January 2023

Page A26 January 2023 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS Se c t i on A 1-888-792-9315 • mymortuarycooler.com Scan QR for our website Cots not included MODEL # TR3 Triple Cot Roll-In Mortuary Cooler AMC N W FAST SHIPPING AVAILABLE ON SELECT PRODUCTS Share this NEW resource with grieving families to remind them that they are not alone. bers are invited to enter for their chance to participate in the association’s transformational Meet the Mentors program, which will take place March 12-14, 2023, in Atlanta, GA at the Emory Conference Center Hotel on the campus of Emory University. Meet the Mentors has been wholly funded by the Funeral Service Foundation since its 2011 inception. The Funeral Service Foundation’s support of Meet the Mentors helps fulfill its mission of investing in people and programs to strengthen funeral service and lift up grieving communities. During Meet the Mentors, up to 30 funeral professionals who are age 40 or under or new to the profession (first licensed within the last five years) will have an opportunity to meet, learn from and talk with innovative and successful funeral professionals. Meet the Mentors also helps participants to network and form relationships with other new professionals. Three highly esteemed funeral professionals have been selected as the 2023 mentors: David Hernández, Jr is a first-generation funeral director and founder and operator of Jersey Memorial Group, which is comprised of 13 funeral homes and cemeteries that collectively serve 2,000 families each year in New Jersey, PennsylI n v i t a t i on s • ya r d s i g n s B u s i n e s s C a r d s a n d F o r m s S e a t i ng C h a r t s • A c c e s s o r i e s P r omot i on a l I t e m s • T i c k e t s l a b e l s • s t a m p e r s • p o s t e r s 8570 Foxwood Court Youngstown, Ohio 44514 800-321-7479 www.boardmanprinting.com Like NEWS Association Enter Today: NFDA Meet the Mentors Program Provides Inspiration to New Professionals Continued on page A27 BROOKFIELD,WI— National Funeral Directors Association memvania and West Virginia. Many of his firms are consistent NFDA Pursuit of Excellence Award recipients; his firms earned the Best of the Best Award in 2017 and 2022. He currently serves on the Funeral Service Foundation Board of Trustees. Duane E. Hills is president of Joseph Gawler’s Sons Funeral Home in Washington, DC. Originally from rural Pennsylvania he moved to New York State before attending Simmons School of Mortuary Science in Syracuse, New York. In 2008, he joined SCI to manage a group of funeral homes and a cemetery in Lufkin, TX. In 2012, he transferred to Washington, DC where he became the assistant manager at Joseph Gawler’s Sons. In 2022 Duane self-published a book on the history of Joseph Gawler’s Sons, “One Block West of the White House,” which can be found in both the Presidential Library at the White House and the Law Library at the United States Supreme Court. Annette March-Grier, RN., CFSP, is vice president of her family’s business, March Funeral Homes, with locations in Maryland, Washington, District of Columbia, and Virginia. She is the visionary behind Roberta’s House Inc., a nonprofit family grief support center founded in 2007 by the March family. MarchGrier is the president of Roberta’s House and has www.nomispublications.com led the way for grief education and support for grieving children and families in Baltimore for more than 37 years. She was selected by CNN as one of the Top Ten CNN heroes of 2014 for changing the world. During Meet the Mentors, Hernandez, Hills and March-Grier will share career advice and lessons they have learned while building rewarding and fulfilling careers in funeral service. Attendees will be able to connect with the mentors and their fellow mentees during small group discussions, interactive exercises and meals. Previous Meet the Mentors participants offer consistently high praise for the program; one said, “I just want to say thank you. The program… was informative. It was transformational. I would go every year if I could.” “This was such a special experience that I will forever cherish,” another mentee said. “Thank you to… each of the presenters for sharing their expertise with us.” Another program participant noted, “I really, really enjoyed the presenters; I thought they had such great knowledge. For the wonderful people that I got to meet, I am so grateful.” There is no cost to participate in the Meet the Mentors program itself. The Funeral Service Foundation’s generous grant

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