The proliferation of true-crime channels and documentaries may prove that Americans are obsessed with “ripped from the headlines” content. As someone who goes to sleep every night watching “The First 48” or “Forensic Files,” I can’t honestly say that there’s anything wrong with consuming this kind of entertainment. However, treatment and timing matter. An authentic retelling of a horrific event from 10 years ago is much different than a tacky parody of an atrocious type of tr

The Independent Funeral Group Executive Director Dr. Brad Kuchnicki and Associate Executive Director Christi Moon Robbins Maryville, TN - Although The Independent Funeral Group has championed, educated, and supported independently-owned and -operated funeral homes since 1995, the executive team responsible for day-to-day operations, managing relationships with members and partners, and furthering The Group’s initiatives have worked quietly, inconspicuously, and relatively unr

The Group thanks our friend Terry Cain of Messenger for this guest post. Terry is a product specialist, thought leader, and trusted advisor to funeral home owners. After 20 years with a Fortune 500 company, he came home to funeral service and purchased the family business. For almost 20 years he has represented the Messenger family of brands to the industry. Kara was only 50 when she quietly drew her last breath. Knowing her time was close did not take away the sting, but t

Deathcare has seen its fair share of bad things. Evil has somehow infiltrated a profession that prides itself on care, compassion, and integrity, and a handful of bad actors have managed to cast consumer dispersions on the countless practitioners just trying to help families through some of their hardest days. There’s no easy explanation for how or why this happens. Other than the standard motives of greed, power, stupidity, or carelessness, we don’t know the bigger reasons t

There’s no doubt that funeral directors see their fair share of unusual and/or complicated causes of death; even small-town firms will deal with the occasional case of Legionnaires’ Disease or poisoning from household chemicals or foraged plants. But deaths from Dengue fever? Hantavirus? The plague? Deaths from these diseases are so rare that they make the national news. And, sadly, each of these CODs and several others have been reported since May 2026, alarming the public

Maryville, TN - The Independent Funeral Group, a growing network of independently-owned and -operated funeral homes from across the U.S., celebrated an incredibly successful year with a record number of members and partners at The Group’s annual Fall Conference at Cloudland at McLemore resort in Rising Fawn, Georgia from September 22-24, 2026. Members of the group and their families enjoyed presentations by Brittany Godfrey, Public Education Specialist at the DeKalb County, G

This is the second in a special series that takes a deep dive into the benefits and logistics of offering witnessed cremation services to families when appropriate facilities are available — and when families are open to it. Next week, we’ll cover the flip side of last week’s closure argument, and what unwitnessed direct cremation can quietly cost a family. “I went to my Nana’s cremation, and after she went behind the curtain, there was a slight gap, and all we could see is f

He will be deeply missed, and he will be remembered with tremendous gratitude and affection. Our thoughts, prayers, and deepest sympathies are with the entire Hightower family.

Our Jobs Board and Member forum are going live today!

Thank goodness it’s Friday! We’re just days away from our favorite event of the year — The Group’s Fall Conference. We can’t wait! Until then, here are some of this past week’s happenings and what’s coming up next in the world of deathcare — plus a little good news, because who doesn’t need that? Highlights and headlines ↪ Good news for Tennessee: Last week, Comfort Zone Camp, a weekend grief camp that hosts up to 60 kids who have lost a parent, held a fundraiser in Nashville