Below is the official ICCFA statement sent to the media in response to the CBS 60 Minutes segment, "Final Resting Places," broadcast on Sunday, May 20, 2012, and accessible on the 60 Minutes website:

The ICCFA understands that a 12-minute television segment does not permit much detail or nuances. However, since 60 Minutes chose to relate the atrocities that occurred at Burr Oak Cemetery in 2009, we believe that it had a journalistic responsibility to also report that the cemetery staff involved were prosecuted and are now serving prison terms. No mention was made of this.

More troubling, there are several misstatements of fact, especially by the consumer advocate, Mr. Slocum. For example, he states that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) does not regulate cemeteries. This is incorrect: Section 5 of the FTC Act prohibits misleading and unfair sales practices and there exists no exemption or exclusion for cemeteries, funeral homes or crematories. References to the FTC Funeral Rule not covering cemeteries ignores the fact the Rule is mainly a price disclosure requirement and the problems highlighted at Burr Oak and other cemeteries are not addressed, prevented or remedied even if cemeteries were covered under the Funeral Rule.

More significant, unsubstantiated claims were made of "a wild west out there" in terms of the lack of cemetery regulations and oversight. The segment made no reference to the December 2011 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) of State Funeral/Cemetery Laws that found specific regulations for cemeteries at 88 percent, up from 77 percent in 2003, based on responses from 42 states. Also, references to the proposed Bereaved Consumers Bill of Rights Act (H.R. 900) made no mention that the bill addresses none of the issues at Burr Oak Cemetery with the exception of recordkeeping. 

Unsubstantiated claims of the volume of cemetery complaints should have been  questioned, especially since the FTC reported earlier this year that out of a total of 1.8 million consumer complaints filed during 2011, including reports from all North American Better Business Bureaus, funeral-related complaints tallied at 1,228 or 0.07% of the total amount.

Again, the ICCFA understands that the limited nature of television restrict an extended exploration of the issues. However, extravagant claims should be subject to increased scrutiny, especially given the recent and publicly available reports from the FTC and the GAO. The fact is that out of the daily 5,000 to 6,000 funerals, burials, cremations and related services, there are a remarkably low number of problems and complaints. The ICCFA believes that even one complaint is one too many but it is important to place such issues into context to avoid misleading the public.

The ICCFA Government and Legal Affairs Committee has developed a set of 28 model guidelines for state laws and regulations, which have been approved by the Board of Directors. The guidelines combine a sensitivity to consumer protection issues with the need for all industry members, whether for-profit or not-for-profit, cemeteries, funeral homes, retail monument dealers or crematories, to conduct their operations according to sound business principles.

Founded in 1887, the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association is the only international trade association representing all segments of the cemetery, cremation, funeral and memorialization profession. It's membership is composed of more than 7,500 cemeteries, funeral homes, memorial designers, crematories and related businesses worldwide.

### 

Eco-Green International  

http://www.eco-greencremationsystem.com  

For those interested in learning more about the benefits of Alkaline Hydrolysis in their business whether in the Animal or Human Cremation side, we are pleased to be a part of this year’s exhibit. We will be at Booth 955 and look forward to discussing our Human and Pet units installed in Florida and Pennsylvania.

Whether you want to call it AH, Alkaline Hydrolysis, Natural Cremation, Natural Cremation-AAD,Bio-Cremation, BioCremation, Resomation, Cremation, Green Cremation, Anaerobic Accelerated Digestion or any of the other choices in the Alkaline Hydrolysis world, I believe we all agree… the subject is definitely worth looking at.. because… ultimately, it is our choice, the Responsible choice for the Earth, The Environment & For You! Give us a call at 262 379 1-ECO (1326) and let us show you our product that meets your needs.

Meet Luann Collins, owner of the business, while at the show and ask her about the units installed in Pennsylvania and Florida. 

The International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association (ICCFA) has issued the following statement in response to the allegations of mishandling of remains at Dover Air Force Base. Portions of the below information were included in an article in today's edition of The Washington Post.

Recent news reports claim that, among other failures, unidentified human body parts of deceased service men and women were processed at the Dover Air Force Base mortuary, from 2003 to 2008, by cremating the remains and then disposing of them in a landfill.

If these reports are accurate, the disposition of the remains at a landfill violates every formal and informal professional standard for the respectful and dignified interment of the deceased. In particular, the ICCFA Cremation Guidelines require the respectful interment of not only the remains, but also of foreign material associated with human remains: "Non-bone fragment foreign material that was part of the deceased prior to cremation and recovered with the cremated remains, such as an internal prosthesis ... may be commingled with other material and shall be disposed of in a dignified manner, such as burial in a cemetery, in accordance with all applicable laws."

The federal government itself has established a long tradition of memorializing the unidentified remains of those who perish on active duty to their country in such monuments as the Tomb of the Unknowns. Therefore, it is inconceivable that a government agency responsible for the processing the remains of our military fatalities could even consider any site other than a dedicated cemetery for a final resting place for the earthly remnants of those who made the ultimate sacrifice. The fact that a landfill was selected as that final resting place is horrific.

ICCFA President Kenneth E. Varner, CCFE, stated: "American soldiers have risked their lives on the battlefield to recover the remains of their colleagues so their fallen comrades would be assured an honorable burial and memorial. I wonder what would happen if some of these veterans met with those people at Dover who were responsible for this practice? A spokesperson for the Air Force mortuary likened the policy to hospitals' procedures for disposing of medical waste such as amputated limbs. Of course, the difference is that hospitals are working to save lives, and the distinction should be obvious. Hopefully, this tragic practice at the Dover facility will serve as a catalyst to restore honor and dignity when a person's time in this world has ended."

MEMBER POLL: Do you like the ICCFA issuing statements regarding current events on behalf of its members and the industry? Click here to take a quick poll to tell us "yes" or "no."

ICCFA Director of Communications & Member Services Linda Budzinski was featured on the November 12 edition of "The Coach Lynn Show," an internationally-syndicated radio show. Click here to listen to the episode in which Budzinski discusses the session on hiring veterans to be presented at the 2012 ICCFA Annual Convention, March 19-22, 2012 at Mandalay Bay Casino & Resort in Las Vegas, NV.

Click here to read the description of the session to be presented by Marcea Weiss, branch manager for Merendino Cemetery Care and author of "Leaving the Military: Your Deployment Guide to Corporate America.”

Welcome fellow ICCFA members to my first blog here on the ICCFA website.  My hope is to inform and entertain through these posts.

By means of introduction....

My name is Norman Connors. I serve as a Funeral Director, Supervisor, and Certified Celebrant  at the Curran-Shaffer Funeral Home in Apollo, Pennsylvania.  The path to where I am today is a unique one, so I wanted to share my experience.

I did not grow up in the funeral industry.  In fact, becoming a funeral director was the furthest thing from my mind when I graduated from North Catholic High School in 1990.  After receiving my degree in English Writing from the University of Pittsburgh in 1994, it was off to the "real world". In 1998, I was fortunate to marry into a local Western Pennsylvania funeral home.  In 2000, I completed the Funeral Directing program at the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science, and in 2001, I officially became licensed.

The funeral industry fascinated me from a young age.  My mother passed away when I was five years old, and I watched my father and my aunts plan my mother's funeral from afar.  My mother had been sick for many years, so her passing was not a shock.  While my father was devastated over the loss of his partner, he was more concerned with how I was going to deal with things.  I determined then, even at that young age, it was imperative for me to put on a "strong face" for my family.  Which I did.  Over the years, I attended several funerals for various family members and friends (Including seven funerals in June of 1989- which has to be some kind of record).  It struck me how unique each funeral home was, but not the services.  They were all the same, with the exception of attending a Church service for the burial, or simply having the service at the funeral home.  From a young man's perspective, I saw the luncheon or wake after the funeral as the time that was unique.  In each case, when people were in a more relaxed atmosphere, the laughs started, the stories flowed, and the celebration of a person who passed away had begun.

Fast forward several years....

When I first became a funeral director, I didn't perceive my role as important as it is today.  I saw it as a job, and did my best to get through each day.  The hours were rough (they still can be today), the pay didn't seem in line with the effort, and it could be a very depressing line of work to be in.  As the months and years rolled on, my thoughts about my job changed dramatically.  The appreciation the families  showed in almost every situation made me realize not only was my job a privilege, it was an honor.  I tried to think outside the box with the services we can offer.  Where I was first employed, it was a more traditional funeral culture, and the ideas weren't always well received both with the families as well as the staff.

In February of 2000, I was lucky enough to appear on the popular gameshow Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, and sat in the "hotseat" with Regis Philbin.  While I didn't win the big prize, I bantered back and forth with the popular host for thirty five minutes, and came home with a nice check.  Since I was the first person from Western Pennsylvania to make it on as a contestant, there was a lot of television and newspaper coverage for the appearance.  I suddenly had instant credibility with the families that I served.  The outside the box ideas were now well received, and I was able to create unique experiences for many.

For me, it was just the beginning...

In late 2004, I made the difficult decision of leaving my place of employment, and heading out to Reading, Pennsylvania, where I went to work for another family owned group of funeral homes.  I was impressed with their approach to family service, and the unique offerings they had available.  It was a great learning experience, as there were families of many cultures, and many religious backgrounds to serve.  Two weeks into my new position, in January of 2005, I served two families that couldn't have been more different.  The first was a ten year old boy who passed away while having lunch with his mother after his basketball game in Hershey.  The second was a Buddhist in her early 40's, whose husband and young children had little knowledge of their funeral customs. I was determined to make the funeral experience memorable for the families, and did so the best I could.  Off and running....

One of the things that always bothered me as a funeral director was the way families that didn't have a minister were served.  I had a rolodex on my desk, and called, as Ernie Heffner terms it "the rent a minister".  Usually, the service ended up with very little information about the person that passed away.  In fact, there were several ministers who gave themselves nicknames based on the length of their service(not us- THEY GAVE IT TO THEMSELVES).  We had the "18 minute" minster and even the "10 minute blessing" minister.  It drove me crazy. And you can tell in most cases, the families left unsatisfied.

In July of 2008, my entire life changed thanks to Kevin Bean, Ernie Heffner, and the ICCFA University.  I was asked to attend the first ever 21st Century College at the University of Memphis.  I had been to conventions over the years, and was less than impressed with the speakers and information shared.  So you could imagine what my preconceived notions about my experience would be.  On the Friday evening I arrived, I realized this was NOTHING like I have ever been to before.  Over the next few days, my attitude towards funeral service was completely transformed.  The focus of the College was to think WAY outside of the box, and really never entering the box again.  Doug Manning and Glenda Stansbury trained our class, and by the end, we were Certified Celebrants. I had the privilege of meeting some incredible people over those five days, and I am proud to call many of them close friends.  There were so many ideas shared, my head was spinning by the time I boarded the plane back to Philadelphia. I highly encourage anyone reading this to get to the ICCFA University this July.  It WILL change your life.

The University also gave me a new outlook on "me".  I vowed to change, and over the course of the next year, dropped close to 90 pounds through strict dieting and exercise.  In my eyes, I wasn't going to be much of much service to the families if I didn't feel good about myself.  My confidence level needed to be at a different place, and I worked hard to get there.

Becoming a Celebrant changed the culture of our funeral home as well.  We no longer had to go to a Rolodex, and now had the ability to offer a unique Celebration of Life to honor the person that passed away.  My goal was to make these offerigns as personal as possible, but I also had an ulterior motive as well.  I wanted each and every person in attendance to walk away and say that it was the BEST funeral they've ever attended.

Little did I know, about an hour after arriving home from Memphis, my first opportunity would be knocking on the door.  Literally.

Until next time...

ICCFA 2011 Convention speaker Juliet Funt, who talked about the importance of "white space" (unscheduled time) and how to get more of it in your life, ended her fun and informative presentation with a short "anthem," with the help of ICCFA members Mark Krause and Doug Gober (on loan from the Cryptones), Mike Hays and Nicole Weideman.

The audience loved it, and so will you. It's a 2-minute picker-upper (click on the pic to listen):

The lyrics:

Every day of my life there’s more to achieve,
A sense of urgency that just won’t leave,
I try to do my best,
But they put me to the test,
...It’s the Culture of Insatiability on me,
But I’m singin’ a different tune now listen to me- I’m freed!

Singin’
I can let it go,
The pressure and the stress and the crazy rat race,
I can let it go,
So come and grab a little white space with me.

It’s noble work to counsel the bereaved,
The satisfaction’s not be believed.
But then the florist’s late,
And the grandson get irate,
It’s the little things that make me anxious and distressed,
Even Todd Van Beck would be a mess- unless, he sang,

I can let it go,
The pressure and the stress and the crazy rat race,
I can let it go,
So come and grab a little white space with me.

I can let it go,
The pressure and the stress and the crazy rat race,
I can let it go,
So come and grab a little white space with me.

The photos from the ICCFA 2011 Convention & Expo are starting to go up ... on Facebook! But you don't have to join to see them. Just click on the photos below to go to the photo albums, and check back here throughout the next few days for more links.

