untitled

B6 A1-A44 B1-B28

Page B6 SEPTEMBER 2017 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS S ec t i on B
By Mike Jamar
Home Recharging
There is no need to refuel the vehicle withmessy gas, just plug
it in when you get back to the funeral home. Most electric ve-
hicles can add 20 to 25miles of range with an hour of charging.
Lower Operating Cost
Electricity has great cost advantages over gas. The cost per
mile of an electric vehicle is one-third to one-quarter the cost
of gasoline, on a per mile basis. Plus unlike internal combus-
tion engines, electric cars do not need oil changes or have a
need for an exhaust system. The maintenance of an electric
vehicle amounts to rotating the tires as needed.
Lower Emissions
If I don’t mention less emissions somebody will complain.
But I don’t think this is a factor for hearses. Hearses are not
driven enough to have an impact on greenhouse emissions.
Increased Business Opportunity
There are individuals in our society that will appreciate, and
I believe patronize, a funeral home that offers environmental-
ly-friendly funeral vehicles.
CONS:
Limited Range
The range for electric vehicles is currently quoted at between
40 to 200 miles per charge. Most electric cars can now go
around 100 miles per charge. For a passenger vehicle this is a
completely valid reason not to own one, but this doesn’t really
apply to hearses. For the most part, hearses don’t travel more
than a few miles a day. However, you would need to consider
alternatives for those times you do need to make a trip over
100 miles, maybe a first call vehicle will suffice.
Isn’t it Time for an Electric
Hearse?
I am not posing this question from an environmental-
ist perspective. We are talking about hearses after all, a ve-
hicle driven infrequently enough. I’m approaching this
from the angle that electric hearses actually make a great
deal of sense in the funeral industry. Consider the Pros
and Cons of electric vehicles in general.
PROS:
Quiet Operation
If you’ve had a chance to ride in an electric car, the first
thing you notice is the silence. There is no engine noise
whatsoever. You push the accelerator and it goes, push the
brake and it stops, not making a sound the entire time.
Wouldn’t that be perfect for a hearse?
Long Refueling Time
It can take 8 hours to fully recharge an electric car. How-
ever since hearses already spend a lot of time in the garage,
this should not be an issue, as long as you can remember
to plug it in.
Higher Purchase Cost
Electric cars are more expensive to buy, but then that
might be offset by additional business.
HYBRIDS:
Hybrids were not included for this article, but they are
an interesting option and might work well for funeral ve-
hicles. I didn’t include them because I’m a believer in elec-
tric cars and not because they are environmentally effi-
cient. I believe in them because they can deliver a lot of
power and torque, are quiet, they are cheap to operate and
require little maintenance. When they finally develop a
battery that provides acceptable driving range (200-300
miles per charge) and can charge quickly, that is the day
we will have a paradigm shift in the automotive industry.
While researching this article I did find two articles about
electric hearses. One was about a Tesla, which is an electric
car company. The article was speculation about the possi-
bility and they included self-driving hearses. I am not sure
whoever wrote that article has every driven in a cemetery. I
sometimes find it a challenge to drive those narrow, wind-
ing roads myself, not sure how a self-driven hearse would do
it.The other article was about a European company that has
converted a Nissan Leaf, an electric car, into a hearse. The
biggest challenge there is that the Leaf is about one-third of
the size of a full hearse. A picture in the article shows a cas-
ket up against the dashboard, next to the driver. That may
work in Europe, not sure it will go over as well here.
Nonetheless, I think an electric hearse makes sense. I
wonder how long it will be before we see the first one at
the NFDA convention.
Mike Jamar is founder and co-owner of Advanced Integration
Technology. Mike has been working with computers since the early
80s and started Advanced Integration in 1994. Advanced Integration
specializes in Internet inventories designed for specialty vehicles and
equipment. HearseHub was created through a collaboration between
Advanced Integration and Nomis Publications, and is now in its fifth
year of service. HearseHub brings together funeral vehicles from a
number of dealerships that specialize in high quality funeral vehicles.
HearseHub offers funeral directors a large, and easy to shop inventory,
of funeral vehicles. You can reach him at .
Funeral Home & Cemetery News
Contributors share insights and
exchange ideas. B
Parks Superior makes Deliveries
Frank Conway (pictured) Ben Brodeur and the
rest of the staff at Conway, Cahill-Brodeur Funer-
al Homes, LLC in Peabody, MA took delivery of this
gorgeous 2017 Superior Sovereign.
Fran Berube and Bill Grinley at Brookside Cha-
pel and Funeral Home in Plaistow, NH purchased
a 2017 Buick Vintage Hearse, with a beautiful Tuxe-
do Top with Crown Band. Both vehicles were sold by
Parks Superior Sales, Somers, CT.
