May 2020

Page A26 MAY 2020 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS S ec t i on A mymortuarycooler.com Are you state compliant? 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 Princeton considers him to be its first graduate student, even though he didn’t receive an advanced degree. Madison was a clear thinker and legal genius. His ideas have shaped this nation through his work on both the Bill of Rights, which he originally opposed, and the United States Constitution. In 1794, James Madison married Dolley Payne Todd, a young Quaker widow who had a son. Throughout their 41- year marriage, they enjoyed each other’s company and were rarely apart. Dolley was lively and upbeat and shaped the role of First Lady. She decorated theWhite House lavishly and hosted nu- merous parties. Her Wednesday “drawing rooms” allowed a variety of people from different political parties to gather to- gether at the presidential estate. After his presidency, Madison retired to his beloved Mont- pelier estate in Virginia, where he spent his final days. He suffered from chronic rheumatism and seizures related to liv- er dysfunction and was confined to his room for the last six months of his life. As the President neared the end of his life, his physician sug- gested that he take stimulants, which would keep him alive until July 4th. The intent was to allow him to die on the same historic date as former Presidents Adams, Jefferson, and Monroe. However, Madison refused the offer. Some time after 6:00 AM on June 28, 1836, he seemed to have trouble swallowing his breakfast. His niece asked him By Todd Van Beck As Americans, we like to compare our presidents, track- ing unique and interesting trivia about these historic fig- ures. For instance, the president who served the shortest amount of time was William Henry Harrison, who passed away from pneumonia after only a month in office. Abra- ham Lincoln was the tallest president at 6’4”. William HowardTaft was the heaviest president, weighing in at 350 pounds near the end of his tenure. The most diminutive president, who was both the short- est and the lightest, was James Madison, our 4th president. Madison was only 5’4” and weighed around 100 pounds. He had a timid demeanor, was reserved around strangers, and wasn’t very good at small talk. He was so awkward in public that a Virginia politician’s wife claimed he was “the most unsociable creature in existence.” What Madison lacked in stature and presence, he made up for in intelligence and in his accomplishments. At age 18, he attended the College of New Jersey, now known as Princeton University. He finished a four-year course in only two years, but continued his studies upon graduation. J ames M adison the fourth President of the United States of America Rest in Peace, Mr. President. That was the hope that our Presidents would rest in peace, but that has not al- ways happened. For example between 1865 and 1901 Lincoln’s remains were moved 18 times. The accounts of the funerals of the US Presidents actually mirrors the accounts of daily life in America, as all funerals are reflections of how people live life. This series offers a glimpse into the deaths and funerals of our Presidents. This series also identifies and gives overdue recogni- tion to the scores of funeral professionals who labored ceaselessly to carry out the wishes of the President’s families and in some cases the wishes of the United States government. Each account tells an interesting funeral story. Hope you enjoy this new series. —TVB what was wrong, and he replied, “Nothing more than a change of mind, my dear.” These were his last words. He died quietly of congestive heart failure at the age of 85. His funeral was probably the simplest and quickest of all presidential funeral ceremonies, being held the next day at the family cemetery at Montpelier. Episcopal services were conducted at the gravesite before numerous relatives and neighbors as well as around 100 slaves. His monument bears his last name, “MADISON,” and the dates of his birth and death. Discovered among his papers was a brief message intend- ed for posthumous publication, entitled, “Advice to My Countrymen.” In it Madison pleaded “that the Union of the States be cherished and perpetuated.” In his last will and testament, executed in April 1835, Madison ordered that the comprehensive notes he had taken on the Constitutional Convention proceedings be sold. From the proceeds of this priceless document, for which Congress eventually paid $30,000, he directed the following bequests: $6,000.00 for the education of various relatives, $2,000.00 to the American Colonization Society, $1,500.00 to the University of Virginia, and $1,000.00 each to Princeton and a college at Uniontown, Pennsylva- nia. President Madison left his entire personal library to the University of Virginia, which he and Thomas Jeffer- son founded. He left 240 acres of land to his brother-in- law, John C. Payne, and $9,000.00 to be divided among his nieces and nephews, as Madison had no natural chil- dren. His will stipulated that the slaves were not to be sold against their will unless a crime was committed. The entire residue of his estate – including Montpelier, the slaves, his personal effects, and the balance of the proceeds from the sale of his notes on the Constitutional Convention went to his widow, Dolley. The First Lady, in her lavish attire and feathered turbans, was always a significant contrast against her quiet husband in his neat, black suit. And her funeral was no exception. She died on July 12, 1849. The services were attended by a large number of mourners, including President Zachary Taylor, members of Congress, and honored diplomats. After her husband’s death, she had moved back toWash- ington, where she was buried. At the time of her death, she was virtually destitute. In 1858 her remains were taken to Montpelier for reburial next to the president. Todd W. Van Beck is associated with John A. Gupton College in Nashville, and has been an author, teacher, practitioner, and speak- er for over 40 years. On May 30, 2018 Van Beck celebrated 50 years in funeral service. You can reach Todd at 615-327-3927. FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS www.nomispublications.com Monthly Columns online at Rest In Peace, Mr. President M. M. White, the Washington undertaker who oversaw Mrs. Madison’s funeral, brazenly advertised this fact. CORONAVIRUS INDUSTRY RESPONSE COVID-19 Funeral Directors Life offers Online Signatures Option for Preneed Contracts at No Charge ABILENE,TX— Funeral Directors Life is proud to be the first preneed insurance company to offer an online signature option for preneed contracts at no charge. This solution is fully integrated with DIGicon ®, the company’s proprietary preneed sales software. “We have had the online signature feature on the roadmap for our development team for some time,” said Kris Seale , President and CEO of Funeral Direc- tors Life. “But with the recent COVID-19 pandemic causing many communities to require social distanc- ing, our development team went above and beyond to get this feature completed in record time.” Funeral Directors Life’s new online signature option will allow preneed sales professionals to meet with fam- ilies over the phone or online and collect signatures without having to print and mail a contract to a cli- ent family. With the option for meeting with families in person temporarily off the table, DIGicon’s new online signatures feature allows sales professionals to complete preneed sales quickly, accurately, and easily online. “The online signatures feature through DIGicon is completely free and seamlessly integrated into the company’s business administration system, which makes the processing of new business much quicker than it would be with a third-party document signing software,” said Todd Carlson , Executive Vice Presi- dent & Chief Sales Officer. “A native solution like this reduces errors from rekeying and allows funeral directors and sales professionals to save time and headaches from hav- ing to use fillable pdfs.” “With this new online signature feature, virtual sales can be completed without the need for printing or mailing a contract back and forth, which is a huge win for our sales professionals, the families they serve, and the funeral homes they write con- tracts for. I am so proud of what our team has been able to ac- complish in such a short time,” added Seale. “This is just an- other example of how our company is continually striving to be the leading provider of service to the funeral industry.” To learn more about Funeral Directors Life’s proprietary preneed sales software, DIGicon, including the new online signatures feature, go to www.funeraldirectorslife.com and click on “Request Consultation.” 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!