Check out photos of the Opening Reception at the ICCFA 2011 Convention & Expo here (click on the pic):

The awards and recognitions here (click on the pic):

And the PLPA's opening reception here (click on the pic):

It might still be winter where you are, but in Vegas it's sunny and warm and inviting. It's not to late to register onsite for the 2011 ICCFA Convention & Expo, which starts tonight at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. Just come on in to the convention center and follow the yellow ICCFA signs to Bayside B, where you can register to see all the products and hear all the speakers. You can check out the program here:

http://www.iccfa.com/education-events/annual-convention/iccfa-2011-annua...

But don't try to register online! You have to come to Vegas to register. You won't be sorry. You'll be surrounded by forward-thinking colleagues and, when your brain is so full you can't take in anymore ... just step outside and enjoy the blue skies and warm temperatures at the Mandalay Bay's famous wave pool.

GREEN BAY - Because of the Super Bowl win, fans are considering taking their Packers pride to the grave. And with the help of a local cemetery, they can do that.
Fort Howard Memorial Park is offering a unique opportunity for fans.
There are a number of symbols people can chose from to put on their final resting place. But inside the mausoleum at Fort Howard Memorial Park, you can take it to the next level, if you're a football fan, or more precisely...a Packers Fan.
"The idea behind it was having something that was unique to the Wisconsin area," said Family Service Sales Counselor, Jamie Gorr.
For 6 years, a bronze engraved wall has been dedicated to football. But it primarily symbolizes the Packers, with cheesehead fans and a picture of a stadium similar to Lambeau.

Here you can buy a bronze space, and have your cremated remains placed in one.

"It's another way to tell your life story," Gorr explained. "So if you've lived in Green Bay all your life or if you are an avid football fan of any kind, this is a great way to be able to personalize your final resting place."
So far, only one person has chosen to do so, but since Sunday, others have shown interest.
"After the big Super Bowl win, which everyone was very excited about, we certainly had a few people stop in and call and ask about the football fan wall," Gorr said.
But is this taking the team spirit too far? UWGB Psychology Professor Ryan Martin understands how attached people can become to professional football teams.
"The history of this franchise, the community owned factor, I think all of those things probably lend itself to the increase in fan appreciation," explained Martin.
But he is surprised some fans do take it another step further.

"I would assume it is pretty uncommon for some to take things that far," Martin said. "I have a hard time, sometimes, knowing at what point sports enthusiasm has gone too far."
But whatever your beliefs, those at Fort Howard Memorial Park feel it's appropriate. And if this one fills up, another unique wall may be built.

There are currently 31 spaces left. Officials say they cost between $3,200 to $5,000 a piece. However, since the Packers scored 31 points in the Super Bowl, they're offering 31% off this month.

A not-for-profit cemetery with one sales manager and one counselor

The sales manager developes his own leads.

Does the sales manager get an overide on his sales?

The ICCFA has formed a search committee for the selection of a new Chief Internal Operating Officer.  President Daniels has asked me to chair the committee with able committee members Paul Elvig, Nancy Lohman and Caressa Hughes.  The committee has met and formulated a process that we will be following to select our next CIOO.  Last week at the Fall Conference we met with Board members so they could share their thoughts, recommendations and experiences with respect to this process.  We also wanted to answer any questions members had with respect to this process.

For the members that were not at the Fall Conference or did not have the opportunity to join in the discussion, we wanted to open this Blog to give members a way to share their thoughts, recommendations, experiences and or answer questions.  Please feel free to post to this blog, I will share all input with committee members plus answer any questions you may have.  

In closing, I hope you all had a chance to see our San Francisco Giants win their first World Series!

Tuesday I posted an announcement about our 2011 Convention & Exposition opening keynote speaker, Guy Kawasaki. We are really psyched to have Guy on the program, but the keynote wonderfulness doesn't stop there. Here's the scoop on our other two keynoters:

The Secret Lives of Visionaries
Eric Haseltine

What does it mean to be a "visionary"? According to neuroscientist and business executive Eric Haseltine, it doesn't mean seeing things others can't see. It means seeing the same things everyone else does, but seeing them in a different way. And it's something you can learn to do.

In this keynote session, Haseltine will show you how to refocus and redefine the business realities that exist right in front of you—how to make the mundane momentous and how to turn perceived threats into opportunities. He'll examine specific issues facing our industry and challenge you to re-envision them to achieve both short- and long-term advantages in the marketplace.

Eric Haseltine, Ph.D., is author of "Long Fuse, Big Bang: Achieving Long-Term Success Through Daily Victories," which was released by Hyperion in July and quickly rose to become one of the top-selling business books of 2010. He is president and managing director of Haseltine Partners LLC in Washington, DC, and is an expert on managing innovation processes. 

Haseltine has experience in the defense, intelligence and entertainment industries, having served in such diverse capacities as director of research for the National Security Agency, associate director for science and technology for the director of National Intelligence and executive vice president of Walt Disney Imagineering. He holds a doctoral degree in physiological psychology and has published more than 100 articles in periodicals such as Psychology Today and Discover Magazine.

Creating White Space
Juliet Funt

White space, also known as "breathing space," is the part of a printed page that has nothing on it. But it is not nothing. It is as critical to the message as the text and graphics. Imagine a page with no line spaces, paragraph breaks, columns, margins or open areas. A page where everything is smashed together inonebusy,cluttered,uncomfortablemess. 

The top complaint among successful business people today is having too much to do with too little time. American companies spend $150 billion every year on stress-related disability, and that doesn’t count the wasted time from tension, lost productivity from low morale and the costs of employee turnover.

What would you give to feel focused, efficient and energized as you face the day-to-day challenges of managing your business? Juliet Funt will share simple yet powerful strategies to help you create the white space you need to make your "page" more effective and worth reading.

Juliet Funt is a multi-talented consultant and speaker who previously served as a meeting planner, a human resources trainer for the Los Angeles Police Department and a liaison for a Palestinian/Israeli peace project. The daughter of "Candid Camera" host Alan Funt, Juliet is a co-founder of the Young Stars Project, a non-profit organization building schools for children in Uganda.

Lots more to come in the next few weeks, so check www.iccfaconvention.com early and often. We look forward to seeing you in March at Mandalay Bay!

Guy Kawasaki, best known for his work turning Apple into a successful and beloved brand in the mid-1980s, knows what it takes for a company to capture the hearts of its customers, to take on seemingly unbeatable competition and to create its own “Bright Future.”

In his opening keynote address at the ICCFA 2011 Convention & Exposition, he’ll examine "The Art of "Innovation" -- the process cemeteries and funeral homes need to undergo if they are to reinvent themselves and their ability to serve the marketplace of tomorrow. He’ll use his experience working with Apple and studying dozens of world-class companies to lay out the strategic steps needed to create new products and services, and he’ll provide specific examples of how to do this within our industry.

In his own words, Kawasaki says his presentation is “ideally suited for events whose purpose is to set new standards of excellence and change the world.” If your company is ready to be a part of something that significant, that meaningful, you won’t want to miss the ICCFA 2011 Convention & Exposition.

Guy Kawasaki, former chief evangelist for Apple, is the co-founder of Alltop.com, an online “magazine rack” of popular topics on the Web and is a founding partner at Garage Technology Ventures. He is the author of nine books, including “Reality Check,” “Rules for Revolutionaries,” “How to Drive Your Competition Crazy,” “The Art of the Start” and “Selling the Dream.”

 A regular columnist for the American Express Open Forum and for Entrepreneur magazine, he holds a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University and an MBA from UCLA.

Make plans now to attend the ICCFA 2011 Convention & Exposition, March 8-11 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada.

And stay tuned, because tomorrow we'll announce two additional keynoters for the 2011 Convention.

News Release (August 13, 2010)

The ICCFA's Next Generation Committee has created a scholarship fund for students attending ICCFA University.

"ICCFAU has always served as an incubator for developing up-and-comers within the profession," said Next Generation Committee Co-chair Abbie Brammer Quiocho, human resources manager for Gibraltar Remembrance Services, Indianapolis, Indiana. "This committee is dedicated to fostering leadership skills among the next generation of industry leaders, and so this scholarship fund is a great fit for us as we work to fulfill that mission."

"The ICCFA University has changed my life and the lives and careers of so many of its students and graduates," said Co-Chair Norman Connors, a funeral director and certified celebrant at Bean Funeral Homes and Cremation Services, Shillington, Pennsylvania. "This scholarship gives us a way to give back, to give incoming students the opportunity to have that same intensive experience of learning from the best in the business and of re-dedicating themselves to providing excellent service to families."

The ICCFA's Next Generation Committee was created in 2009 to develop future leaders, provide relevant educational opportunities and give aspiring professionals opportunities to network and connect with each other. All ICCFA members are welcome to participate in the group's activities.

ICCFA University is the association's premier educational forum. The five-day program is held each year in July at the University of Memphis.

Next Generation Scholarship applications for the 2011 session of ICCFA University will be available in December 2010. The number of scholarships awarded will depend on the amount of funds received.

The fund is being administered by the ICCFA Educational Foundation, a 501(c)3 organization; donations are tax deductible. For information, contact the ICCFA at 1.800.645.7700 or visit www.iccfa.com/educationalfoundation.

Every year, ICCFA University recognizes students who have completed four of the university's six colleges as graduates. (There used to be four colleges-- Cremation Services and 21st Century Services are fairly recent additions; the others are Administration & Management, Funeral Home Management, Land Management & Grounds Operations and Sales & Marketing.)

Some graduates will be back again as students in the master's or CEO program. Some will return to teach. All who return do so because of the great time they had learning and sharing at this five-day training session, unique in the cemetery, cremation and funeral profession.
For more photos from the graduation ceremony, just click on any pic!

Eric Trujillo and April Remedies head for the graduates' front-row seats as students applaud.

Chancellor Mike Burke (center) with the valedictorians for the past four years (see, graduates DO keep coming back!), Allen Dave Jr., Allen Dave Funeral Directors, Houston, Texas; this year's valedictorian Gino Merendino, Merendino Cemetery Care, Linden, New Jersey; Mitchen Fortin, Le Repos St-Francois D'Assise Cemetery, Montreal, Quebec; and Jim Hammond, Gaffney Funeral Home, Tacoma, Washington. Since there are no grade-point averages, valedictorians are chosen by their fellow graduates.

ICCFA University 2010 graduates (from left):
*John Lewis, Rose Hills Memorial Park, Whittier, California:
*Jack Wagatsuma, Service Corporation International, Bellevue, Washington;
*Rufus Slade, Woodland Historic Cemetery, Dayton, Ohio;
*Kimberly Kojan, Miller Jones Mortuary, Romoland, California;
(*Chancellor Mike Burke);
*April Remedies, Forest Park Cemetery-East, Shreveport, Louisiana;
*Adam Cooper, Lawnwood Memorial Park, Covington, Georgia;
*Eric Trujillo, Rose Hills Memorial Park, Whittier, California;
*Gino Merendino, Merendino Cemetery Care, Linden, New Jersey; and
*Phil Niebergall, Greater Huntington Park & Recreation District, Huntington, West Virginia.

ICCFA University attendees refer to the U “experience.” It’s a unique combination of several days’ concentrated study of a specialized topic in cemetery/cremation/funeral service with an emphasis is on really getting to know your classmates and forming lasting professional friendships--and a dash of Beale Street. Some are employees whose employers want them to learn in a few days what might take years to learn on the job or through the usual professional workshops and conventions. Some are owners, new managers or management-bound employees who want a well-rounded knowledge of the various aspects of the death-care profession the general public views as one.

It’s more intense and more intimate an experience than attending a convention or other meeting where attendees choose from many sessions and see many people in passing. Here, most people spend five days primarily with their classmates in one of six colleges. Students attend class, eat, sleep and socialize at the Fogelman Conference Center at the University of Memphis, with some staying across the street at the Holiday Inn and most venturing with some colleagues to Beale Street at some point for ribs and music.

Though many students can be seen checking e-mail during breaks--it's hard to get away from the office these days, isn't it?--they spend most of their waking hours making the most of this opportunity to share not only ideas but ideals. It doesn’t matter whether you’re talking about how to put together a meaningful celebrant service, how to improve your cemetery landscape, how to run a crematory properly, how to sell more effectively, how to manage a funeral home better or how to improve your administrative skills, you’re constantly reminded that better service to families is what it’s all about.

The experience draws many who intended to attend just one college back again and again. Even if your job is exclusively selling cemetery property, maybe it wouldn’t hurt to know about the challenges faced by those maintaining it. Those who have attended four of the six colleges graduate, and some return in the master’s program to continue learning, meeting more people and getting a shot of inspiration.

Click on each photo to see more photos from ICCFAU 2010.

Some people just can’t help playing to the camera. Yes, we’re talking about you, Dean Nancy Lohman, Professor Mike Pepperman and Professor Nectar Ramirez.

Professor Tiffany Gallarzo split the members of the.College of Sales & Marketing into teams and challenged them to develop a brand personality for the college. Here Clarke Kuebler explains that Dean (and all-around good sport) Gary O’Sullivan is posed to show that the college is forward-moving, encouraging innovation, using technology and creating ideas, among other things.

This is for all those people who said, “But no one’s taking your picture.” At the reception for Mike Burke, someone finally did. So here I am with two guys who put the “fun” in funeral director, TR Routsong and Ernie “I don’t do no stinking Facebook” Heffner.

Retiring ICCFA University Chancellor Mike Burke was honored at the 2010 graduation with a plaque by Matthews Bronze showing a collage of scenes from his years leading “the U," 2005-2010. It seemed especially appropriate that the presentation was made by ICCFA President Kevin Daniels during the ceremony Burke did so much to turn into an event during his time in charge.

As College of Sales & Marketing Dean Gary O’Sullivan put it, Burke changed ICCFA University “from a learning institution to a life-changing experience.” The work he did is all the more amazing when you consider that the position of chancellor is, like that of dean, unpaid. That's right--the association members who lead this intense educational experience each year, developing curriculums and lining up professors, are volunteers.

After the graduation ceremony, the celebration for Chancellor Burke continued with a reception. Click on the photos to see more pictures from the ceremony and from this year’s ICCFA University.

Burke with the plaque from Matthews Bronze.

ICCFA President Kevin Daniels reads the plaque, which says, “In honor of Michale H. Burke, for dedicated service and inspired leadership of the ICCFA University; Chancellor 2005-2010, Dean 2000-2004.” In the background are deans Nancy Lohman and Gary O’Sullivan.

ICCFA University Chancellor Mike Burke is surrounded by the 2010 winners of scholarships to attend this terrific educational experience.

(Click on the photo to see photos of students and teachers at this year's ICCFAU.)

A few years ago, the ICCFA Women's Forum started awarding a scholarship to ICCFA University. Then it was two scholarships. Today, scholarships to the best educational experience in the profession are available not only from the ICCFA (through the Educational Foundation) but also from a growing number of state and regional associations.

Interested in obtaining some scholarship funds to attend ICCFAU 2011 next July? Start looking into scholarships now. And if your state, provincial or regional association doesn't offer one, see what you can do to change that.

This year's scholarship winners (from left):
*Chris Cooke, City of Evansville, Indiana, ICCFA Educational Foundation;

*Rebecca Ehlert, Pinelawn Memorial Park, Milwaukee, Wisconsin--Central States Scholarship awarded via the ICCFA Educational Foundation;

*Jeffrey Young, Personal Alternative Funeral Services, Aldergrove, British Columbia--Cemetery and Crematorium Association of British Columbia www.ccabc.org;

(Chancellor Mike Burke);

*Caren Lee Harville, Glen Haven Memorial Garden, Sylmar, California--ICCFA Educational Foundation;

*Kevin Bunnett, City of Coquitlam, British Columbia--Cemetery and Crematorium Association of British Columbia www.ccabc.org;

*Becky Jones, Maple Hill Cemetery, Huntsville, Alabama--Southern Cemetery, Cremation & Funeral Association www.scfa.info;

*Tanya Scotece, Farley Funeral Homes & Crematory, Venice, Florida--Florida Funeral Director's Association www.ffda.org.

In addition to the associations listed above, the Massachusetts Cemetery Association offers scholarships to a number of educational programs, including ICCFAU.  www.macemetery.org

Scholarship applications for the 2011 session of ICCFA University will be available from the ICCFA Educational Foudation in the fall. Contact the ICCFA at 1.800.645.700.

This year was the 20th year that the funeral management college has been operational within the structure of the ICCFA University, and what a 20 year run it has been.

It has been my good fortune, (and trust me, friends, my life and career has not been a planned event nor was it ever by design), to have been associated with this small funeral service management college contribution to the all voluntary University experience from the funeral college’s inception.  Much credit needs to be given to Patrick Downey, who was the first person on earth to see this vision, and took the calculated risk of approaching me to head up the pioneering efforts, and the rest, they say, is history.

This blog however is not about the funeral management college, although I have had many a wonderful experience year after year with each group.  Not one group was ever the same, not one!  They were all in the end wonderful people who showed up because they simply wanted to, there was and is not any government bureaucracy looming over anyone’s heads at the ICCFA University saying with dire consequences “get those CEUs or you are going to be in big trouble with the state or province.”  That type of stuff does not happen.  People come to Memphis because they want to, and what a refreshing concept that is.

I have been connected with ICCFA for many years and of course my association with this organization has not been without detractors.  However I have had detractors my entire life, which is already long and has not been totally uneventful.  I concluded many years ago that detractors were just a part of the grand adventure and in the end I would never be asked to give an account of them, only myself – so off I went, and part of this grand adventure involved quite by accident ICCFA. 

My connection with ICCFA was not by design or plan I just stumbled into the ICCFA world be a series of unforeseen events.  Looking back at my life I have to confess that most of the richest blessings I have experienced have actually been under the lurking category of the unforeseen events, and the truth is most everything I have planned for, designed intentionally to be successful has in actuality failed.  But not the unforeseen events, they have been successful and just seem to have come from God knows where.  ICCFA was a totally unforeseen event, but what a blessing it has been. 

The University is but a microcosm of the entire overview of the organization.  And I have found, for me anyway, that one phrase, a three word phrase, can very aptly encompass the attraction for me of the ICCFA world and that phrase is “unity in diversity.”

All my life I have been attracted to that phrase and the deep idea that it communicates and in fact as I have aged this idea of unity in diversity has become even more attractive and powerful in how I personally view and cope with the real world, which sometimes is not pleasant, and sometime can be mighty cold. 

This last week I spent once again four and one half days teaching at the funeral management college and I can happily report that the idea of unity in diversity was once again alive and well in the halls and classrooms of the Fogelman Executive Center on the campus of the impressive University of Memphis.  The experience warmed my heart, the University was not cold, it was not unpleasant and the difference between my feeling warm or cold revolved around the innocent idea of unity in diversity.

Mention any job connected within the ranks our great and grand profession and I will bet you that they were somewhere within the ICCFA University world.  Just name anybody.  Gravediggers you ask, were any in Memphis?  Yes they were there, and I learned quite a bit from one particular gentleman whose mission in life was to dig graves, it was not a job, and it was his mission.  He was a man of dignity and felt strongly that the profession of digging graves was indeed a worthy ideal, and I agreed with him totally, but privately felt ashamed that 35 years ago I looked my nose down on gravediggers in Omaha and felt that time in life anyway that I was superior to them.  Of course those are the years that I have dubbed the chapter title in my autobiography as “The Years before Todd Became a Human Being.”

Landscape artists who talked about the worthy ideal of flowers and bushes were there; preneed counselors were there who talked about the worthy ideal of planning ahead; operational managers were there who talked about the worthy ideal of making sure everything ran smoothly; funeral professionals were there who talked about the worthy ideal of funerals; attorneys were there who talked about the worthy ideal of staying out of trouble; grief people were there who talked about the worthy ideal of helping the bereaved; visionaries were there who talked about the worthy ideal of preparing for the future.  It was, and always is quite a group.

I personally don’t know of an event where such an eclectic group of people are gathered for such a period of time.  Certainly it is not exclusively a love fest; there are the grumpy, cranky, fussy people who show up, but not many.  Most are open, sharing, caring and most of all are focused on their own personal worthy ideal and seem clearly to me to be progressively realizing that worthy ideal whatever it might be – even if it is to dig the best damned grave on earth.  ICCFA and the University offer an experience of good times, good experience, good learning, and for me, personally, living the noble ideal of unity in diversity.

Anyway that’s once again is one old undertaker’s opinion.   TVB

Todd Van Beck and some students in the College of Funeral Home Management.

To see more classroom photos, go to:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=235824&id=87540039256&l=5e47b1ea5c

For networking photos, go to:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=235179&id=87540039256&l=747cca1424
 

Oops. I missed the one class that every photographer seems to capture at ICCFA University, the one that involves tennis balls. I'm not sure what the lesson is that Dr. Robert Taylor teaches in that class, since I missed it, but it makes for great photos. I did see (and get photos of) the dominoes exercise. Taylor, an associate professor in the department of management at Fogelman College of Business & Economics, spends an entire day with the ICCFAU College of Administration & Management. He taught dynamics of the organization, internal communications and personnel management.

The listening exercise involves taking three dominoes and creating a design with them. The designer then tries to explain to a partner who has identical dominoes how to duplicate the design exactly.. The partner is not allowed to ask any questions, so the directions must be detailed and explicit. It's harder than it sounds, as everyone learned.

Click on the photo to see more photos from the class.

Rod Attwell tries to describe his domino design to Brad Simpson while Audra Romero and Lisa Schwartz make sure they don't cheat.

And here's a tennis ball photo from last year.

It's hot in Memphis. It's humid. So what do ICCFAU students & profs decide to do on Saturday night after spending all day in air-conditioned classrooms? Well, some headed down to Beale Street, of course, but a few dozen intrepid souls headed to the courts to play volleyball, or to cheer on the players. Even though the action didn't start until 7 p.m., there was a lot of water chugged between sets. Click on the photo below to see more photos from the most exciting athletic event since the Olympics!

Afterward, everyone was welcome back in the U of Memphis Fogelman Center's common room for beer and pizza and more networking, of course. Click on the photo below to see more ICCFAU 2010 networking photos. You know you want to see how Poul Lemasters can open beer bottles with his shoe.

Dean Jim Starks (center) laughs with students at the post-volleyball pizza party.

Nancy Lohman, second from right, serving as dean of the College of Administration and Management, with a group of students at the Opening Reception for ICCFA Unversity. Opening day included registration, orientation and libation, as students gathered for the opening reception, dinner and after-dinner networking. Click on the photo to see more networking photos, and follow the link below to see more photos from the orientation and reception.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=235173&id=87540039256&l=4b4cfde003

I've been hearing for 11 years that to understand what ICCFA University is all about you have to attend. This is the year I will finally become educated, initiated, enlightened or whatever it is that happens to make people who have attended so enthusiastic about the experience. Of course, I'll still be an observer rather than a participant, but judging from the level of enthusiasm shown by both professors and students, I imagine that will be enough to give me a good sense of what's so special about "the U."

Click on the classroom photo below, taken at ICCFA 2009, to see more photos from last year's session. You still have time to join me and your enthusiastic colleagues from cemeteries, funeral homes, crematories and related businesses at this year's session, which runs from Friday, July 23, to Wednesday, July 28. Call 1.800.645.7700.

Joe and I had a great trip to Vegas last week. Ah, the sacrifices we do make for you folks!

On Thursday, we met with our reps at Mandalay Bay to check out our space for March 2011. Two words: Awe. Some.

Our Expo and General Session room is humongous ... lots of space to try some new things and to grow, both of which we plan to do. And perhaps best of all, it is the very, very, very first hall you come to when you round the corner from the Shark Reef. Less walking for you! And me! Yay!

On Friday, we spent the day over at Bally's with 15 members of the ICCFA Sales & Marketing Committee. In my many trips to Vegas, I'd never been to Bally's, but, wow! Tons of great restaurants, bars and shops ("You know, honey, we'll have some room in our suitcase once we get rid of all those handouts for the meeting.") and, of course, the casino. I lost $50, which may not sound like much, but considering the machines I was playing ... well, let's just say that's a lot of pennies.

Anyway, the committee spent a full day planning a fantastic program for the Wide World of Sales, January 12-14 at Bally's. While we were there, we of course had a chance to check out our space for the conference, and again, it's terrific and gives us room to shake things up a little, which the committee has done. We'll be announcing the details on that program in the next few weeks, so mark your calendars and keep your eyes open. In the meantime, here are a couple of teasers to get you started: Gitomer-Certified Speaker Noah Rickun; The Sales Whisperer.

Many thanks to the committee members for their hard work. Those who were able to make it to our meeting (and were kind enough to venture into the 105-degree Vegas heat for a photo) were: (top row, from left) Ty Lohman, Kevin Gaffney, Stu Irwin and Andres Aguilar; (bottom row, from left) Doug Gober, Lisa Marshall, Paul Goldstein, Kathleen Berry, Program Co-Chair Ken Coffey, Kim Medici-Shelquist, Detlef Taylor, Linda Jankowski, Mark Young and Program Co-Chair Rick Miller. (Not shown: Tim Lancaster, who had to catch an early flight.)

Thanks to their efforts and the work of many other ICCFA volunteers, the association is on track for a bright 2011.

The ICCFA has contracted with instructors from two of the world's top business schools to provide customized research and training at its 2010 Fall Management Conference, October 27-30 at Camelback Inn Resort & Spa in Scottsdale, Arizona.

On the first day of the conference, John Austin, Ph.D., senior consultant in executive development for Decision Strategies International and an instructor for senior executives at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business, Georgetown University and Duke Corporate Education, will present a three-hour session on strategic planning. Based on a pre-conference industry-wide survey as well as in-depth interviews and study group sessions with some of the profession's top thought leaders, Austin will develop an exclusive "scenario report" with a five- to 10-year outlook for the cemetery, cremation and funeral service industry. He will present a one-hour keynote address on scenario-based strategic planning, followed by a two-hour workshop session in which he will facilitate a planning session using the scenarios in the report.

On day two of the conference, William Malek, strategy execution officer for Strategy2Reality LLC, former program director for Stanford University's Advanced Project Management program and author of "Executing Your Strategy: How to Break it Down & Get It Done," will conduct an interactive, experiential session on strategy execution. He'll share his expertise on how to take a strategic plan from idea to action, including topics such as recognizing necessary change, avoiding poor planning and understanding and communicating strategic goals.

The conference program will be rounded out on the final day with a presentation by employee benefits expert Scott Morsch on how the new health care laws and the choices employers make with regard to those laws will affect their companies, as well as a panel discussion on the government and legal issues facing the profession.

In addition to the educational sessions, the Fall Management Conference offers excellent opportunities for informal idea sharing, including the Fall Management Golf Tournament and several evening receptions.

The J.W. Marriott Camelback Inn Resort & Spa is the stunning jewel of the Marriott brand and will play host to this year's conference. Rated by AAA as a Five-Diamond destination, the resort has just completed a $50 million renovation and now includes a hacienda-style entry and lobby, several spectacular new restaurants, a grand courtyard, a 36-hole championship golf course that will host the Fall Management Golf Tournament, and access to endless Arizona recreation such as swimming, hiking, biking and more. The ICCFA has secured a discount rate of $235 per night. Please make your hotel reservation as soon as possible through the resort's Web site at www.camelbackinn.com or by calling 1.800.582.2169.

For complete program details and registration materials, visit www.iccfa.com or call 1.800.645.7700.

Any Marilyn Manson fans out there? OK, well, me neither. But I do like this quote from him:

Follow the crowd, and you will never be followed by the crowd.

If there's one thing we try to do with ICCFA's conference programs, it's avoid following the crowd. In fact, we take a look at what other organizations have planned for their programs and specifically head in the opposite direction.

Does this always work? No, not always. We've had some hits and some misses. But we figure the hits are a lot more likely to make an impact than if we'd just recycled existing content.

Having just put to bed our 2010 Fall Management Conference program, I can say with great certainty that our program chairs, Darin Drabing and Fred Lappin, are not following the crowd. In fact, they've put together a conference that is unlike anything any group in our industry -- including the ICCFA -- has ever seen before.

Darin and Fred are bringing in instructors from the Wharton School of Business (yes, that Wharton School of Business) and an executive education program at Stanford University (yes, that Stanford University).

John Austin, Ph.D., and William Malek are the best of the best in high-level management education and are the top experts in the field of strategic planning and execution. Each is putting together a three-hour interactive, customized program for our attendees. If you want a taste of an elite MBA program that has been tailored to your needs without the usual prohibitive cost and time commitments, you won't want to miss this one.

Find out more here.

Now I just need to decide who looks more like Marilyn -- Darin or Fred -- Hmm....
 

Today is the last day to submit a presentation proposal for the 2011 Wide World of Sales Conference. Although, if you submitted it this weekend and it is in our inbox on Monday morning, that'd be OK too. ;)

We're looking for concrete, specific information on how to effectively increase your leads, referrals and outreach to boost your sales NOW!

Please include:
--your contact information
--a detailed description of your "how to" topic, including the specific tools, techniques and/or initiatives the attendee will be able to put to use immediately
--the primary target for your presentation (managers, counselors or both; cemeteries, funeral homes or both)
--a list of handouts you will provide for our attendee on-site binder supplementing your presentation (at least two handouts are required)
--a brief bio regarding your background and qualifications, including any previous speaking experience

The format for this conference calls for numerous brief (20- or 30-minute) sessions, so please narrow your topic to one or two key points that you can fully develop and communicate within that time period.

Fax your proposal to 703.391.8416. Thanks!

2010 ICCFA Convention & Exposition Exhibitor Reviews from Linda Budzinski on Vimeo.

Linda and I took a little detour tonight to Longwood Gardens and what did we find but good friend Matt Grieco, on the dance floor, bringing it to the house.

[UPDATE: A much better quality version is now up on Matt's Facebook page.]

Matt Grieco "Dancing With Our Stars" Charity Fundraiser Event from Joe Budzinski on Vimeo.

ICCFA 2011 Wide World of Sales Conference

Call for Presentations (Deadline: June 4)

The ICCFA Sales & Marketing Committee is preparing for the 2011 Wide World of Sales Conference, January 12-14 at Bally’s Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, and we invite you to share your expertise with your colleagues.

The Wide World of Sales is the largest sales and marketing conference in the cemetery, cremation and funeral service profession. 

We are seeking the very best, most relevant and most thought-provoking sales and marketing programs, tools and techniques being used today. We want presentations with concrete, how-to information, with an emphasis on the "how" rather than the "why." If you have expertise to share, this is your opportunity to give back to the profession. The committee invites you to submit a session proposal, to include: 

• your contact information
• a detailed description of your "how to" topic, including the specific tools, techniques and/or initiatives the attendee will be able to put to use immediately
• the primary target for your presentation (managers, counselors or both; cemeteries, funeral homes or both)
• a list of handouts you will provide for our attendee on-site binder supplementing your presentation (at least two handouts are required)
• a brief bio regarding your background and qualifications, including any previous speaking experience

The format for this conference calls for numerous brief (20- or 30-minute) sessions, so please narrow your topic to one or two key points that you can fully develop and communicate within that time period. Please submit your proposal by June 4, 2010, via fax to 703.391.8416.

Thank you for your willingness to share your time and talents!

Dear All,

In the February is sue of Preneed Perspective I dealt with th is subject.  It is a problem throughout North America but larger here in the US than Canada but larger still in Mexico .  However, even in Mexico with its difficult economies, they do not shirk their duties to provide a recordation of the death and provide for the unclaimed dead. 

Of course at a time like th is William Gladstone is probably rolling in h is (very proper) grave.  We are continually proving, as he said; we can measure with mathematical exactness the tender mercies of its people.  Th is is not a Republican or Democratic is sue.  Th is is a sign of our changing times. 

Cordially,

Daniel M. Isard

President

The Foresight Companies, LLC

6520 North 7th Street

Suite 200

Phoenix   85014 , AZ

602-274-6464 phone

602-277-6722 fax

Not sure what all is happening around the country, but I can tell you here in the Tidewater, VA. area the Medical Examiners are no longer accepting unclaimed bodies. The chief M.E. of the Commonwealth of VA. has is sued an order that any unclaimed body be taken to a local funeral home and placed into refrigeration until the local police and sheriff's departments have completed their "homework" trying to locate the next of kin. If no NOK can be located, the local funeral home is to apply to that city's social service department for payment of $500 to CREMATE and then d is pose of the cremated remains of the unclaimed body.

A local removal service here in the area indicated that in 2009, there were a minimum of 10-15 unclaimed bodies per month they were requested to remove for the Medical Examiner.

In my humble opinion, th is is going to get worse, and I have some serious is sues regarding the liability of the funeral home/crematory, and as we all know, the Medical Examiner is immune from prosecution.

Mike Nicodemus

---- A Y <pouncer99@yahoo.com> wrote:

> I do not doubt that there have been more indigent burials partly as a result of the economy. Other articles have also attributed part of the increase to families that are not willing to pay for the burial of a relative - a sign of decay in our moral fibre.

I do not understand/agree with th is statement in the article Ed forwarded to us. "The increase in unclaimed bodies had been attributed to local governments

short on cash, which forced them to cut other social service programs".  To me, that is stating that there were more indigent burials due to counties/cities not paying for indigent health care.  Every hospital in the Houston area that accepts such patients on a regular bas is (even for normal health is sues) has reported spending record amounts for such care. Now, LA is probably different but I do not think th is is the condition across the country. I believe there is a trend for an increasing number of families to plead poverty and therefore receive another government entitlement to cover what should be their responsibility. Th is then impacts the number of services performed by cemeteries and funeral homes as "normal" cases.

Stat is tics from other parts of the country and detailed demographic data about the families of the indigent would be required to truly answer th is question.

Art Yerty

Destiny Consulting. Inc.

________________________________

Subject:

I found th is of interest in Ed Defort ’s April 2010 Memorial Business Journal. It provides a cautionary note to all of us while emphazing the need to support efforts like the M is sing In America Project.

Ed Horn

“Here’s a good barometer on measuring the economic recovery as it pertains to funeral service: Coroners and medical

examiners across the country are still reporting spikes in the number of unclaimed bodies and indigent burials, with

states, counties and private funeral homes having to foot the bill when families cannot. Last year, to illustrate th is trend,

we reported that the Los Angeles County coroner’s office reported that it cremated more bodies that were unclaimed or

had indigent families than it did in 2008. The increase in unclaimed bodies had been attributed to local governments

short on cash, which forced them to cut other social service programs. Many municipalities are forced into using emergency

and reserve funds to help cover the costs of burials or cremations.

609-815-8145 www.memorialbusinessjournal.com

Examiner and coroners’ ofSces donate unclaimed remains to the “Body Farm,” formally

known as the Forensic Anthropological Research Center , the facility had to halt donations

because it had received so many during the year, a spokesman said

You may now register online for the 2010 session of ICCFA University. Visit http://www.iccfa.com/education-events/iccfa-university/iccfa-university for complete details.

My goodness I could live in San Antonio.  I was not crazy about Houston, real nice people, great food, but hot, hot, hot, hot.  

My personal opinion is that San Antonio has to be one of the best cities in the world to have a convention, fun, history, culture, and of course the River Walk, what a wonderful city.  

My buddy Rob Heppell from Canada had never seen the Alamo, and I was staying at the Historic Menger Hotel which was right next door to the center of independence, and so he and I walked over after dinner.  Rob looked at me and said “The Alamo, wow, this is where Custer had his last stand.”  Rob is so talented, so bright, but I had to gently correct his US history.

The convention once again opened my eyes, confused my mind, inspired me and worried me concerning the state of the state of funeral service.  I had an enlightening conversation with a buddy of mine concerning green burials, and he assured me that the worry I have concerning critters stealing – well just imagine, folks – was unfounded.  He said the gravediggers everywhere would always under all conditions dig a grave deep enough that critters could not smell the remains.  He was the expert, not me.

I was once again struck by all the technology, baffling stuff, and I still have not, probably never will get a handle on it all.  Possibly I am not alone?

However what struck me, and as usual I was mighty happy about this, was the smiling faces, the collegiality, the courtesy, the friendships which were evidenced by the attendees.

I have wished for many things in my career, and seeing cemeterians, monument dealers, florists, attorneys, funeral directors, embalmers, insurance companies, techy people, grave diggers, landscape artists, worker bees, corporate executives, and just about anybody connected with death care that you could think of actually talking together, seemingly having a good time, no gigantic egos, just people with a common cause smiling, laughing and learning together is for me a wish come true.

www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=195375&id=87540039256&l=29dd1bee13

I don’t know what the future holds, but I do know this:  isolation, exclusivity, egos run amuck, myopic visions, and protectionism, territories and boundaries, does not work, and will continue to fall apart as time marches on.

ICCFA’s model does not continue to kick dinosaurs. 

Anyway that is one old undertaker’s opinion.  TVB

Dear ICCFA Exhibitor:

With the show just a few weeks away I want to remind you about one of your important opportunities at the 2010 ICCFA Convention and Exposition. I strongly urge you to attend the workshops and keynote addresses. In fact, it is not an exaggeration to say you are missing out if you do not take advantage of the information available to you at these sessions.

Over the past few years ICCFA has taken a number of steps to help our exhibitors have a more worthwhile experience at the Convention, including how-to information about exhibiting, and programming designed especially for you. This year, the program as a whole is so comprehensive that much of the material will be relevant for attendees and exhibitors alike.

For instance, you do not want to miss Dr. Nick Morgan's keynote address on “Authentic Communication.” Dr. Morgan is one of the most sought after public speaking coaches in the world and this is a topic you will benefit from during the Convention week as well as back in your day-to-day business. The keynotes by Rhonda Harper (“The Customer of Tomorrow”), Genevieve Bos (“Marketing to Women”), Ken Gronbach (“The Coming Demographic Storm”) and Technology Track keynotes Tara Hunt and Ze Frank should all be considered “can't miss” for the benefit of your business. I urge you to ensure that either you or someone from your company attends each of these.

And then there is the extensive array of workshops. In addition to Technology, the tracks on Pet Loss, “Green” Services, Event Planning, Competing As An Independent, and all the other topics, represent the true cutting edge of issues within our industry. You owe it to yourself and your business to be well informed in these areas.

What better way to learn more about your customers’ needs, wants and concerns than to attend the same events as them? I look forward to seeing you in San Antonio.

Sincerely,

Rick Platter

Supplier Relations Manager

P.S. Remember, there is more to our Expo than just exhibiting, great food and beverages, attendees and atmosphere. There also is a huge opportunity to learn about our industry and your prospects. So be more than an exhibitor - be an attendee, too! www.iccfaconvention.com

By EDMUND N. CARPENTER, II

The following essay was written by Edmund N. Carpenter, age 17, in June 1938 while he was a student in Lawrenceville, N.J. Carpenter would go on to win the Bronze Star for his service in World War II and to a civilian career as an attorney. A graduate of Harvard Law School, he became president of Richards, Layton & Finger, a law firm. He died on Dec. 19, 2008 at age 87 and is survived by six children and 15 grandchildren:

It may seem very strange to the reader that one of my tender age should already be thinking about that inevitable end to which even the paths of glory lead. However, this essay is not really concerned with death, but rather with life, my future life. I have set down here the things which I, at this age, believe essential to happiness and complete enjoyment of life. Some of them will doubtless seem very odd to the reader; others will perhaps be completely in accord with his own wishes. At any rate, they compose a synopsis of the things which I sincerely desire to have done before I leave this world and pass on to the life hereafter or to oblivion.

Before I die I want to know that I have done something truly great, that I have accomplished some glorious achievement the credit for which belongs solely to me. I do not aspire to become as famous as a Napoleon and conquer many nations; but I do want, almost above all else, to feel that I have been an addition to this world of ours. I should like the world, or at least my native land, to be proud of me and to sit up and take notice when my name is pronounced and say, "There is a man who has done a great thing." I do not want to have passed through life as just another speck of humanity, just another cog in a tremendous machine. I want to be something greater, far greater than that. My desire is not so much for immortality as for distinction while I am alive. When I leave this world, I want to know that my life has not been in vain, but that I have, in the course of my existence, done something of which I am rightfully very proud.

Before I die I want to know that during my life I have brought great happiness to others. Friendship, we all agree, is one of the best things in the world, and I want to have many friends. But I could never die fully contented unless I knew that those with whom I had been intimate had gained real happiness from their friendship with me. Moreover, I feel there is a really sincere pleasure to be found in pleasing others, a kind of pleasure that can not be gained from anything else. We all want much happiness in our lives, and giving it to others is one of the surest ways to achieve it for ourselves.

Before I die I want to have visited a large portion of the globe and to have actually lived with several foreign races in their own environment. By traveling in countries other than my own I hope to broaden and improve my outlook on life so that I can get a deeper, and more complete satisfaction from living. By mixing the weighty philosophy of China with the hard practicalism of America, I hope to make my life fuller. By blending the rigid discipline of Germany with the great liberty in our own nation I hope to more completely enjoy my years on this earth. These are but two examples of the many things which I expect to achieve by traveling and thus have a greater appreciation of life.

Before I die there is another great desire I must fulfill, and that is to have felt a truly great love. At my young age I know that love, other than some filial affection, is probably far beyond my ken. Yet, young as I may be, I believe I have had enough inkling of the subject to know that he who has not loved has not really lived. Nor will I feel my life is complete until I have actually experienced that burning flame and know that I am at last in love, truly in love. I want to feel that my whole heart and soul are set on one girl whom I wish to be a perfect angel in my eyes. I want to feel a love that will far surpass any other emotion that I have ever felt. I know that when I am at last really in love then I will start living a different, better life, filled with new pleasures that I never knew existed.

Before I die I want to feel a great sorrow. This, perhaps, of all my wishes will seem the strangest to the reader. Yet, is it unusual that I should wish to have had a complete life? I want to have lived fully, and certainly sorrow is a part of life. It is my belief that, as in the case of love, no man has lived until he has felt sorrow. It molds us and teaches us that there is a far deeper significance to life than might be supposed if one passed through this world forever happy and carefree. Moreover, once the pangs of sorrow have slackened, for I do not believe it to be a permanent emotion, its dregs often leave us a better knowledge of this world of ours and a better understanding of humanity. Yes, strange as it may seem, I really want to feel a great sorrow.

With this last wish I complete the synopsis of the things I want to do before I die. Irrational as they may seem to the reader, nevertheless they comprise a sincere summary of what I truthfully now believe to be the things most essential to a fully satisfactory and happy life. As I stand here on the threshold of my future, these are the things which to me seem the most valuable. Perhaps in fifty years I will think that they are extremely silly. Perhaps I will wonder, for instance, why I did not include a wish for continued happiness. Yet, right now, I do not desire my life to be a bed of roses. I want it to be something much more than that. I want it to be a truly great adventure, never dull, always exciting and engrossing; not sickly sweet, yet not unhappy. And I believe it will be all I wish if I do these things before I die.

As for death itself, I do not believe that it will be such a disagreeable thing providing my life has been successful. I have always considered life and death as two cups of wine. Of the first cup, containing the wine of life, we can learn a little from literature and from those who have drunk it, but only a little. In order to get the full flavor we must drink deeply of it for ourselves. I believe that after I have quaffed the cup containing the wine of life, emptied it to its last dregs, then I will not fear to turn to that other cup, the one whose contents can be designated only by X, an unknown, and a thing about which we can gain no knowledge at all until we drink for ourselves. Will it be sweet, or sour, or tasteless? Who can tell? Surely none of us like to think of death as the end of everything. Yet is it? That is a question that for all of us will one day be answered when we, having witnessed the drama of life, come to the final curtain. Probably we will all regret to leave this world, yet I believe that after I have drained the first cup, and have possibly grown a bit weary of its flavor, I will then turn not unwillingly to the second cup and to the new and thrilling experience of exploring the unknown.

We here in the Greater Ice Station Zebra Metropolitan Area are about to get clobbered by a blizzard but that does not mean we are not going to be dutifully manning the controls here to ensure everyone who wants to attend the 2010 ICCFA Convention gets themselves registered. So don't delay! We are working through a snowstorm! The least YOU can do is REGISTER ONLINE TODAY! It's safe, it's secure, and you can do it in your pajamas! And for good measure here is one more exclamation point! Are you paying attention yet!?

To learn about the largest industry educational program you have ever seen in your life, click here.

To see the many fantastic hotel choices which are RIGHT ALONGSIDE THE CONVENTION CENTER CLICK HERE. Seriously, these are as close and in some cases closer than our "Headquarters Hotel" so you have great options there.

To listen to Tech Track Chair Rob Heppel's interview with keynote speaker Tara Hunt click here.

To listen to Rob's interview with keynote speaker Ze Frank click here.

(Hey, if you want a sneak peak at the quality of personnel we will have on the slate of speakers in San Antonio, listen to the above interviews - there are some very smart people lending their expertise to our industry, and you really should not miss out on that.)

To listen to Rob's valiant attempt to wring a coherant sentence out of your humble narrator, click here if you dare.

But for the love of all that is good and holy, make sure you register today while you can still get the very low early registration price, there is no deal in the industry like it.

Click here to watch the hearings going on right now before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee. Paul Elvig of ICCFA is among those testifying. cam girls

Funeral Guru Rob Heppell will be chairing the Technology Track at the 2010 ICCFA Convention.

(For more program information, click here for the Tech Track workshops and click here for the Tech Track keynotes by Tara Hunt and Ze Frank).

Every Tuesday from now until March, Rob will be presenting "Technology Track Tuesday" as an educational lead up to the ICCFA Convention.

The first Tech Track Tuesday podcast is this interview with your humble narrator, recorded this morning.

[By the way, Online Registration for the Convention is now available.)

The Cryptones wowed 'em again, this time at the Wide World of Sales Conference opening reception in New Orleans. It was a great conference kick-off and very amazing considering they only had three days of practice.

YouTube is having some kind of problem - it is taking forever to upload video and then when it plays it keeps stopping and starting, like it can't buffer fast enough. So I am going to post them on my Vimeo account and see if that works here.

Here's the first one to try, the unplugged version of Layla. If it works I will post the rest once they are uploaded.

Actually, in case I don't get around to updating this post right away, if you are interested go to the Vimeo site by clicking here, and type "cryptones" in the Search box at top right. Our Cryptones videos start on the second page.

Cryptones perform at ICCFA Wide World of Sales, January 13, 2010 - Layla from Joe Budzinski on Vimeo.

Here is Mike Burke showing his Memphis roots in Whipping Post.

Cryptones perform at ICCFA Wide World of Sales, January 13, 2010 - Whipping Post from Joe Budzinski on Vimeo.

This was a surprise - Brenda Ayala-Figueruelo, Family Service Coordinator for Serenity Meadows in Riverdale, FL, took lead vocals for an impromptu version of Dreams. Not too bad considering the Cryptones had never practiced the song and never met Brenda before this!

Cryptones perform at ICCFA Wide World of Sales, January 13, 2010 - Dreams from Joe Budzinski on Vimeo.

Funeral Home Offers Drunk Drivers a Free Burial

Planning to drink and drive this New Year's? A north Georgia funeral home has a deal for you. Between now and noon Thursday, drivers can visit McGuire, Jennings and Miller Funeral Home in Rome to sign a contract stating they plan to drink or take drugs and then drive on New Year's Eve. If they die in a wreck that day, the funeral home will give them a free burial.

Services included in the package are a casket, grave, limousine and preparation of remains.

Funeral home officials said the program is designed to save lives by making partygoers think twice about drinking and driving.

The December issue of ICCFA Magazine has already arrived at my house--it made it before the end of November! Of course I already know what's in it, but I still enjoyed looking again at the photos of the wonderful ethnic gardens at Rose Hills Memorial Park & Mortuary in Whittier, California, and the unique Greek section recently opened by Curlew Hills Memory Gardens in Palm Harbor, Florida.

There's also a wonderful story by Leslie Elvig, daughter of Past President Paul Elvig, about attending a visitation and funeral in South Africa. Todd Van Beck continues his series on dealing with the media, and Nancy Weil offers advice on planning a remembrance service--which doesn't have to be held at Christmas, by the way.

Magazine delivery dates vary quite a bit, depending on the local Post Office. All ICCFA staff members except Midwesterner Julie Burn live in Virginia, and we get our magazines on different days. So if your issue hasn't shown up yet, it may be because the volume of holiday cards is keeping your mail carrier busy. But it should be there soon!

The realistic unemployment rate exceeds 15% or more. This number represents those who have part time employment hoping for a full time job and those who have abandoned the search all together. It is a depressing and frightening time for the unemployed and those who consider themselves facing the potential of joining their ranks.

Last year our profession felt the consequence of the dismal downturn that has the nation in a funk. Sales numbers fell reflecting the pain of those we serve. Their insecurities and limitations impacted our businesses dramatically. Sales fell to 2003 and earlier records.

Yet this year sales of pre-need memorial property have rebounded some. This rebound is not reflective of the nations, or the worlds economic status, rather it reflects the clients who have turned to us in 2009. These clients are older, cautious and more concerned with end of life needs and costs than ever before. It seems that as a group they realize the limitations their children are currently facing understanding preplanning is the means by which to insure their deaths impose no hardship upon their loved ones while guaranteeing their wishes are fulfilled.

For cemeteries who rather sell community mausoleum spaces this group is a hurdle. Being older, remembering the options available for their parents many will only consider traditional burial. Though some will be willing to learn of other possibilities their motivation is tied to getting past confronting end of life considerations unwilling to do anything other than what the past dictated.

It is incumbent upon us to understand their realty which has driven them to our doors. Pricing is a consideration, as is packaging and terms. By accepting the realities of the marketplace as it is rather than how we wish it were, we serve a dual purpose. We assist our clients at this dramatic time of insecurity while appealing to clients and families who might otherwise have sought the services of others.

It was a great though somewhat exhausting time exhibiting at the NFDA Convention in Boston this week. The turnout in the Expo Hall was terrific - we got to meet a ton of new people - and the NFDA staff and officers I met were extremely gracious and welcoming.

Special thanks to my booth-mates Julie Burn (ICCFA Director of Cremation Services), Nancy Lohman (ICCFA VP and 2010 Convention Program Chair), Fred Lappin (ICCFA VP) and Alan MacKinnon (longtime ICCFA friend and ICCFAU graduate). It was a wonderful team effort all three days.

Traffic at our booth was almost nonstop. Above are Nancy Lohman (r) and Paula Staab Polk, who is chairing the Event Planning track of The Next Step program.

Nancy with PLPA Chair Coleen Ellis (heading up the PLPA Conference being held in conjunction with The Next Step program)

Julie Burn with ICCFA member Richard Tetrick, President of Tetrick Funeral and Cremation Services.

We gained a lot of new friends and acquaintances among the attendees and exhibitors which was wonderful, and I also appear to have gained a broken toe which was slightly less wonderful and hampered my mobility the final day - however I did get out this morning to walk around the block of my hotel. Above is the Old South Meeting House, where Benjamin Franklin was baptized and where the Boston Tea Party plot was hatched. Seems like an appopriate image for the current era for reasons I can't quite put my finger on.

This is the gravestone of Mary Goose, died 1690, erroneously called the true "Mother Goose."

And with the click of a button, voila, each day of my trip is now fully tax deductible.

Tomb of Paul Revere in the Granary Burying Yard. Very cool.

Now to quickly pack and leave for the airport. Each time I exhibit at one of these trade shows I gain a newfound respect for our exhibitors and all they go through. It would be hard to do this as a career.

ICCFA Fall Management Conference participants attended a wreath laying ceremony as part of today's tour of Arlington National Cemetery.

(Fall Conference sponsored by Matthews International Corporation - thanks, Matthews!)

ICCFA President Gregg Williamson and President-elect Kevin Daniels represented the association. We also saw the tail end of the changing of the guard - the whole thing was very moving.

