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ICCFAU 2007 Faculty
Mark Ballard is Vice President and General Manager of Memphis Funeral Home, Cemetery & Crematory. He has been involved in the funeral industry since 1980 and has served as Vice President/General Manager of Memphis Funeral Home for nearly 15 years. Ballard received an Associate Degree in Funeral Service and a Scholastic Achievement Award from the Dallas Institute of Funeral Service in Dallas, Texas, as well as an Associate of Arts Degree from Crowley's Ridge College in Paragould, Arkansas.
John Bolton,CCE, is general manager for Alliance Funeral Group in Maryville, Tennessee. Previously, he was general manager for Heritage Family Cemeteries Inc. in Johnson City, Tennessee. John has conducted seminars and training for the states of Tennessee and North Carolina, Service Corporation International, Equity Corporation International and the ICFA. He is a past president of the Cemetery Association of Tennessee and serves on the board of directors for the Virginia Cemetery Association. He holds a master's degree in education. John received his Certified Cemetery Executive in 2004 and graduated from the ICFA University in 2005.
Michael H. Burke has 24 years experience in cemetery/funeral operations, sales management, and landscape architecture. Mike is the Director of Planning Services for the Palm Mortuary Group in Las Vegas, Nevada which handle 6400 death calls per year. During Mike's career he has managed many locations nationally in total operational and sales fields with Carriage Services, The Loewen Group, and three major independent firms. He is the holder of over 40 architectural awards and has served the I.C.F.A. University for 13 years as a professor and as the Dean of The Land Management College. His high energy and experience make Mike a welcomed speaker at many industry events.
Julie Burn is cremation services manager for Wilbert Funeral Services Inc., Willowbrook, Illinois, where she is responsible for the marketing and sales of Wilbert's cremation products, along with the administration and promotion of its Cremation Choices program. Julie began her career with Wilbert in January 1991, as the Manager of Funeral Service Communications. She was promoted to the position of Regional Manager in September of 1996 where she served as a liaison between Wilbert Funeral Services, Inc., and its licensee network, as well as liaison between the licensees and their funeral professionals in the North Central Region. Julie is chair of the ICFA Personalization Committee and is a Certified Pre-Planning Consultant.
Clift Dempsey is president of Dempsey Funeral Services based in Cartersville, Georgia. Dempsey Funeral Services owns and operates 6 cemeteries and one funeral home in Georgia and Alabama. Mr. Dempsey grew up in the cemetery profession and is a third generation cemeterian. Mr. Dempsey is the Past President of the Southern Cemetery and Funeral Association and twice Past President of the Georgia Cemetery Association. Mr. Dempsey also owns Heart to Heart Enterprises, an Aftercare Services company specializing in the Funeral and Cemetery profession. He is a member of the ICFA, SCFA, GCA, Death Care Management Council, a Deacon in his church and works with the Boy Scouts of America.
Patrick Downey, CCE is the founder and principal of the Downey Group, Inc. Mr. Downey began his career in 1979 at Wisconsin Memorial Park as a preneed counselor. Since that time Patrick has directed the efforts of successful sales teams throughout the country, most recently as Vice-President of Sales and Marketing for Palm Cemeteries, Mortuaries and Crematories in Las Vegas, Nevada. Patrick served as Vice-President of Sales for Memorial Park Inc. of Memphis TN from 1992 to 1997 and Vice-President of Marketing for Carriage Services of Houston TX. Patrick was the Chancellor of the ICFA University from 1996-2000 and has been a featured speaker at many industry conferences. In addition, he is a past president of the ICFA.
Doug Gober is an executive vice president for The York Group in Kenner, Louisiana. He began his funeral service career more than 20 years ago as a sales representative for the Batesville Casket Company, where he won numerous sales awards and served as a consultant on national marketing and merchandising programs. He holds a business degree in accounting at the University of Alabama, and he became a CPA specializing in industrial audits and corporate taxes. Gober has been a pioneer in developing the York Merchandising Systems.
Jack Goodnoe, president, Jack C. Goodnoe Cemetery Planning and Design, Ann Arbor, MI. Jack has been involved in cemetery planning for 17 years. He began his career as Director of Site Planning for Harley Ellington Pierce Yee in the mid-1980s, and began his own firm in 1998. His company focuses almost exclusively on cemetery master planning, strategically bringing land resources and market opportunities together. He was invited by the Chinese Minister of Civil Affairs to speak at China's First Funeral Arts Exposition. Jack is a member of the ICFA and the National Catholic Cemetery Conference and has been a speaker at a number of industry conferences. He earned his B.F.A. at the University of Colorado and his Master in Landscape Architecture from the University of Virginia.
