It’s been almost forty years ago when I had a new idea for a business and approached a well-heeled potential investor. The person did not become an investor but he did send me a note that he wanted to visit about the idea. And, in that note he made this comment that has always stuck with me, “Your idea seems new and different and one would expect it hard to succeed with it. However, before I hear more about it […]
This recent article from Pasadena Weekly made note that Better Place Forests has added a property at Lake Arrowhead, about 90 minutes from Los Angeles. For Better Place Forests it is their 10th announced location with five of those being in California. A fairly new entity into permanent memorialization, Better Place Forests is described in the article as “as sustainable alternative to traditional cemeteries”. According to the Better Place Forest website, a memorial package could include the rights to a […]
Every once in a while I will come across a survey on some aspect of the death care world that doesn’t quite jive with what I’ve been led to believe. Normally when that happens I’ll find out the survey was constructed and completed by some one from outside the traditional death care world. When that happens I always find it interesting to look at who commissioned the survey and who took the survey. That happened the other day when I […]
The pyramids in Egypt were built to give permanent memorialization to the rulers of that land. The tomb of the 13th Disciple to Christ, Matthias, can be seen to give credence to his life. George Washington, known by many as the Father of America has a burial site at his Mount Vernon home. However, there can be no doubt that we are on a trend line to make permanent memorialization an afterthought to human life. And, I think that is […]
We recently learned thru a press release, that you can read here, of a Toronto based company, UrbanRIP, that has created a new urn called the Candlestick Egg Urn. From our point of view, it is an urn designed to fit in a home decor where it will have meaning and accessibility for the family while being discreet for other visitors. According to the press release, “Family members and friends often keep a small amount of their loved one’s ashes; […]
It seems like this medium is many times writing about the need for more permanent memorialization options to be available for our death care consumers. It also seems like we spend a lot of time writing about new start-ups in the death care profession that are hoping to catch the new wave of consumer thinking. Today, we are going to tell you about one new venture that we believe checks both of those boxes. The venture is Better Place Forests. […]
We’ve advocated that one of the issues that funeral homes have to overcome to continue to serve the needs of families in need is to emphasize the fact the “Permanent Memorialization” matters. By that we mean that cremated remains cannot just be left in a closet or left at the funeral home unclaimed. They need to have a final resting place so the lives of those people can be remembered. Susan Cunningham is a Galesburg, Illinois, hospice nurse who realized […]
Over the weekend I read a couple of articles on different subjects that brought me to the question, “Can a funeral/memorial celebrant on staff increase revenues?” You might be wondering how I got to that question or even why I might ask it. Let me explain. I first came across an article on church attendance in America. After reading it and finding it interesting I looked for and found some other articles on the subject just to argue or reinforce […]
I spent three days last week at my annual funeral professional/death care professional golf event that I have attended almost every year since first being invited in 1991. From my count, there are about 130-144 invited guests that enjoy three days with each other in an atmosphere of fellowship and friendship. Most of the talk is friendly banter about our golf game or what our growing (and grown up) kids are up to. However, inevitably, when you have over a […]
