Late Spring 2008
|
Late Spring 2008
|
Columns
|
Unveiling of “Our Heroes” Painting for Veteran’s Cemetery Abilene, Texas On May 20, 2008 at 2:00 p.m. at the Abilene Civic
Center Main Foyer, the largest painting that will hang in a veterans’ cemetery
will be unveiled. The large
painting, five feet by eight feet, will honor the members of the United States
Military. Fourteen active members of
various branches of the military posed for this painting and most if not all
will be present for the unveiling. The
details in the painting are unbelievable and breath taking. The painting was commissioned by Jack and Sandie North,
owners of North’s Funeral Home, Abilene, Texas.
The North’s have been longtime supporters of the military and
especially Dyess Air force Base where Mr. North has been an honorary commander
since 1985. Mike Lanier is the artist of the painting.
Mr. Lanier is an Abilene artist who is known for his detail work in his
paintings. This painting will be his
largest to date. Mr. Lanier said
that he is very honored to have been selected to paint this historical and
memorial painting. Mr. Jim Defoor, the Taylor County Veterans officer,
will be the master of ceremonies. Representatives
of the Texas State Veterans Land Commission will speak as well as
representatives of the city and county commissions.
Brigadier General Garrett Harencak, commander of the 509the bombardment
wing at Whiteman Air Force Base will return to Abilene for this special event
and will speak for the military. Special videos of famous military pictures will precede
the ceremony and a special tribute to veterans will follow the unveiling. All veterans and active duty personnel, as well as the
public, are invited to this special event honoring our veterans.
The painting will be on display in various Abilene locations until the
new Abilene Veterans Cemetery will open in the spring of 2009.
University of Central Oklahoma Graduates Edmond,
OK—The Funeral Service Education Department at the University of Central
Oklahoma announces the following students have recently completed the
requirements for the Bachelor of Science Degree: Matthew Boydstun, Oklahoma City, OK Bobby
John Byfuglien , Casselton, ND Marlisa
Camerer, Tulsa, OK John
Davenport, Norman, OK Deandra Hightower, Ada, OK Traci Icke, Edmond, OK Scott T. Smith, Oklahoma City, OK Thelma Williamson, Wheatland, OK The
following student completed the Funeral Service Education Certificate program: Jimmy
Spurlock, Henryetta, OK
MFDEA
6th & 7th Districts Donate to St. Louis Community College at Forest Park Funeral
Service Program by Calvin and Chris Whitaker, MFDEA 6th & 7th Districts Pictured from left to right:
Calvin Whitaker (Vice-President MFDEA), Mr. Steve Koosmann (Director of
Mortuary Science Program), & Mr.
Steve Smith (Director of Funeral Directing Program) The 6 & 7th Districts of the MFDEA donated money to
Mr. Steve Koosmann and Mr. Steve Smith of St. Louis Community College at Forest
Park Funeral Service Program for the 2008 MFDEA Convention.
The donation will be used for a booth at this year’s convention. The MFDEA 6 and 7th Districts feel strongly about the
Funeral Service Program at the St. Louis Community College being able to attend
the convention. They would like
everyone to keep in mind that there are many Mortuary Colleges around, but this
is the only Mortuary College in the state of Missouri.
We urge everyone to show their support to this college in some way.
Remember in supporting this program, you are supporting the future of our
industry. InLieuofFlowers.info Website Victoria,
Texas, March 25, 2008 — Recent updates to InLieuofFlowers.info have made the Web site an even better
resource for funeral directors and other funeral home staff members. The Web
master, Clay Atchison, affirmed his commitment to serving members of the funeral
service professions in a recent interview. “It’s my hope to assist funeral
home owners and their support staff in providing this valuable information to
their client families, their friends and community members who face the social
challenges after a death.” Those
social challenges can be overwhelming. One of the most difficult decisions
facing friends and family members involves the selection of sympathy flowers.
The home page of the Web site declares, “Flowers are a visual expression of
love, sympathy, and respect. They are means of lending support and sharing the
burden of grief.” Atchison’s
Web site provides insight into buying the right flowers for the type of
relationship shared. Whether the deceased was an immediate family member, a
friend, neighbor or a business associate, InLieuofFlowers.info has the recommended floral arrangement. Certainly,
this decision is complicated by the current trend of requesting donations of
money to a charity in honor of the deceased. This trend is reflected in the
all-too-common suggestion made in obituaries and death notices, “in lieu of
flowers.” “I’ve
watched people stress out over these decisions, and ultimately do nothing at
all,” said Clay Atchison, Web master of the site InLieuofFlowers.info, in a recent interview. “Then they
feel so guilty about the whole thing. It’s heart-wrenching to watch them
struggle to find the perfect solution.” Funeral Director,
Todd Van Beck offers this elegant comment on the
subject: “Families deserve the right of complete freedom of expression at time
of death. People are not cut from the same spiritual or emotional mold.
Therefore, they should be free to express themselves in the manner which best
conveys their emotions. Any expression which is the result of dictate, ceases to
be an act of the heart." Recognizing
the importance of action at times like these, InLieuofFlowers.info provides support to both funeral
service professionals and the communities they serve. “It’s my goal to help
everyone come to know the perfect heart-driven action to take, and assist them
in taking it with the ease and self-assurance that comes when you know you’ve
“done the right thing.” For additional information contact: Contact Person: Clay Atchison III Fax Number: 361-575-2557 InLieuofFlowers.info is a Web site where you can locate the
resources to select the perfect expression of sympathy after the death of a
loved one, friend or acquaintance. The wealth of information on the site ranges
from the tribute guide by relationship mentioned earlier, to a selection of
bereavement poems and sympathy card messages. There’s also a section covering
sympathy etiquette, as well as a compendium of funeral hymns, and a glossary of
sympathy terminology.
NEW MORTUARY SERVICE in Longview, Texas In February “The 5 Star Mortuary Service” opened in
Longview, Texas. They are the first
embalming service to open in Longview in years.
They are currently the only embalming service in Longview and offer
embalming, first call, and transportation service in their state-of-the-art
facility. Their staff offers over
100 years of combined experience! Prices
are as follows:
First Call—In
Town—$150.00
First Call—Out-of-town—$175.00
Embalming—Regular—$225.00
Embalming—-Autopsies—$245.00 Embalming—Donors—$245.00 They can be reached at 903-753-7827 or 888-844-8885. They look forward to serving all funeral facilities
with needs in Gregg, Harrison, Marion, Upshur, Titus, and surrounding counties. Give Blake Cammack & Jeff Bethard a call. Cadillac Leads the Way with OnStar’s New Navigational Services Detroit, MI, April 11—OnStar, standard on all
Cadillac professional vehicles, recently announced the introduction of two new
navigational services to complement and enhance its existing Turn-by-Turn
service, the most widely available navigation system on the market today.
These features solidify Cadillac’s technology leadership by offering
vehicles with embedded navigation systems and more options than any other auto
manufacturer within the professional vehicle industry. The first new service is OnStar Destination Download*,
which enables MY2009 OnStar subscribers with screen-based navigation systems to
download directions to their navigation screen by connecting to an OnStar
advisor while driving. The second
service, OnStar eNav*, allows subscribers with a Turn-by-Turn
Navigation*-capable vehicle (MY2006 to present) to find and save destinations on
MapQuest.com and have those destinations sent to their vehicle’s OnStar
Turn-by-Turn Navigation system. Typically to use a screen-based navigation system,
drivers have to bring their vehicle to a stop and place it in park.
With OnStar Destination Download, subscribers can have the address of
their destination sent directly to their navigation system while still driving,
providing a safe, easy and immediate solution. OnStar Destination Download will be available on all
model year 2009 Cadillac professional vehicles, including the new DTS-L short
stretch livery sedan. OnStar’s second new service offering, OnStar eNav,
allows subscribers to plan their travel destinations on the MapQuest site (www.mapquest.com)
and then send those destination to their OnStar system.
When ready to retrieve those directions, subscribers simply press their
vehicle’s OnStar phone button to access voice-guided commands through which
they can select their route. OnStar eNav will be available retroactively on 2.7
million current Turn-by-Turn capable GM vehicles.
Later this year eNav will also combine with OnStar Destination Download
to download destinations directly to the vehicle’s screen-based navigation
systems. For more information on each of these navigational
services, please visit www.onstar.com. * Part of
OnStar’s one-year free “Directions & Connections” service plan
subscription. |
ADVERTISERS Brian Simmons Springfield Mortuary Service Miller Coach & Limousine Sales Si Mortuary & Cremation Services Mid-States Professional Services Dallas Institute of Funeral Service American Crematory Equipment Co. Aaron Beasley Embalming Service & Crematory Texas Funeral Directors Association Central Texas Funeral Transport
|
