After a cremation, who you gonna call?

In one Arkansas funeral home, a model of the retrofitted ambulance from the Ghostbusters movie franchise was turned into an urn at the behest of a family, according to KATV in Little Rock, AR.

“We were working with a family who were interested in finding something that reflected their loved one’s passion and interest, and they just happened to be a Ghostbusters fanatic,” Richard Neal, a funeral director at Rosewood Cremation and Funerals. “So we were able to source and locate a very unique Ghostbusters coach, which we are converting into a cremation urn for their memorial.”

The remains are stored under the hood.

Rosewood specializes in creating personalized memorials, often for those being cremated, including a service featuring red solo cups, where attendees share stories about the decedent and then raise a toast in celebration of their life. A celebrant can also aid in the services.

The “Ecto-1” funeral urn, however, would not be for everyone. The model features all the lights and sounds of the original in the movie, but at four feet long, the car can be pricey.

“With true-to-the-movie patina, proton packs, and even the iconic Ecto-1 siren, this urn is a playful yet respectful homage for fans of the iconic franchise,” a press release stated.

For some looking for something unique, however, money isn’t always a deterrent. And personalized urns are available all over the internet. Some feature tongue-in-cheek engraving that turn the urn into a conversation piece.

“It’s awfully dark in here,” proclaims one offering, which advertises the ability to add the decedent’s name, date of birth and date of death.

The trends toward personalization, especially as cremation rates rise, has forced some funeral homes to get creative with services and merchandise. Ecto-1 urns and their like may remain a niche product for true fanatics, but the idea of personalization and more meaningful celebrations continues to gain ground.

A North Carolina funeral home owner works to combat gun violence in his city. The electronic death registration system in Florida experiences a failure, frustrating funeral directors in the state. And a family in Chile pauses a relative’s funeral service so they can watch a soccer match. These stories and more are in the week in funeral news.

NEWS

North Carolina Funeral Home Owner Seeks End to Gun Violence
By Monica Casey (WRAL)
Through the first six months of 2024, 20 young people in Durham, NC, have been shot. The damage of gun violence goes beyond the victims, to families and communities, including those who step in to help families bury their loved ones. Curtis Peaks, co-owner of Weaver and Peaks Memorial Funeral Care, says his staff buries about two victims of gun violence every month, and that laying young children to rest is especially surreal. His role in the mourning process makes Peaks a passionate advocate for an end to gun violence. Read more here.

Electronic Death Registration System Went Down in Florida Causing Issues at Funeral Homes
By Steve King (WPBF)
Funeral homes across Florida recently reported the state program for electronic death certificates was not working, causing delays in the timelines for funerals. Read more here.

Family in Chile Halts Funeral to Watch Soccer Match
By NDTV
In a very unusual turn of events, a family in South America paused a funeral to watch a soccer match. A video of the same is doing rounds online and is receiving several reactions on the internet. In the now-viral clip, the family can be seen watching a Copa America game between Chile and Peru on a big screen projector while sitting next to a dead relative's coffin. Read more here.

Third Person Arrested in Funeral Home Investigation in Great Britain
By Tom Gillespie (Sky News)
A third person has been arrested after police received a report concerning "care of the deceased" at a funeral home in Hull, Great Britain. Legacy Independent Funeral Directors has been under investigation since March when officers recovered 35 bodies, as well as suspected human ashes, at a site in Hessle Road in Hull. Read more here.

Family Burying Family Member at Florida Cemetery Discovers Grave Already Occupied
By WFLA
A family is searching for answers after a major mix-up at a Florida cemetery led to someone else being buried in their loved one’s grave. Read more here.

You Can Turn Your Body into a Tree with a Burial Pod
By Orgesta Tolaj (TheHyperHive)
Although we all know that death is inevitable, it is impossible not to think about what can happen once you are no longer in the world. What actually happens to your body once you pass away? While you might think it is over by then, there is something else you can consider. And it is closely linked to tree burials. Read more here.

Victoriaville and Co., the nation’s third-largest maker of wooden caskets, has agreed to purchase Haven Line Industries, a Pennsylvania-based casket distributor.

Haven Line, which includes Schuylkill Haven Casket Company and Columbia Casket Corporations, has operated for more than 100 years, first providing wooden caskets and then distributing wood and veneer caskets. In 1975, the Columbia Casket Company was formed within Haven Line to distribute metal and cloth-covered caskets.

The two companies’ “similar business values with a driving focus on the needs of funeral professionals” were cited as a contributing factor in the acquisition, Charles-Olivier Dumont, Victoriaville’s vice president and chief operating officer, said in a press release.

“This commitment towards solutions for the challenges faced by their customers will continue to be the compass for the combined enterprises,” Dumont added.

Tina D. Houck, president and chief executive officer of Haven Line, agreed.

“Both companies have earned a reputation for value and service and this transaction will result in a great blending of two family-operated iconic brands,” Houck said. “I am really excited about the possibilities this combination will create for our customers and for our employees.”

The companies will continue to operate separately while working toward the transition in ownership.

The sentences of two Colorado funeral home owners convicted of selling body parts without the consent of decedents’ families had their sentences vacated by a federal appeals court.

Shirley Koch and Megan Hess, the mother-daughter operators of Sunset Mesa Funeral Home in Montrose, CO, were at the center of a sensational case in which body parts and entire bodies were taken without family permission and illegally shipped by mail to purchasers throughout the country.