The video below (from the back row) captures a bit of the sense of the event (direct YouTube link here).

If you have not already done so, please mark your calendar now for the ICCFA Convention in San Antonio, March 10-13, 2010.

Watch the video below (click here for YouTube link) and hear what attendees say about the last ICCFA Convention ... and then raise your expectations for The Next Step. All hyperbole aside, it will be the best continuing education program you have ever experienced.

The amazing Funeral Futurist, Robin Heppell, was one of the friends we got to hang out with this week at the New Jersey State Funeral Directors Association Convention in Atlantic City. The most technology-savvy person I know in this industry, Robin has graciously agreed to serve as Chair of our "Technology Track" at the 2010 ICCFA Convention.

Robin has put together a fantastic program which will go in-depth explaining how to implement new technologies at your business (and this is in addition to the excellent Technology Track keynote presentations by Tara Hunt and Ze Frank).

Here, Rob got out early in the morning and recorded an overview of the Technology Track while he was strolling the boardwalk. I happen to know he did not have his editing equipment with him, so this was done as straight shot with no cuts - which says a lot about this man's lucidity first thing in the am.

If he can do a video like this after rolling out of bed, imagine what he will do with months to prepare for the Technology Track in San Antonio.

I just returned from another year teaching the Funeral Management College at the ICCFA University.  I have lost track as to how many years I have been involved with the University, but I can say my work with that organization has proven to be one of the highlights of my career, which is already long and has not been totally uneventful.

Driving home from Mississippi I felt some pangs. I always feel a sense of loss when the week's work comes to an end because for the most part I know that I will never set eyes on most of my students again – that is just the way of it in any educational endeavor.  Also, I have to admit that I missed being on the University of Memphis campus, all the college environment and stuff, which I really enjoy.  However, the University leadership made some difficult decisions last year, and in the end things went well in Tunica. (Although I ended up in Memphis every evening!)

Many readers know that I spent many years of my life operating mortuary science programs.  Too many years, I fear, for when I packed in the mortuary education career, I was disheartened, discouraged and disillusioned.  For 20 years, I had watched the caliber of entering student bodies slip notch by notch until it was clear that only a small percentage of the up-and-coming “baby undertakers” had a mission of service embedded in their hearts.  So I packed it in.

But this class at the ICCFA University rekindled in this old grumpy undertaker a renewed awareness of youthful dedication and mission in life.  The class members - there were seventeen - were focused, excited, attentive, curious and extremely insightful as we trudged through one subject after another.

Certainly this group was basically ten years older on average than my typical freshman class in a mortuary college, but most of the class seemed way beyond their years in maturity and had a sense of real dedication to the mission of care-giving to the bereaved and care-taking of the dead.  Almost the whole class (there were a few cranky folks, but only a few) embraced the concepts of quality service to humanity with freshness and openness that sparked my heart and made me feel 25 years younger.

Over a 35-year career of speaking, writing and teaching, I have had more than a few moments of feeling despair and wondering the frightening thought, “Does anybody listen?”  But when I got into my automobile for the seven-hour drive back to my world after University, I felt like I was walking on a cloud. Such was the effect this class of 2009 had on this man who has loved funeral service his entire life.

I don’t know how many of the class members will read what I have written, but Todd Van Beck wants to say in writing and on this public forum a warm and sincere "THANK YOU" to the funeral management class of 2009.  It was my privilege and honor to journey with each of you through the mire of funeral service/cemetery issues.

Required Virginia Cremation Certification Training Sessions Scheduled

Attention all Virginia funeral directors, cremationists and cemeterians:
Effective July 8, 2009, all crematory managers and retort operators are required to obtain certification that is recognized by the state Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers. The Commonwealth of Virginia has recognized the ICCFA as an official provider of crematory certification training.

Get the edge over your competition by obtaining your certification training NOW from the ICCFA! Training sessions are scheduled for:

o   Tyson's Corner, Monday, July 13: Embassy Suites Tyson's Corner, 8517 Leesburg Pike, Vienna, VA, 22182
o   Richmond, Tuesday, July 14: Homewood Suites Richmond Airport, 5996 Audubon Drive, Sandston, VA, 23150
o   Norfolk, Wednesday, July 15: Doubletree Hotel Norfolk Airport, 880 N. Military Highway, Norfolk, VA, 23502

Download a registration form here. COST: $349 for ICCFA members; $429 for non-members (includes breakfast, a box lunch, refreshments and a comprehensive operations manual covering all aspects of crematory operation and maintenance)

The ICCFA Cremation Operator Certification program, presented in concert with Matthews Cremation Division and ICCFA Cremation Coaches Poul Lemasters and Julie Burn, consists of extensive training including:

o   professional terminology
o   incinerator terminology
o   principles of combustion
o   cremation and the environment
o   incinerator criteria and design
o   basics of operating cremation equipment
o   general maintenance and troubleshooting
o   litigation
o   forms and record keeping
o   handling and exposure control

REGISTER TODAY - HURRY AS SEATS ARE LIMITED!

The most recent stop on ICCFA's tour of the states was right in our backyard at the Virginia Funeral Directors Association Convention in Roanoke. (Well not most recent, as I am actually writing this from Kentucky, but blog-time is close to catching up with real time).

To skip to the ending - since it was so delightful - here is the view from our car window during the first hour of the trip up Skyline Drive back home to Northern Virginia. Few pastoral settings compare to the beauty that is the Shenandoah Mountains.

Then, here is the view from our car window during the second hour of the trip up Skyline Drive after the rain and fog had set in. At this point our speed dipped from 35 mph to approximately 35 cph (centimeters per hour) as I attempted to navigate between the invisible lines marking the invisible road and the invisible 3500 ft drop which constituted the “shoulder.”

So the most interesting part about the 2009 VFDA Convention was the near flaming death off an Appalachian cliff. But the next most interesting part was definitely the wonderful folks Linda and I met and the gracious hospitality we enjoyed at the Convention itself.

Linda once again did yeoman duty manning the booth and answering questions. Plenty of people inquired about the new state requirement for crematory operator certification – which inspired ICCFA to quickly schedule three certification classes July 13-15 in several key parts of the state. Click here for details on crematory operator certification opportunities in Vienna, Richmond and Norfolk.

The Exhibit Hall sessions were well-attended, with food and beverage service available throughout most expo hours.

Kudos to the VFDA and Virginia Cemetery Association for signing a Memorandum of Understanding supporting the Missing in America Project (MIAP). Here, Convention Chair Robert Givens (standing) hands the documents to VFDA President Michael Rorrer for signature. As soon as a digital copy of the Virginia Memorandum of Understanding is available we will post it here as a model for other state and national organizations that may want to follow suit.

As an editorial note, I think a commitment to provide military funeral honors for unclaimed veterans' cremated remains is a truly noble effort the entire industry should support.

Pat Green of Integrity Burial Boxes is the Veterans Cemetery Liaison to the Virginia MIAP project.

VFDA Exec Lacy Whittaker kept the trains running on time throughout the Convention.

ICCFA Board Member Mike Doherty stopped by the booth during the “tailgate party with exhibitors.”

Some old and new friends in the booths around ours:

Good buddy and booth-neighbor wherever we go, Del Doleman of American Cemetery and Funeral Supply visits with a customer. Two things I have come to expect every time we arrive at a new trade show are: 1) another part of our exhibit booth will be broken, and 2) Del will be across the aisle.

Lar and Ken of Larken (get it?). They are a brand-new industry supplier selling amazingly inexpensive handmade urns.

Because of the rapid onset of senility I have forgotten their names, but the folks at Embalmers' Supply were very nice.

And below are just some random shots around the expo hall. Looking forward to the VFDA Convention next year in Norfolk!

ICCFA Cremation Coach Julie Burn was a speaker, and VP of Membership Nancy Lohman and Allied Industry Chairman Allen Dave manned the exhibit booth, at the Texas Funeral Directors Association Annual Convention last week in Austin.

Here are some shots from the exhibit hall:

Nancy Lohman and Allen Dave with Vickie King White of San Antonio College.

TFDA Exec Ann Singer (l) with Nancy Lohman and TFDA staff members.

Honor our war dead

Memorial Day is a time to honor those who served our nation placing their lives on hold while standing tall against the enemies of America. No greater service can be rendered by a citizen than to act in the defense of the nation.

In so many ways, our vets have received nothing more from us than passing recognition. They seem a necessity mostly praised and sought after when the rest of us are in fear. Our response to our citizen soldiers borders upon the schizophrenic.

There is a national group, Missing in America Project (MIAP) that has sought to identify abandoned cremated remains of veterans left in hundreds of basements across the nation. The walls obstructing their efforts are many, with each State imposing limitations preventing cooperating with MIAP.

There is no greater insult to the pride of the U.S. than these abandoned veterans.

Those who served were assured military honors upon their death. It is a breach of national duty, a failure of monumental proportions by each citizen and the government that this has been permitted.

Major General King E. Sidwell cried when he spoke, as six Missouri war heroes finally arrived on hallowed ground ending in dignity, honor and respect due from a nation they served without failure. Yet this was only a small beginning to address thousands left unknown and abandoned.

Memorial Day demands more than flag waving and a picnic. We are commanded to fulfill our part of the bargain. Failing to correct this wrong we besmirch every veteran and our men and women currently serving.

Edward Horn

Mike Hays defines the reality of sales in the 21st Century and the need to accept change. Though I have authored several articles on the topic I believe Mike has captured and reported on the reasons that require change and proscribes how to achieve it.

Management and sales directors would do well to read and consider the concetps and recommendations Mike offers. Without accepting change the market place will pass us by acknowledging our dismissal of competition in this new environment.

Ed Horn

A number of ICCFA representatives participated in the American Board of Funeral Service Education (ABFSE) meeting in Springfield, Illinois, this week. The meeting, which just ended a couple hours ago, was a great learning experience, providing invaluable information about how we can best develop our educational programs going forward. It was also a chance to meet a bunch of great people and reconnect with some we had not seen in a while.

I will try to get some more photos posted later in the week. These are just a couple taken by our VP of Membership, Nancy Lohman.

Allen Dave, Mark Krause, Nancy Lohman, Julie Burn, Joe Budzinski at Lincoln's Tomb in Springfield, IL

ICCFA Immediate Past President Mark Krause and NFDA Treasurer Pat Lynch at Lincoln's Tomb

As the 2010 ICCFA Program Chair, I want to tell you that our convention committee will be working hard to make the 2010 Annual Convention the best it can possibly be. Your input and suggestions are welcomed!

Hey y'all

I've been attending the ACA/ICFA/ICCFA conventions since 1993 - I realize this makes me a neophyte in the eyes of many of you - but I have to say, I thought this year's was really great and maybe the best I've been to ever. Many kudos to Kidwiler and his team! Fabulous job!

As a state association exec, I was working the exhibit room seeking out new vendor members and so had a lot of opps to talk with them in depth. The vendors I talked with felt it was really wonderful for them both in terms of traffic and general ambiance.

The sessions I attended were dynamite. People I talked to who went to other sessions said the same thing. The social occasions were really well-done (see my comments about the Cryptones) and my only complaint was the shin-splints I developed slogging from my room to the convention center (it really was about a mile, I swear, judging by how long it took). It also really impacted my ability to wear some of the terrific shoes I'd packed. Shoes, which I might add, almost caused me to have to pay overweight luggage fees but the kind Alaska Airlines check-in agent let me shift things from one bag to another. Yes, my tendency to over-pack made me cough up $25 to check a second bag.

On the shin-splints note, I sure would like to have a golf-cart franchise in those enormous hotel/convention centers. But I'm told by hotel staff this would be a liability issue for them.

I've never been to San Antonio, but on the survey form where it asked what my plans are for attending next year's convention I checked "I definitely will attend."

Y'all should too!

Last song of the night last night, killer finish to Convention week.

Keynote speaker and all-around good guy Doug Gober on lead vocals.

UPDATE: Thanks to one of our commenters, here is the full list of Cryptones band members:

Keyboards & Vocals - Vicky Amato (performer at Pat O'Briens and wife of Doug Gober, New Orleans, Louisiana)
Bass - Chris Bentley (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Guitar and Vocals - Mike Burke (Palm Mortuary, Las Vegas, Nevada)
Vocals and Tambourine - Doug Gober (Matthews International Corporation, New Orleans, Louisiana)
Guitar - Mark Krause (Krause Funeral Homes, Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
Guitar - Rick Martin (Palm Mortuary, Las Vegas, Nevada)
Sax - Jay Poster (King David Memorial Chapel, Las Vegas, Nevada)
Drums - Rich Webster (Las Vegas, Nevada)

I only got one angle from the right side but the entire performance was professionally filmed so eventually the whole thing, with video of the entire band, may be available.

After a truly fantastic Convention this week, we did not deserve any more blessings but we sure got one at the end of the night. Is this a great country or what!?

That's Mike Burke, Chancellor of ICCFA University, and Vicky Amato, New Orleans piano bar maven and wife of keynote speaker Doug Gober, on lead vocals, and our immediate past president (and also a University professor) Mark Krause on lead guitar.