Jim Hammond is Director of Sales of Mountain View Funeral Home & Memorial Park, Tacoma, Washington.
Mike Hays is President of Mike Hays & Associates in Lithia, Florida. Previously, he was Vice-President for Advance Planning with Keystone Group Holdings, Inc. in Tampa, Florida. He is a licensed funeral director who has personally served hundreds of bereaved families. He is an experienced salesperson and sales manager having worked directly with more than 200 funeral homes and 40 cemeteries to install or improve preneed systems. In addition to his advance planning role, Mike serves the Keystone Operations Team in the areas of training and performance management. Mike holds a Master of Divinity degree from Asbury Theological Seminary.
Ernie Heffner, CFuE, is president of Heffner Funeral Homes & Crematory in York, Pennsylvania. He graduated March 1974 from Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science, Pittsburgh, PA after attending York College, York, PA. Served an internship in the family business and became a Pennsylvania licensed funeral director in 1975 at which time the family operated three locations that served 130 families per year. Since the mid '80's, Heffner has been a member of the Cemetery Association of Pennsylvania (CAP) and active in educational efforts on behalf of CAP. Heffner has a diverse background in the operation of both funeral homes and related businesses. His personal experience covers over 40 ownership transitions including, funeral homes, cemeteries, a monument company plus 10 funeral business relocations and 5 new replacement facility constructions. The company has consolidated these transactions into 15 locations.
Christine Hentges, CCE, is vice president of Pinelawn Memorial Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Restlawn Memorial Park in Wausau and Fort Howard Memorial Park in Green Bay. She was elected to the ICFA Board of Directors in 2002. A fourth-generation cemeterian, Hentges is president of the Wisconsin Cemetery Association and represents the Cemetery Consumer Service Council in the state of Wisconsin.
Justin Hollingsworth is director of information technology at Spring Grove Cemetery & Arboretum in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Jeff Kidwiler, CCE, is Vice President of
United Memorial Products in Whittier, California. He is a former vice president of United Park Services, Inc. and on the board of directors with Heritage Park in the Philippines. Jeff is a 1988 graduate of Chapman University, a 1995 graduate of the ICFA University and earned the prestigious Certified Cemetery Executive designation in 1999.
Mark Krause, CFuE, is president of Krause Funeral Homes & Cremation Service and Informed Choice Funeral & Cremation Options in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A member of the cemetery, funeral service and memorialization profession for more than 20 years, Krause is vice president of the ICFA Products and Services Steering Committee and serves on its Board of Directors. He is also a vice president of Preferred Funeral Directors International and is past president of the Funeral Service Alliance of Wisconsin. Krause has dedicated time to his community as a former vice president of Family Support for the National Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Foundation, Greater Wisconsin Chapter. He attended Worsham College of Mortuary Science and has a master's degree in Business Administration.
Matt Kreidenweis is a partner at Independent Funeral Planning Alliance (IFPA), a preneed marketing and management firm serving more than 100 independent funeral homes in Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina. As one of two owners of the company, he handles implementation of clients' marketing programs and coordinates all counselor training. Before joining IFPA in 1997, he was a national account representative with Forethought Financial Services. He is a graduate of Wilmington College of Ohio, with a major in marketing.
Tim Lancaster, CCFE, attended the Oregon Institute of Technology before he chose to join the funeral industry. He graduated from the San Francisco College of Mortuary Science in 1979 and worked as a Funeral Service Professional, Embalmer and Manager of Ward's Funeral Home in Klamath Falls, Oregon. Tim moved to Eternal Hills Funeral Home and Memorial Gardens in 1989 and currently is the Manager/Chief Operating Officer. He is licensed as a Funeral Service Professional, embalmer and insurance agent in Oregon. Tim graduated from the ICFA University in 1999 and has been an instructor since 1997 in the Graduate College/Executive Management Symposium. He has also attended numerous seminars, including Life Appreciation Training by Bill Bates, Sales and Marketing meetings sponsored by ICFA and the Cremation Association of North America (CANA), and the Annual Conventions of ICFA, CANA. Tim is also a member of the National Funeral Directors Association.
Harvey Lapin, Esq., is an attorney located in Northbrook, Illinois. He specializes in mortuary, cemetery, tax and corporation law. He is and has been general counsel or special counsel to various national, state and local industry associations. He is licensed as an attorney in Illinois, Wisconsin and Florida, and is registered as a CPA in Illinois. He is a graduate of Northwestern University, Northwestern University Law School and has a Master's in Tax Law from Georgetown Law Center. He has written numerous articles on the subjects of taxation, Funeral and Cemetery Law and is presently the Editor of, as well as the primary contributor to, the Cemetery and Funeral Service Business and Legal Guide.
