TGIF From TIFG!
Thank goodness it’s Friday! Who else is gearing up for a trip to Charlotte later this month? It’s a busy time of year for everyone, so we thought we’d share this past week’s news in small snippets that you can snap up in seconds.
But first, I need your help!
It was such an honor to meet so many practitioners at the Fall Conference and to hear some of your stories — and I want to hear more of them! (All of them, actually, if that’s at all possible … a girl can dream!) Please feel free to reach out to me anytime at patricia@tifg.net with anecdotes, news, tips, or story ideas.
This week, I’d especially like to know:
Is your funeral home “haunted”? I’d love to write about your spooky experiences!
Does your firm sponsor any Halloween-themed events for your community?
Do you help your community observe Día de los Muertos?
Email me at patricia@tifg.net and we’ll set up a time to talk at your convenience!
Highlights and headlines
↪ The Charlotte Motor Speedway will host a public Celebration of Life today for NASCAR legend Kyle Busch, who died in May from sepsis. Fellow drivers will share their memories, cars will be on display, and Cole Swindell will perform; there’s even a drone show. It’s proof that memorial services can (and should) be as unique as the person being honored.
↪ Have you ever heard of a “grief casserole?” Allrecipes, which has a major test kitchen and editorial presence in Birmingham, Alabama, offers this excellent story (with links to recipes!) about how food became inextricably linked with funerals.
↪ As our Fall Conference keynote speaker Martin Jeffrey mentioned, the UK’s biggest cremation conglomerate has won the green light to build a 700-body storage facility in a North Yorkshire business park, and locals are not happy about it, calling it a “corpse factory” and a “human conveyer belt.”
Practitioner spotlight
Founded in 1890, the 280-acre Fairmount Cemetery in Denver, Colorado is more than just the state’s second largest cemetery and a stunning oasis of lush landscapes, birds, and wildlife. It’s also home to the state’s largest stained glass collection! Here are some highlights from the collection housed in the cemetery’s mausoleum:
Most of the windows were designed and crafted by the historic, family-owned Watkins Stained Glass Studio, a third-generation Denver business with roots tracing back to 1761 London.
The windows feature vivid local and natural landscapes, including the Mount of the Holy Cross, Pike's Peak (depicted in a unique twin set of windows showing both winter and summer scenes), the Garden of the Gods, and regional vistas.
The collection includes a stained glass interpretation of "The Gleaners" (inspired by the classic painting and biblical themes from the Book of Ruth).
For the Good of the Group (and Anyone Else!)
CONTINUING EDUCATION: Decoding the Death Certificate: Reading Between the Lines of Life's Final Paperwork on October 14 … Secure your spot today!
OBSERVANCE: The third Saturday in October (Saturday, October 17) is now not only the date of the annual Alabama-Tennessee game, but also National Cremation Placement Day. This new observance was established and registered by Coldspring memorial company as a day to “highlight the importance of permanent placement and memorialization.” If you’ve planned a corresponding event, you can add it to Coldspring’s registry here.
ACTION NEEDED: The National Association of Counties urges you to support the Veteran Burial Timeliness and Death Certificate Accountability Act, which would require a VA physician or nurse practitioner to certify a veteran’s death within 48 hours after learning of the death when the veteran dies of natural causes. Learn more about the proposed act here.
OBSERVANCE: Veterans Day is coming up on Wednesday, November 11. It’s a good opportunity for funeral homes and cemeteries to honor all military veterans who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces (living or deceased, in peace and/or war), whether that’s on your social media channels, in your community, or with special observances at your facility.
CONTINUING EDUCATION: Funding Prearranged Funerals, presented by Brianne Niedermyer of Homesteaders Life Company on Wednesday, November 11. Don’t miss this one!
In Case You Missed It
Here’s what The Group has published recently in The Practitioners’ Post:
