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Page B4
JULY 2014
FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS
S ec t i on B
Pierce Chemical announces promotion of Lance Ray
to Chief Operating Officer
Lance Ray
BROADVIEW,IL—
Pierce
Chemical
has named
Lance Ray
as Chief Oper-
ating Officer of the compa-
ny. Ray has served as Execu-
tive Vice-President of Sales
at Pierce since December
2012 when
Wilbert Funer-
al Services, Inc
. (WFSI)
acquired the Dallas-based
firm. Pierce Chemical op-
erates autonomously under
the WFSI umbrella.
John Firestone
, past
Chairman of the Board of
Pierce, first made the an-
nouncement to Pierce employees, citing the solid transi-
tion that Lance Ray has helped foster since the acquisition.
Ray, who has overseen steady sales growth through a strength-
ened sales force, points to the support of the sales team and the
entire Pierce staff as key to the company’s continued success.
“I cannot say enough about the excellence of the Pierce
team, from sales to customer service, to production and
fulfillment and operations,” said Ray. “The company can-
not succeed without the combined talents and contribu-
tions of every single employee and I have been honored to
work with this fine group of people. I look forward to fur-
thering our collective success with this dedicated team.”
An alumnus of
Dallas Institute of Funeral Service
, a Pierce
Mortuary Colleges institution, as well as a licensed funeral
director and embalmer, Ray has a long-time attachment to
Pierce and its extensive line of chemicals and other prod-
ucts: “Taking the position of COO of Pierce Chemical is
such an amazing honor that I would never have envisioned
as a mortuary science student back in 1994. This company
has such a distinguished history of innovation and excel-
lent products that I personally can attest to and I look for-
ward to building on that strong heritage.”
To learn more about Pierce Chemical, visit www.
flag case,” Simmons said. The flag cases are crafted from
the same wood as the casket.
Backwoods Caskets offers free delivery within 100
miles of Hambleton, WV. For more information call
304-940-9590 or 304-940-6119 or email jeffreysim-
mons54@yahoo.com.
Custom Built Backwoods
Caskets
More New Caskets from Genesis Casket Company
Fairfax casket with Ruby exterior and white velvet interior.
Madison casket in White with a shirred white crepe interior.
INDIANAPOLIS,IN—
Ongoing ex-
pansion of
Genesis Casket Compa-
ny’s
twenty gauge line introduces the
Fairfax series. The
Fairfax
is available in
Ruby, Sky Blue, and Midnight exterior
with a white velvet interior. A fourth
model, with White exterior, features a
pink velvet interior.
Genesis has also added a new 20 ga. de-
sign to its product line. The
Madison
is
available in White with white crepe in-
terior, a Cognac finish, also with ivory
sand crepe and Granite with white crepe.
The plated, gold-colored hardware set
highlights the architectural shell design.
Visi
o see all
the Madison models as well as the rest of
Genesis’ high value line of caskets.
How does formaldehyde affect
your
health?
The debate about the health effects of formaldehyde
continues; what are the effects? Are they serious? What
are the alternatives?
Naturensbalm
, suppliers of envi-
ronmentally-friendly embalming products, has surveyed
contacts in the funeral industry worldwide about their
own experiences to find out how widespread and signifi-
cant the problem is.
Several adverse effects are commonly cited so Natu-
rensbalm asked about: watering eyes; throat irritation;
loss of smell; headaches and depression. People were sur-
veyed both directly and via the
LinkedIn Safer Embalming
Group.
It was a small survey, but nonetheless, got a good
range of responses which clearly show how wide the vari-
ation of effect is from person to person.
The survey showed that roughly 50% of respondents
suffered effects of some kind, mainly loss of smell and
headaches: “Definitely loss of smell and headaches,” “My
sense of smell has suffered and headaches are definite-
ly a problem,” “[after several years at funeral homes] I
found that I was lucky if I could differentiate between
[coffee types],” “[when embalming] I did have horrible
headaches...I do not get them anymore”. Throat irrita-
tion, sinus infection and tremors were also mentioned;
“I have numerous consistent sinus infections,” “I’ve also
noticed that after a lot of exposure I have a slight tremor
in my hands”.
Even those who did not experience effects were inclined
to emphasize the need for good practice and substantial
ventilation when working with formaldehyde: “the key
is to take proper precautions,” “we always use [formalde-
hyde products] in well ventilated facilities with power ex-
haust to the outside,” which confirms that the effects of
excessive use can be more significant without substantial
extraction.
This variation in effects is well documented – as is the
lack of universal experience of side effects – and attention
is now turning to the potentially carcinogenic properties
of formaldehyde, but whatever the effects on individuals,
there is no doubt that long-term, substantial and consis-
tent use of formaldehyde presents health risks at some
level to practitioners.
Most embalmers will continue to use formaldehyde as
necessary and it is unlikely that alternatives will be suit-
able in all cases. However, with variations in extraction
at different facilities and the attendant difficulties of in-
frastructure, expense and so on, those wishing to reduce
their use of formaldehyde might wish to consider other
methods where appropriate. Using a formaldehyde-free
alternative for one or two days per week on suitable cases
could be an option that dramatically improve the health
of embalmers, without compromising the standard of
work that customers, rightly, expect.
Based in London, Naturensbalm
supplies a range of safe, environ-
mentally acceptable embalming products, developed for the funeral
industry in order to provide the embalmer with a healthier working
environment, at the same time safeguarding the traditional funeral.
Naturensbalm
have been rigorously tested and trialed over a number
of years, the range is fully compliant with the European Union’s Biocide
Products Directive (BPD). Learn more
social networks, allowing people to not
only customize their own virtual ven-
ues to reflect the values and personality
of those they are honoring, but to in-
vite others to take part in the memorial
creation process. Venues include a tra-
ditional Christian church, a local bar, a
garden, a synagogue, and 15 other cus-
tomizable rooms.
The state-of-the-art platform with full
social networking capability is available
to funeral directors on a revenue shar-
ing basis.
“OurPaths was borne of an experience
both personal and universal: the death
of a loved one,” said
Clayton Haswell
,
president and founder of OurPaths.
“Our goal is to empower users to create
enduring virtual tributes where family
and friends can gather for solace, com-
munity and reflection, overcoming the
obstacle of distance when a loved one
passes.”
In addition to the ability to create and
share stunning 3D memorials, Our-
Paths offers a number of other helpful
features, including advice on helping
the bereaved deal with the myriad ques-
tions that arise after the death of a loved
one; a forum for members to share sto-
ries and support each other; meditations
on death and dying; and helpful links to
charities and volunteer organizations.
OurPaths fills the void left by the de-
mise of community newspaper obituar-
ies and the increasing distance between
family and friends. As newspapers con-
tinue to shrink or disappear, many have
eliminated local obituaries almost en-
tirely. Existing online memorial sites are
hampered by uninspired design, limit-
ed functionality, intrusive advertising
and prohibitive pricing models.
“A generation of tech-savvy Baby
Boomers has reached an age where
many are dealing with the passing of
both their parents and peers,” said Has-
well. “We believe technology can be
used to help people grieve, and that
future generations will want to know
about those who came before them.
This platform will help bring those
paths together.”
OurPaths is now available as a free
download on the App Store. Android
and web-based versions of the app are
under development and slated for re-
lease in the coming months.
For more information and to preview
the app venues, vi
o
inquire about business partnerships,
email the OurPaths sales team at part-
ners@ourpaths.com.
OurPaths Virtual Church
OurPaths Virtual Synagogue
Stunning User-Created 3D Tributes Honor
Spirit of the Departed