Shale Lapping, Esq., serves as President of IPEX, Inc. - Investment Performance Evaluation Xperts, a fee based investment-consulting firm located in Royal Oaks, Michigan. Shale has been actively involved in the investment-consulting field for the past 12 years. During this time he has specialized in developing trust fund investment programs for death care industry clients. Shale obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa, his M.B.A. from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and his law degree from the University of Chicago.
Tony Lombardi division manager of production, services and repair at Matthews Cremation Division in Apopka, Florida.
Dave Montgomery is Director of Sales and Marketing for United Memomrial Products Inc. in Whittier, California.
Gwen Mooney, CCFE, is Director of advanced planning for the Jon Deitloff Funeral Centre in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Centre currently has nine preneed counselors selling pre-planned funerals. Prior to joining the company in July 1999, she worked from December 1996 to June 1999 as a Preneed Sales Manager at a Funeral Home in Dayton, Ohio. From May 1994 to November 1996, she worked in the sales department at Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati. Gwen graduated from the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science in March 1992 with a bachelor's degree in Mortuary Science. She became a licensed Funeral Director in November 1993 and became a licensed Embalmer in May 1994. She also is a licensed Insurance Agent in the State of Ohio.
Gary O'Sullivan, CCE, is President of the Gary O'Sullivan Company, a consulting firm providing sales and marketing services to the cemetery and funeral industry. Prior to forming this company, Gary was the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Carriage Services in Houston, Texas. He is a Past President of the Southern Cemetery Association (SCA) and has been very involved in both SCA and ICFA for over 15 years. Gary entered the cemetery industry in 1971 and in 1990 received the American Cemetery Association's designation of Certified Cemetery Executive. He has served as instructor at several ICFA sales conferences and the ICFA University, and has been featured keynote speaker at numerous states, regional and national meetings. Gary has produced several audiocassette series, including "ServiceSelling" and "The Basic Approach to Preneed Selling." He is featured on several industry video-training tapes and has appeared nationally with such notables as Zig Ziglar and others.
David Nixon, is President and chief Executive Officer for Nixon Consulting Inc. in Chatham, Illinois.
Michael Pepperman, Esq., is a partner in the Labor Relations and Employment Law Department of the law firm of Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel LLP (ORM&H). Mike's practice is restricted exclusively to the representation of management in every phase of labor relations. He received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Delaware and is a graduate of Brooklyn Law School where he was awarded his Juris Doctorate. Michael is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Georgia. He is a member of the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York and the District of New Jersey. Pepperman is co-author of "Securities Industry Leads the Way in Arbitrating Employment Disputes," New Jersey Law Journal, August 12, 1996, (145 NJLJ 648) and "Violence in the Workplace," Philadelphia Enterpriser, September/October, 1998. He has also authored several articles for the International Cemetery & Funeral Management magazine on topics such as termination of employees, workplace privacy, arbitration of employment claims and violence in the workplace.
Jim Price is Chief Operating Officer of Keystone Group Holdings, Inc. Jim, a licensed funeral director and embalmer, grew up working with his father and grandfather in their family-owned South Carolina funeral home. He later served in several key management positions in funeral service organizations, including Operational Vice President for Pierce Brothers in Los Angeles and Southern Regional Vice President for Prime Succession. Prior to co-founding the Keystone Group, Jim was President of Bonney-Watson Funeral Homes and Washington Memorial Park in the Seattle area.
Paul Rahill is President of the Matthews International Cremation Division, headquartered in Orlando, Florida. Matthews designs and manufactures cremation equipment, caskets and urns as well as providing supplies, service and repairs for the Cremation Industry. Paul's involvement with the cremation industry began in 1973. He has worked in various capacities in the design, manufacturing and service of cremation equipment, as well as research, development, environmental and regulatory issues. Paul also develops and implements seminars, training and certification programs for the cremation industry.
Mitch Rose began his career in the industry in 1988 as an Assistant Area Superintendent. Following a steady series of promotions, Mitch joined Carriage Services and was named Area Manager for the City of Ft. Lauderdale Municipal Cemetery contract. Using his solid marketing expertise, he developed and coordinated a multi-layered lead procurement program using a targeted marketing technique and exceeded cemetery monthly quotas. In addition to his job duties, Mitch has been Chairman of the Moving Wall and the Florida Maintenance Rodeo programs. He also earned Fiscal Awards in 1992, 1994 and 1995. Rose has an Associate of Science in Horticulture from Santa Fe Community College and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Central Florida.