Brice Ballard Named Vice
President of Preneed
FDLIC Names Rex Miley
Market Center Manager
Rex Miley
ABILENE,TX— Funeral Directors Life Insurance Com-
pany (FDLIC) is pleased to announce that Rex Miley
has rejoined the company as Market Center Manager
(MCM) for Mississippi after retiring last year.
“Rex is a great friend of our company and we are pleased
to welcome him back,” said Kris Seale, president and
CEO. “Rex has been an as-
set to our clients and has
successfully served them
throughout his tenure with
us. We are thrilled that he
has decided to return to
the company.”
“Rex has done a great job
of serving his customers in
Mississippi for nearly 15
years,” said Mark Owen,
regional sales vice presi-
dent for FDLIC. “He has
a wealth of experience and
knowledge, and he is more
excited than ever to come
back and help his long-
time clients continue to grow their businesses and in-
crease profitability in a rapidly changing marketplace.”
Rex began his career in the funeral service profession in
1976 as an assistant funeral director at Wright & Ferguson
Funeral Home in Jackson, MS. He joined FDLIC in 2002
as a Market Center Manager and retired in 2016 after 40
years of service in the profession. Rex recently made the de-
cision to emerge from retirement and return to FDLIC.
“I feel very fortunate to be back,” said Rex. “We’re just
going to keep doing what we’ve been doing, which is help
funeral homes grow and achieve their goals. I love what I
do, and I’m honored to be associated with a quality com-
pany like FDLIC.”
FDLIC, rated A- (Excellent) by A.M. Best Company, is
a legal reserve life insurance company which specializes in
the sale of insurance-funded preneed funerals.
Church & Chapel Metal
Arts Welcomes its Fourth
Generation
CHICAGO,IL— Church & Chapel Metal Arts is excited
to announce that Nick Taddeo will join company presi-
dent Charles Taddeo Sr, as well as Frank Taddeo, Charles
Taddeo Jr, and Vince Taddeo as the fourth generation of the
family in the business.
Nick Joined Church & Chapel upon his graduation from
Bradley University where he earned his Bachelor of Science
Nick Taddeo
degree in marketing with a
minor in management infor-
mation systems.
“It makes me very proud
to have my son Nick join
us. Nick has been working
at Church & Chapel part
time since he was in grade
school, so we expect him to
have a seamless transition
into his new full time role,”
said Frank Taddeo, vice pres-
ident. “My father Joseph
Taddeo who served as presi-
dent of the firm from 1951
until his passing in 1996,
would be very proud to see the direction the firm is going
and be comforted to know that Church & Chapel will re-
main family run and operated into the next generation.”
Since its founding in 1933 by Pietro Taddeo, Church &
Chapel has undergone four location changes, four genera-
tions of family and is approaching their 85th year serving the
funeral industry. It is Church & Chapel’s goal to provide the
highest quality products alongside outstanding customer ser-
vice to their customers around the world long into the future.
Church & Chapel Metal Arts offers a complete line of sup-
plies to the funeral industry, including furniture, equipment,
cremation urns, jewelry, and many other products necessary
for the delivery of a funeral service.
For more information about Church & Chapel Metal Arts,
visit .
OMAHA,NE— On the heels of the Custom Product Se-
ries launch and an exciting new collaboration with Pre-
coa, Physicians Mutual has another big announcement:
vice president Brice Ballard now leads the company’s pr-
eneed distribution.
During his 15 years with Physicians Mutual, Ballard has
managed a number of the company’s product lines and
will now direct all preneed, life insurance and annuities
operations. His experience includes innovative product de-
sign, financial analysis and marketing. Ballard graduated
from the University of Iowa and in 1996 he became an ac-
tuary. Currently he is a fellow of the Society of Actuaries as
well as a member of the American Academy of Actuaries.
In 2013, Ballard developed the Inflation Guard prod-
uct, the profession’s first solution to a funeral home own-
er’s risk of shortfalls. He also created Physicians Mutual’s
Cornerstone Index product, which gives funeral home
owners the potential for more growth without sacrificing
the security of their file cabinet.
“I’m excited about this opportunity,” says Ballard. “We
have seen a lot of change in our five years in preneed.
What hasn’t changed is who we are or what we represent.
I look forward to our continued success with our Custom
Product Series and new marketing partner, Precoa.”
Physicians Mutual Insurance Company and Physicians
Life Insurance Company are members of the Physicians
Mutual family. Physicians Mutual Insurance Company of-
fers reliable Medicare Supplement, dental and supplemen-
tal health insurance. Physicians Life Insurance Company
provides important life insurance coverage and annuities.
They entered the funeral pre-planning market to help meet
the growing needs of funeral home owners and the families
they serve. The companies have more than $3.6 billion in
assets and consistently maintain some of the highest finan-
cial strength ratings in the nation from independent insur-
ance analysts, including A.M. Best Company and Weiss
Ratings. Founded in 1902, Physicians Mutual is headquar-
tered in Omaha, NE. To learn more about the company,
visit .