Here is a glimpse at the 2009 ICCFA Convention, which so far has been very good: large crowds in the Expo Hall and excellent educational sessions for the most part.

Well it turns out "blogging the Convention" is a likelihood on a par with "blogging a swim across the English Channel" because the experience is on the arduous side and the Internet access is problematic.

Just the walk from the Hotel portion of Mandalay Bay to the Convention portion is enough to obliviate one's language ability for several hours. And, unfortunately, the only place you can get on the Internet is at the Hotel. For those of us working the Convention, you leave your room between 6-7 am, and do not return until after 7 at night at the earliest, and when you do you are more likely to submerge yourself in a hot bath or large tub of single malt than to sit at a keyboard.

Because of the social functions we have not made it back to the room before 9:30 pm any night. I have captured some great video, but in trying to edit and encode for the Web site I have tended to simply fall asleep.

But I can say the Convention is a huge success numbers wise. We have set records for attendance, booths, revenue, and everything that is good and holy. Numerous people have remarked "ICCFA just took the next big step." Pretty cool thing.

I'll try to do a little more with the video, but likely will just end up asleep on this desk. One more day to go.

It's nearly 6 p.m. Friday in Virginia, but the calls are still coming in from people who want to register for the ICCFA Convention in Las Vegas, which starts Monday night and promises to be our largest convention ever. Since there won't be anyone here to answer the phone over the weekend, here's what you need to know:

• Yes, you can still register. You will need to do so on site, at the Mandalay Bay.

• The ICCFA registration desk (702.322.4383) at the Mandalay Bay will be open before the convention begins. Don't forget, these are Vegas times:

Sunday, noon-5 p.m.

Monday, 8 a.m.-8 p.m. (The 1st-timers Reception starts at 5:30; at 6 p.m. the Expo Hall opens for everyone.)

The registration desk will continue to operate through Thursday, though it will move after the Expo closes on Wednesday afternoon.

• The Mandalay Bay is sold out. It never hurts to call and see if they have a cancellation, but otherwise, check Joe Budzinski's 4/16 blog post for a list of nearby alternate hotels.

Don't hesitate to make a last-minute decision to attend! The Expo, the educational sessions and the people you'll meet will make it well worth your time and money.

As always, you'll find me roaming the Expo Hall and rushing from session to session taking photos for ICCFA Magazine. I'm celebrating our expected record-setting crowd with a new t-shirt design. Instead of featuring a different cover every day, I've put all the covers for the past year into one design (for the front of the shirts) and am promoting this fabulous Web site on the back. So I'll be easy to spot. See you there!

Just a few items prior to loading up the backpacks, filling the canteens, and trekking over to the Rt. 50 West on ramp for the long hitch hike out to Las Vegas.

• We are going to attempt to video-blog the Convention, so watch this space during the week for updates. I say attempt because you never know what is going to happen onsite. We are definitely going to be capturing tons of video but if it gets too crazy busy maybe we'll just have the old fashioned word-blogs here. In any case the ICCFA Cafe will be the place for Convention news and updates.
• It's officially going to be record attendance and record number of booths sold, I will have numbers posted here probably on Tuesday afternoon when we see what the onsite registration activity has been. As a hint, however: At this moment we have sold 200 more hotel rooms than we did last year and that is just at Mandalay Bay which sold out several weeks ago - no idea yet how many people have reserved at one of the alternate hotels.
• And yes, since there are at least a billion other hotels nearby please do not hesitate to attend the Convention if you are still thinking of it. Either at that link, or at hotels.com, you can easily find a room to suit your budget. Right now, for instance, Luxor has rooms for $85 a night and Excaliber for $46 a night; both are walking distance from Mandalay Bay. Just look for hotels on the "South Strip" or near the airport.
• Be sure to check out Robin Heppel's pre-Convention interviews to hear from some of our speakers and get a sense of what you can expect next week.

Hope to see everyone next week at Mandalay Bay. If we've never met please come introduce yourself, I will be the guy with the video camera, notepad and portable stove.

Two people whom you would not normally expect to see on a stage together, Gary O'Sullivan and David Shipper, put on one of the most informative and entertaining presentations I've ever seen, at the 2009 ICCFA Wide World of Sales Conference.

On April 23 at 11:00 am, they are going to do it again at the 2009 ICCFA Convention at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. Here is a little preview:

For those of you who missed out in January, this is your chance to see it, and some of you who were at the January conference might choose to watch it again because these are two smart guys who will have undoubtedly done some fine tuning the past few months.

Long story short: Unbeknownst to most of us, David and Gary spent the past three years working out a sales management system for David's properties. In the process, they discovered that all of the existing information and materials out there were in some cases in need of optimization and in all cases in need of integration. Thus, they decided to just write the whole thing from the ground up. And by whole thing I mean from ads to activity tracking, from first day training to detailed Encyclopedia Brittanica-level product awareness, from alpha to omega, from soup to nuts-on-Mars. As somebody who has worked on these sorts of things for the past twenty years, let me assure you their project was an absolutely insane endeavor to take on - but the result is ridiculously good. And I am not saying that as a business endorsement, but simply as someone who has labored in the same vineyard and can appreciate artistry.

This presentation called "What Works" is a tiny offshoot of that project whereby Gary and David share several important things they learned, some of which will likely be of value to every sales manager at the Convention.

Lots of news coming out from ICCFA these days. Official press releases will be forthcoming over the next week, but in my capacity as CBO - Chief Blogging Officer - I am uniquely positioned to keep our readers privy to the developments before they are even fully developed, which is about as plugged in as you can get. Actually, all of the following are pretty much 100 percent in place, so from my penthouse office on the 33rd floor of the ICCFA Towers complex in bustling Sterling, Virginia, here is the news from me straight to you:

Cremation Coaching Center now online! Literally thousands of published items related to cremation, from a period spanning from the mid-19th century to the present day, tools for administrators managing crematories and cremation providers (which includes just about everyone these days), and advice from our resident Cremation Coaches, Julie A. Burn and Poul Lemasters - there is nothing else on the Web, or anywhere else for that matter, quite like it. Visit regularly because there are lots and lots more educational and informational materials in the process of being posted. And be sure to tell everyone you know in the industry to make cremationcoach.com one of their regular surfing destinations.

Industry Events Calendar: We have for years been maintaining a list of all the association events around the world, but our new Web site software allows us to have the data reflected in calendar format and linked to the respective associations. If you are anywhere near as disorganized as I am when it comes to keeping track of upcoming appointments and such, this magical, rich, colorful repository of hundreds of events far into the future should leave you gazing slack-jawed in wonder. If you are already an organized type, you'll still probably think it's pretty cool. It is updated almost daily so if you want to keep tabs on what all the associations are doing throughout the year, this is the tool you can use to do it.

New ICCFA outreach effort: Allen Dave, Jr., ICCFA Secretary and Board Member, has just accepted the Chairmanship of the ICCFA Allied Industry Committee. Anyone who knows Allen knows he is one of the most impressive people you will ever meet in this business. As a newcomer he brought a fresh perspective to funeral service by employing approaches he learned in wedding planning. He takes his work and education about that work very seriously, so in his new role of building bridges to other groups within the industry, Allen will be the ideal person to spread the word of the value of ICCFA and its programs. We are very fortunate to have him involved.

More news on these and other initiatives will be coming soon.

Death has visited all of us. When it knocks at our doors we react normally which means we respond like so many of our clients to the sense of loss and disruption. The pain of death is never less for us. Familiarity does not breed a callousness which dampens our pain.

Suffering a loss may allow us to listen ever more closely to the families that depend on us at their must susceptible time. Hopefully doing what is right for our clients is not subject to mutual suffering. The level of dedication we owe to every person who seeks our counsel must elevate us to act as a physician would.

The clients we encounter expect and deserve the same professionalism and truthfulness regardless the situation, At or Pre Need. The product and the service a Pre Need client is seeking will one day have tearful sad family members standing before us. The family of a Pre Need purchaser has the right to expect that what was arranged in advance satisfies the expectations of the person who gave us their trust. Subsequent Pre Need inquiries will follow the At Need use of the memorial property only if the family is appreciative of our fulfilling the promises we made.

At times the demand to make a sale may cause us to be concerned more about what is good for us than what is right for our clients. But immediate gains that result in dissatisfaction, disappointment and anger have a long term chilling effect on future sales. When we fail to deliver what our client expects the reputation that serves us well is tarnished resulting in long term damage. A disgruntled family will continuously impact sales.

The old days of cemeteries relying upon At Need sales for its income are over. So are the days of having a grounds Superintendent point a finger at a grave as the only recourse available to a grieving family. Our industry has evolved demanding Memorial Counselors who are much more than competent sales representatives. Our Counselors engage people at their must stressful or nervous times of their lives. They must have the personality and sensitivity to satisfy the client while fulfilling their responsibility of driving funds to our business. Additionally, if they perform up to expectations they are our insurance of future sales.     

Our Counselors must be part of an overall strategy that not only keeps the gates open but insures our businesses are profitable today and tomorrow. The days of relying upon cut grass as a sales promotion are gone. Building programs, reformation, and new product development must be joined at the hip to an active sales program and marketing campaign that engages the community. The reach of our business can no longer be defined by the boundaries of our physical location.

Sadly terrorist attacks have shocked many people into accepting the reality that we all one day must confront. Individual and family planning of memorial needs is a subject discussed openly in many households. Though few people have been directly harmed by terrorist attacks the perception now among our clients is that death is part of daily life. Regardless of what our clients say the recent events play a role in their concerns and preplanning.

Our profession is not immune to the repercussions of the war and the awful images viewed on TV. The horror and the devastation repulse us. Being in the business we relate to the mayhem viscerally. We understand the consequences of aiding a family who has suffered such a loss. The deaths wrought by this conflict universally afflict all members of a civilized society. We are the care providers who must sooth the pain and anguish of a grieving family by doing more than attending to the remains of a loved one.

Additionally the realities that plague us today must impact our thinking of how we present Pre need consideration to our Clients. It would be sad and foolish to harp upon the tragedies evident daily in news broadcasts. We should never forfeit the light-sided time we normally share with Pre need buyers. Somehow without appearing like Chicken Little's and pandering to fear we must pursue informing and believing in the power, benefits and rewards of Pre need planning. This would seem a thin line to balance between which once again reflects the requirements for selectively recruiting the right people as Memorial Counselors.

Increasing the qualities of the individuals we retain to present our interests will mandate reconsideration of how we value the very people we depend upon to drive Pre need sales. Quality has a higher price than quantity but guarantees returns and revenue that serves those who rely upon us while fulfilling our never ending quest to fund future services and present day development. Now, more so than at any other time our profession should carefully consider the adage of penny wise and pound foolish.

Some really excellent presentations have just been posted in the Screening Room, from Conventions earlier this decade. Glenn Gould and Ann Bastianelli on death care marketing, Julie Burn on personalization and Todd Van Beck on the state of the industry. These were among our best Convention sessions of the time, and still extremely relevant today.

Go take a look at the teasers, and if you are an ICCFA member log in to see the complete videos. If you did not happen to be at these Conventions, you'll see there is enough good information in only these four presentations to justify the cost of your annual ICCFA dues - but when you consider all the information in all of the OTHER videos already posted there, and the many more to come ... well it's just plain ridiculous what a great value your ICCFA membership really is.

I realize the Screening Room so far is a pretty eclectic mix of material. I think that's one of the coolest things about our archives (and why they comprise what will be the most unique feature of this Web site). Since 1887, this organization has definitely embraced a variety of subject matter. As we get more of the videos, audios and articles onto the Web site there will eventually be a "something for every interest group" aspect to it, which is the goal.

One caveat is we are going to be pretty deliberate about the "freshness" factor of the videos in particular, meaning there will be some very new ones, but the majority will be a few years old at the most recent. The reason for this, of course, is we don't want anyone saying they don't need to come to the Convention or Sales Conference or whatever because they are going to wait for the video to be posted here. People can do that, but the wait will likely be a few years so anyone who wants the latest, best information NOW still needs to come to the meeting.

But recognizing not everyone can attend the meetings, and quite a lot of the information from those older events is worthwhile (if nothing else for historical interest), I think the Screening Room is one of the best things on the Web in our industry. Check it out and I think you will agree.

Nothing tells the story like actual participants telling the story. Here are a few from last year talking about the new College of 21st Century Services.

Complete information about this and all of the ICCFAU colleges is available at the University home page.

There ain't nothing like the U. Here are more students talking about ICCFA University.

For more information and to register, please visit the ICCFAU home page.

Here are some videos of students talking about ICCFA University, which will take place July 17-22. Some more video will be coming soon, most likely. I think the program at the link above does a good job explaining why the University is such a singular industry educational event, but hearing actual participants talk about it is more compelling.

(Yeah, this is sort of a blatantly promotional post, which is generally not my modus operandi with the blog. This is where we are supposed to cut through the corporate-speak. But I think the University is pretty special, and these videos achieve the overall goal of authenticity in our communications.)

Lovely, just lovely.