While the convictions of Hess and Koch remain in place, a three-judge panel of the federal 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on July 2, 2024 that the amount of loss suffered by victims in the case was improperly calculated in a presentencing report and then applied to sentencing by the District Court judge.

Hess had been sentenced to 20 years in prison, and Koch had been sentenced to 15 years.

The appeals panel ruled that the sentencing improperly took into consideration losses sustained by the purchasers of the body parts. The purchasers, the panel said in its ruling, “did not suffer pecuniary loss” and the court’s analysis that they had was “faulty.”

The decision to include the body purchasers costs as loss was consequential when taken into consideration during sentencing. For Koch’s sentencing, for example, the maximum prison time was more than doubled.

The Sunset Mesa case was one of several recent high-profile incidents of abuse and illegality involving funeral directors and funeral homes in Colorado. Those cases eventually led the state to reconsider licensing funeral professionals, which Colorado had not done since the 1980s. Governor Jared Polis recently signed laws increasing regulatory oversight of the funeral profession and establishing licensing requirements for funeral professionals.

Colorado had been the only U.S. state to not require licensing for funeral directors.

In their appeal, Hess and Koch also asked for a new judge, but that request was denied by the appeals court, which said that, despite the sentencing error, “the appearance of justice is undisturbed.”

The appeals court remanded the case to District Court for resentencing.

The 2024 Funeral Directors Convention and Expo, scheduled for Tuesday, September 17 through Thursday, September 19 at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, will present several informative and interesting speakers for those attending.

In a previous article in The FORUM, we provided descriptions of seminars presented by Bill A. Johnston; Michelle Johnston, CFSP; and John Paul, PhD. In this article, we profile four more speakers who will be addressing topics such as what happens to cremated remains, the death of children and embalming after autopsies.

Registration for the Convention is now open and will be available online at a discounted price until 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, August 6.

In Should Cremated Remains Rest in Peace?, Barbara Kemmis, CAE, will discuss recent consumer research that seeks to quantify the number of cremated remains (human and pet) in U.S. and Canadian households. The presentation will present insights into how consumers feel about the ashes in their homes and whether they have permanent placement plans or not. Attendees will learn whether cremated remains rest in peace depends a lot on the funeral director’s perspective.

Kemmis is executive director of the Cremation Association of North America, where she promotes all things cremation through member programs, education and strategic partnerships.

Kemmis’ seminar will be presented from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 17 and from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, September 18.

Betsey Hawley, MA, and Kristin James, LCPC, will present Guiding Choices When a Child Dies, in which the speakers will explore the nuanced aspects of compassionate and comprehensive care that offers guidance and respects choices in creating a meaningful legacy for families and their communities who have experienced the death of a child or pregnancy loss. Attendees will learn how a commitment to providing innovative, family-centered care demonstrates a funeral home’s pledge to the standards that honor the unique needs of these families and recognizes the privilege and responsibility of caring for them after the death of an infant or child.

Hawley is the executive director of the Pediatric Palliative Care Coalition and has more than 25 years of experience in nonprofit management in both healthcare and community development.

James serves on the National Coalition for Hospice and Palliative Care Pediatric Division and the Illinois Hospice and Palliative Care Advisory Board.

Their seminar will be presented from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, September 18 and from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Thursday, September 19.

In Embalming the Autopsy Case: Techniques That Work, Shun Newbern, MS, BS, CFSP, will offer in-depth specialized techniques the embalmer can implement on autopsy cases. Actual case studies will be discussed that identify ideas and suggestions to help funeral directors and embalmers better promote services. It will also identify methods that can be employed to improve staff discussions when meeting with family members.

Newbern, a licensed embalmer and funeral director, has nearly 30 years of funeral service experience. He is an adjunct instructor at the Cypress College Mortuary Science Program in Cypress, CA, and has a degree in leadership and management from the University of La Verne.

Newbern’s seminar will be presented from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, September 18 and from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Thursday, September 19.

In order to take advantage of these informative seminars, register for the 2024 Convention. Visit convention.njsfda.org/speakers for more information on these seminars and others.

A new state law in Pennsylvania allows for a small change in crematory operations that could yield big results.

Governor Josh Shapiro signed legislation that will lower the temperature used when cremating a body from 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit to 1,600 degrees. The law affects any crematory in Pennsylvania that went into operation after April 17, 1989.

The law’s object is to deal with the rising rates in cremation and the subsequent burden on the crematories’ operating equipment, according to a memorandum from the bill’s sponsor, Representative Steven R. Malagari.

“Cremation services have doubled since Pennsylvania placed temperature guidelines in place for operations. As the popularity for these services has increased, demand for crematories has increased as well,” Malagari wrote. “When current temperature regulations were introduced, demand for these services stood at 17.1 percent. Small crematoriums experienced smaller overhead with business sustainability. In 2019, cremation services jumped to 54.6 percent. It is expected these services will continue to expand and by 2035 will stand at approximately 79.1 percent.”

The law had the strong support of the Pennsylvania Cemetery Cremation and Funeral Association, which said that the new temperature requirement “would reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption by crematories across the state” and “has been deemed sufficient for complete cremation by industry experts.”

The law could also reduce wear and tear on the retorts, Malagari said.

Pennsylvania currently has 200 operating crematories.