral home, is expanding their services to Chapel Hill, North Carolina. And, it won’t be your mom and dad’s funeral home. According…
Groundbreaking research from Parting Stone may help you get cremated remains permanently placed
Recently I received a press release from Parting Stone, the solidified remains company, that enlightened me as to some of the reasons so many survivors continue to hold on to cremated remains in…
Oklahoma family business gets initial court win to move forward in casket sales case
According to this recent article from the Institute for Justice the District Court of Oklahoma County has ruled that Casket of Honors owners Candice Mentink and Todd Collard may proceed with their case against…