Ron Salvatore has been with Matthews Cremation Division-consisting of Industrial Equipment & Engineering, ALL Crematory, and Elder Davis Caskets-for over 17 years. He has held a number of sales management positions and has worked closely with their engineering department on new product development, environmental permitting and other environmental related matters. Ron is certified to conduct crematory operator training, and has trained well over 1200 crematory personnel in the proper operation and maintenance of cremation equipment, exposure control, and proper recordkeeping through the Cremation Association of North America (CANA) Crematory Operator Training and Certification Program. He has published numerous cremation related articles and currently writes a monthly column for the Yellow Book News entitled "Cremation Issues and Answers."
Travis Sandusky is Service Director for Eternal Hills Memorial Gardens and Funeral Home in Klamath Falls, Oregon.
Steve Schaal is Division Manager, Sales & Marketing, for Matthews Cremation, a division of Matthews International. He represents over 15 years in the death care industry. Steve is responsible for all domestic and international sales and marketing functions for both the IEE/ALL brand cremation equipment manufactured in Orlando, Florida and the Elder-Davis cloth-covered and alternative caskets manufactured in Richmond, Indiana. Steve started his funeral career as a representative for the Marsellus Casket Company in Syracuse, New York. Steve went on to join The York Group, Inc. in Houston, Texas as the Director of Merchandising and eventually National Sales Manager. Steve was instrumental in the development and implementation of a national "consumer-driven" merchandising program -York Merchandising System™ (YMS) and the creation of numerous value-added products and services for funeral clients. This work has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, the popular HBO series Six Feet Under and A&E - Family Plots
Katherine Scimmi is the president of McKenzie & Blundy Funeral Home & Cremation Centre in Sarnia, Ontario. She has served as chair of Bluewater Health Hospital Board, and a member of the board for Victim Services. In her spare time she presents topics for students and teachers in local schools, as well as for local community groups and cemeteries. She is a member of Selected Independent Funeral Association, ICFA, CANA, and Bereaved Ontario Network. Katherine is also a recipient of the Women In Funeral Service Initiative Award from NFDA. She graduated from ICFAU in 2004 and is a 2002 ICFAU scholarship winner.
Tom Smith is Senior Vice President of Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum in Cincinnati, Ohio. Joining the organization in 1972 as Assistant Horticulturist, he was elected to his present position in 1987. Tom holds Bachelors of Science in both Botany and Horticulture from the University of Cincinnati, and a Masters in Forest Science from Yale University. He has taught at various colleges in the greater Cincinnati area since 1973. Active in numerous professional organizations, he recently served as president of the national Professional Grounds Management Society. In 1999 Tom was awarded the Professional Grounds Management Society's highest honor, Gold Medal Award.
Jim Starks of Tampa, Florida is the Vice President of Compliance for the Keystone Group Holdings. He will be teaching at the College of Cremation Services with Bob Horn.
Robert Taylor is an Associate Professor of Management for the Fogelman College of Business and Economics at the University of Memphis, where he teaches in the Executive M.B.A., International M.B.A. and PhD programs. Bob graduated with a B.A. in Behavioral Science from Rollins College in Florida and went on to Louisiana State University to complete his doctorate in Industrial/ Organizational Psychology with a minor in Management. He consults and trains extensively in the areas of management development, assessment centers, training needs analysis, employee theft, employee selection and appraisal, team building and motivation. Some clients include International Paper, Federal Express, Holiday Inns, Buckman Laboratories, St. Joseph Hospital and City of Memphis Government.
Todd Van Beck is director of family funeral care at A.S. Turner & Son in Decatur, Georgia. Previously, he was president of Commonwealth Institute of Funeral Service in Houston, Texas. He is a consultant in the funeral service industry and a speaker in high demand who has spoken in Scotland, Ireland, England, Canada, Mexico and throughout the United States. He is an author known for his series of Funerals of the Future, as well as having published four books and 50 training manuals. Todd is a past director of the New England Institute of Mount Ida College. Prior to this, he was the director of education for the Loewen Group and was responsible for implementing programs of professional and managerial training for funeral homes, cemeteries, preneed programs and after care programs. Todd earned his undergraduate degree at Mt. Mercy College and his Master's of Arts in Pastoral Ministry from Mt. St. Mary's Seminary. He is a licensed funeral director and embalmer and is dean of the Funeral and Commemorative Services College and the newly created Embalming and Restorative Arts College for ICFA University.
Jason Widing is Business Development Manager for Lincoln Heritage Funeral Planning in Portland, Oregon.
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