October 2020

Page A30 OCTOBER 2020 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS S ec t i on A © Custom Air Trays YOUWOULDN’TUSEOUR LEAK-RESISTANT CREMATION TRAY AS A LUGGAGERACK, BUT YOUCOULD. We test ours in the labsoyou don’t have to test it in the real world. 1-800-992-1925 | CustomAirTrays.com BROOKFIELD,WI— The National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) is pleased to announce that 141 funeral homes have earned a 2020 Pursuit of Excellence Award. This award is presented by NFDA annually to firms that have demonstrated a commitment to raising the bar on funeral service excellence by adhering to strict ethical and professional standards and providing out- standing service to families and communities. “This has been a challenging year for funeral homes,” said NFDA Director of Public Relations Jessica Koth , who manages the Pursuit of Excellence Award program. “The Pursuit of Excellence Work Group was very impressed with the quality of this year’s entries and all that funeral homes have been able to accomplish during the pandem- ic. The funeral homes that NFDA is recognizing with the Pursuit of Excellence Award have truly earned it this year.” To earn the NFDA Pursuit of Excellence Award, a funeral home must demonstrate proficiency in key areas of funeral service, including compliance with state and federal regula- tions; staff participation in ongoing education and profes- sional development; offering outstanding programs and re- sources to bereaved families; maintaining an active level of involvement in the community; active participation in and service to the funeral service profession; and promoting fu- neral home services through a variety of marketing, adver- tising and public relations programs. Participants are also re- quired to adhere to a Pledge of Ethical Practices. Information about the NFDA Pursuit of Excellence program can be found by visiting www.nfda.org/pursuitofexcellence. Registration and application materials for 2021 will be avail- able in late-October 2020. Best of the Best Award Recipients All Pursuit of Excellence applicants submitted an essay describing the development and execution of a program or service that had a positive impact on the families they serve or their community, qualifying them for the Best of the Best Award, which recognizes the most novel and in- novative programs and services in the profession. Essays were judged on the uniqueness of the idea on a national and international level, quality of implementa- tion, benefit to those served, benefit to the funeral home and how easily the idea could be replicated or modified by another funeral home. After a thorough review, the Pursuit of Excellence Task Force selected seven funeral homes to receive the Best of the Best Award: • Arlington Memorial Chapels , Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines • Funeraria San Vicente S.A ., Medellin, Colombia • Gardinier Funeral Home, Inc ., Franklin, PA • Lakeside Memorial Funeral Home, Inc ., West Seneca, NY • Macz Funeral Homes , Centralia, IL • Morrissett Funeral & Cremation Service , North Chesterfield, VA • Worlein Funeral Home , Austin, MN As they reviewed the essays to select the Best of the Best honorees, the Pursuit of ExcellenceTask Force noted a num- ber of programs and services that were very well-executed and yielded positive results for the community served by the funeral home. The Task Force recognizes these funeral homes with a Certificate of Honorable Mention: • Cannon Cleveland Funeral Directors , McDonough, GA • Copeland Funeral Service , Beaufort, SC • Patrick T. Lanigan Funeral Home & Crematory, Inc ., East Pittsburgh, PA • Pixley Funeral Home , Rochester, MI • Radney Funeral Home , Alexander City, AL • Reichmuth Funeral Home , Elkhorn, NE NFDA Hall of Excellence Inductees NFDA-member funeral homes are inducted into the Hall of Excellence upon receiving their 10th Pursuit of Excel- lence Award. In recognition of their consistent display of professional and ethical excellence, four funeral homes have been inducted into the NFDA Hall of Excellence in 2020: • Arlington Memorial Chapels , Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines • Baskerville Funeral Home , Wilmington, IL • Brandon G. Thompson Funeral Home , Hammond, LA • Howard K. Hill Funeral Services , New Haven, CT A number of funeral homes have achieved milestones in their participation in the Pursuit of Excellence Award program in 2020. NFDA salutes the following funeral homes for their ongoing commitment to excellence: 15th Pursuit of Excellence Award • Caldwell &Cowan Funeral Home, Inc ., Covington, GA • Gamble Funeral Service , Savannah, GA • Roller-Daniel Funeral Home , Searcy, AR • Weeks’ Enumclaw Funeral Home , Enumclaw, WA • Weeks’ Funeral Home , Buckley, WA 20th Pursuit of Excellence Award • David C. Brown Funeral Home , Belleville, MI • D’Esopo East Hartford Memorial Chapel , East Hartford, CT • D’Esopo Funeral Chapel , Wethersfield, CT • Gunderson Funeral and Cremation Care , Madison, WI • Memorial Funeral Home - San Juan , San Juan, TX 25th Pursuit of Excellence Award • Arnett & Steele Funeral Home & Cremation Center , Pineville, KY 35th Pursuit of Excellence Award • Myers Mortuary - Brigham City , Brigham City, UT 40th Pursuit of Excellence Award • Myers Mortuary - Ogden , Ogden, UT • Myers Mortuary - Roy , Roy, UT FULL LIST OF AWARD WINNERS on Page A32 Send Us Your News! PO Box 5159, Youngstown, OH 44514 Fax 1-800-321-9040 Email info@nomispublications.com FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS We welcome news of the industry. Send us information on your firm today! 2020 NFDA Virtual Convention Preview NFDA Recognizes Funeral Homes for Excellence in Service to Families and Communities Funeral Directors Research,Inc. AMRA INSTRUMENT, LLC 623 N. Tower (P.O. Box 359) Centralia, WA 98531 “the shorter the supply line the better off you are” WEB DIRECT GIFT & PRICING TM ® www.amrainstruments.com www.preproomdirect.com