Some organization has decided to glom onto our Convention and has acquired a copy of an industry supplier list, and is now making pestering phone calls to potential exhibitors at our 2009 Convention. They are calling and saying they can get a lower room rate - although we have learned they can not guarantee the lower rate. We've asked them to stop, and they apparently refuse to stop, so we have a problem.

ICCFA has already negotiated a very low room rate of $149 per night at Mandalay Bay for reservations made by February 28. This is a great deal, because the normal rate and the advertised rate after February 28 will be $259 per night.

The company that is calling our suppliers has nothing to do with ICCFA. Here is the notice that went out in the ICCFA email news blast today:

The ICCFA has learned that a company by the name of "Convention Expo Travel" is soliciting ICCFA members claiming to offer reduced room rates at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino for the ICCFA Convention dates, April 20-23. This company is NOT affiliated with the ICCFA or Mandalay Bay.

The Better Business Bureau has given Convention Expo Travel an “F” rating, based on a range on A+ to F. Therefore, the ICCFA urges extreme caution in doing business with this company. For more information on this company, go to http://southernnevada.bbb.org and click on “Check out a Business.”

The best way to reserve your room is to click here or call 1.877.632.7000 and identify yourself as an ICCFA attendee or mention discount code SCBM09.

Click here to learn more about Convention Expo Travel, the company that has been making these calls.

Our attorney tells me we cannot call Convention Expo Travel a "scam" because what they are doing is, technically, not illegal. But our supplier members who have received calls from Convention Expo Travel are saying, essentially, that Convention Expo Travel sucks because they are pestering ICCFA members and not offering a solid value proposition. So I am going to go out on a limb and say that in my opinion Convention Expo Travel is a loser company.

Got that, everyone? I think Convention Expo Travel is a dog with fleas. Lay down with those losers at your own risk.

Bottom line: If we are not putting on the best meeting in the world, we should probably fold up the tents and go home.

The idea just struck that maybe, just maybe, there is coming a time when I will have something to blog about besides the construction of this Web site: which evokes for me the image of a grandmother sitting alone in the farmhouse staring at the wall, kids all grown up, grandkids all gone to college and dogs off to join the circus.

Friends, I am that lonely grandma.

So time for new blog topics.

According to the web strategy research I've read - and I've read a lot - the true value of a "corporate" blog is to humanize the enterprise. It gives the opportunity for a window into the organization so people can see that, for instance, ICCFA is not run by an alien cult. (Although if you represent an organization run by an alien cult, please send a note via our contact page and I'm sure we can set up a subcommittee to meet your needs).

Now that you've had beaucoup exposure to the sausage-factory of iccfa.com, maybe you'd be interested in something else from the ICCFA oeuvre, maybe a view through a different window?

Here's one, a window into one of the main things we do and the most important from both operational and strategic perspectives: Our meetings and conventions. Why have ICCFA meetings been doing so well? What is my role as chief exec of this function and what have role have I played in making it all happen?

Short answer: Total paranoid freakin' nutjob.

Because, it turns out, you MUST be a total paranoid freakin' nutjob to be even mildly effective in the association meeting field. Or, more precisely, while you maintain the facade of an easy-going, glad-handing dandy, you must have a total paranoid freakin' nutjob living inside your brain in a secure, lead-encased safe room calling the ultimate shots.

Here is how I look at it: From alpha to omega, meetings are a freakin' disaster waiting to happen. Look at it any other way, and you are shark bait.

From the time you choose a location, to choosing the theme, to deciding on speakers, to building the marketing campaign, to getting all the pieces to work and fit together onsite, you are walking a tightrope over the yawning chasm of hell. Get ONE thing wrong - an ineffective promotional piece, a speaker who bombs, a hotel constructing its new wing, a Powerpoint with a meaningless corrupted video file of the monkey scene from 2001 A Space Odyssey - and your conference can become a cataclysm in the twinkling of an eye. I know, I've seen it happen. A bad location, boring theme, "been there, done that" speaker list or glitchy audio-visual can cost an association lots of money, both in lost revenue this year and the next year when the potential attendee demographic has a bad taste still in its collective mouths.

The enemy, the ULTIMATE enemy, is the If We Build It They Will Come attitude.

They will not. They do not. They have a rat's tail end which they DON'T GIVE for all our promotional harumphing about our respective organizations and the "features" we provide at our conventions. If we as association leaders do not do something compelling or new every single time, we are writing the death notice for our meetings. We must provide overwhelming value for our attendees such that they can take the information back home and use it to improve their businesses.

That is why ICCFA's 2009 concept is Join The Evolution - the content is not only new, but it is completely new for our industry. We can honestly say if you are running a funeral home, cemetery or cremation business, you need to know the stuff our 2009 Convention will be teaching you.

If we don't obsess over the logistics to ensure that every single silly onsite effect - from walk-in music to embedded video - comes off flawlessly, we are tarnishing our brand. The people who attend our meetings are spending much more than the registration fee to be there. The least we can do as association executives is wrack our brains for new content and lie awake at night to ensure the logistics are sound. We owe that to our audience.

The association managers may field the public questions, but the total paranoid freakin' nutjob needs to run the show.

And believe me, this has been proven in case after case of ICCFA meetings. Let up just a tad on standards and procedures, and you careen into the chasm of hades. You need to walk into every planning meeting and every pre-conference meeting room and have that still-small-voice in the back of your mind saying: "What is wrong here, and how is our world about to collapse?" I have it, Nadira has it, and Linda has it, and I am proud to say I have instilled in both of them a deep-seated sense of fear and unease which I hope will maintain them throughout their professional lives.

Ahem.

That last statement is a total freakin' lie, which is the one downside of having a total paranoid freakin' nutjob in charge of your brain. Nadira and Linda are actually the cool, collected meeting planners par excellence, which all of you who attend our conferences certainly know. Our meetings run like Swiss watches. I've been to conferences of many types in various fields, and frankly I don't think anyone does it better than ICCFA. Why? Because our meeting managers have internalized the requirements to run great conferences. Location, concept, theme, presenters, logistics, technical: the ICCFA staff folks make it all work. While I'm always the total paranoid freakin' nutjob in the background, they deliver the goods year after year.

Check out the ICCFA Convention program: Only an obsession with quality could have made it happen.

This was my ninth year helping to administer the ICCFA Wide World of Sales Conference, and all too often it goes by in a whirl of activity for me. Usually it's not until I get home and go through my photos that I can appreciate the event.

This year, though, thanks to a fantastic on-site staff, a crack A/V team and two highly effectual program co-chairs, I was able to actually enjoy myself in the moment. Some of my favorite memories:

The wave! Mike and Kevin, that was NOT in the script you were provided! I was only kinda sorta paying attention when you started it, so imagine my surprise when suddenly half of the people in the room are jumping up and throwing their arms in the air. (Again, I refer you to my photos ... I just happened to be stationed at a decent spot for that.)

David Shipper's imitation of Gary O'Sullivan. And the Oscar for Best Portrayal of a Preneed Guru goes to ....

"Take Me Out to the Ballgame." Even though, as John Bolton pointed out, the Yankees-jersey-wearing Mike Hays forgot the words. (We love you, Mike. Just not your jersey.)

The Sales Presentation Demo. Many thanks once again to the Mt. Elliott Group folks for getting up on stage and doing that role play, and to all those in the audience who then shared their observations of what was done well and what they might have done differently. One of the most interactive and informative sessions we've ever had.

Meeting so many nice preneed sales folks. Last but not least, my favorite part of any ICCFA event is the ability to meet our members, to put faces to names and to learn firsthand a little more about what you do. I tell all my friends I work for the nicest people in the world, and you have yet to prove me wrong.

If you were not at this year's WWS Conference, I hope you'll plan to come next year (January 13-15 in New Orleans). If you were there, I hope you'll come back again! Thank you for making my job so rewarding, and if you have suggestions for improvement ... let's have 'em. That's what the comments section is for!

So far, three KIP (Keeping It Personal) judges have braved the highways to review contest entries today instead of waiting until the designated snow day. Yes, we're in the midst of a snow emergency. An inch of snow has fallen and we in the DC metro area are suitably panicked. Those judges must really be excited at the prospect of reading about what progressive cemeteries, crematories, funeral homes and suppliers are doing these days!

They were welcomed by ICCFA Communications Activity Manager Rob Treadway, who is staff liaison to the Personalization Committee, and ICCFA Director of Cremation Services Julie A. Burn, who I strongly suspect brought the snow with her from Illinois. Burn has chaired or co-chaired the Personalization Committee since the beginning of the 21st century.

There are four KIP contest categories: (1) Innovative Personalized Product, (2) Best Practice/Personal Touch, (3) Most Personalized Service or Memorial and (4) Event. Winners will be announced in WIRELESS and in ICCFA Magazine, and will be notified individually.

KIP judging room: The conference room at ICCFA headquarters in Sterling, VA, is set up for KIP Awards judging this week.

KIP judging: ICCFA Communications Activity Manager Rob Treadway and Director of Cremation Services Julie A. Burn talk to some of the KIP judges.

[File under Dawn Of A New Era]

Another big chunk of content is now online - the ICCFA Model Guidelines. Not exactly new material but it was not so easy to find on the old Web site so this is more akin to an archeological discovery than a Pulitzer-prize moment. Published a little over 10 years ago, these documents were the result of a large amount of work by our Government and Legal Affairs Committee, and if you peruse them you will see they offer a valuable set of outlines for new legislative initiatives. Not to mention, a fine statement of best practices for our industry.

The old Web site ... ah, yes, the oooold Web site. I sense now it's been deceased for over a week I am finally gaining sufficient distance to refer to it with ironic tenderness, much like you'd talk about that good old mutt dog Blue you had as a kid, the one who ate your favorite baseball mitt, infested the house with fleas, ransacked your project the day before the Science Fair and threw up on your date's prom dress. That old Web site brought so much ... emotion to our lives over the years.

Poor little fella never really had a chance, though. Born in 1996, during the infancy of the World Wide Web, and we had no money to bring it into the modern age, so we just kept tacking stuff on - sort of like one of those bungalows you see around Southern California, the little three-room jobbers they keep adding to and adding to until it looks like a Lego house that grows from 1000 to 5000 sq ft with the aid of wood blocks, play doh and an erector set.

Yes, old icfa.org was an ongoing kludge, glommed with bits and pieces of new technology but never revamped, disjointed yet obliquely attractive like something by Duchamp - the Bride Stripped Bare By Her Programmers, Even - a masterwork of accretion which amazingly defied common sense and gravity to remain standing for over 12 years. Even we on the staff had trouble finding stuff. And as far as making sitewide changes .... brrr! what a nightmare. But also full of wonderful surprises as we periodically found content that no one remembered was there.

Here on the new site, we can pretty much manipulate and reframe all of our content however we want, because the content and presentation are truly separate. If the aliens land tomorrow, we can adopt a Pleiades color scheme to welcome our new overlords. If T. Boone Pickens decides to purchase the entire death care industry, we can put windmills and natural gas logos on every page. We can redo our menus with a few keystrokes and bring any content right to the surface. It's going to be much, much easier to manage than ol' Blue.

The Music License link is now working here.

Still just the same old fashioned PDF file you have to print, complete manually and send back by fax or mail, but it's better than carrier pigeon.

We are rapidly approaching the capability to have true online registration and payment, like everything else it is taking longer than usual. Today I finally got the Secure Socket certificate installed which is the first step in taking online payments again...

(A more casual photo is here)

Julie was, among other things, our lead interviewer for the "man on the street" video recordings of Conference attendees at the Wide World of Sales. A number of us on the staff are already very familiar with Julie because of her committee work (particularly chair of the KIP Awards) and as a speaker at ICCFA meetings, but it was a great experience to spend an extended time with her. I think I speak for the rest of the gang in saying the chemistry is excellent. Welcome aboard, Julie!

Opening reception at the 2009 Wide World of Sales was tonight, the conference begins in the morning.      

 Mike Burke, Gary O'Sullivan, Kevin Daniels at the Wide World of Sales

It looks like we'll have about 350 attendees, not too bad considering the economy. I think the program is among the best the ICCFA has ever put on, and many managers and owners realize that in a falling economy making your sales team better is more important than ever. More reports forthcoming, I hope...

This is a new communications vehicle for the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association. It will serve a variety of purposes, the most immediate of which will be to provide a simpler format for updating the Industry News listings.

Instead of going to the News Page each day, you will be able to come here to the Blog, where you can not only read the news but discuss it if you are so inclined.

Also, the "National/International" and "Opinion" news feeds from here on out will be of the self-serve variety: Simply peruse the lists for General News, Opinion, and Blogs, on the sidebars of the page, and visit the ones that interest you.

It may take a wee bit of adjustment to reading the news in the new format, and we appreciate you bearing with us as we bring the listings up to date.

The Blog will also provide a convenient way to distribute timely information about events that fall between the publishing cycles of the ICCFA Magazine and ICCFA Wireless newsletter. Time permitting, for instance, we should be able to provide coverage of next week's ICCFA Convention in Las Vegas.

We hope the ICCFA Blog is a useful service, and we invite your comments and suggestions.