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OCTOBER 2014
FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS
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DATE STRIPS - RUBBINGS MATCHED
DIGITAL DESIGNS OR PRE-CUT STENCIL
C
REATIVE-
P
REMIER
D
ESIGNS
July 2014, Ft. Worth, Texas
The landlords who had evicted their tenants from a build-
ing called the police when they discovered what was left be-
hind. In July of this year, twin brothers Dondre and Derrick
Johnson were ordered to evacuate the Johnson Family Fu-
neral Home for non-payment of rent. Two weeks after the
funeral home had locked its doors, eight decomposing bod-
ies were discovered in the building. There was no refrigera-
tion and no electricity. The decedents were six adults and
two stillborn children. The Texas Funeral Service Commis-
sion stated that there are five complaints pending against
the funeral home and its operators.
Another mortuary that the brothers operated, according
to WFAA-TV, had to shut down in 2010 due to failure to
pay for $13,000 in penalty fees for violations.
The family of Aundrea “Candy” Jones was cremated by the
Johnsons. Her urn is on the mantle of the family home. Her
remains were not found in the funeral home but the fam-
ily was informed the serial number on their urn is not the
proper number.
The late Mrs. Jones knew the Johnsons and trusted them
and they were chosen for that reason.
The family’s words to the Johnsons are “We trusted you.
We were deceived and now we are hurting again.”
The family blames it on greed and temptation.
The Johnson brothers and their funeral home were to be
featured in a Lifetime reality show, “Good Grief ”. Lifetime
has announced that the Johnsons will not be part of the
show.
The Betrayal of Trust
Funeral directors are usually successful because they have
a respect for people and spirituality, if not outright religious
beliefs, that gives a sense of security and trust to the public.
When desperate times hit, a few seem to lose their ethical
compass. The result is suspicion cast upon all in funeral ser-
vice.
“We always thought Joe was the best: personable, consol-
ing. It’s just unfathomable. Shame on you, shame on you.”
–Carol Shamshack of Quincy, MA who had $12,150 sto-
len by former funeral director Joseph V. O’Donnell
Steven Palmer entered funeral service in 1971. He is an honors grad-
uate of the New England Institute of Applied Arts & Sciences. He has
been licensed on both coasts, he owns the Westcott Funeral Homes of
Cottonwood and Camp Verde, AZ. Steve offers his observations on cur-
rent funeral service issues. He may be reached by mail at PO Box 352,
Cottonwood, AZ 86326, by phone at (928)634-9566, by fax at (928)634-
5156
alh
h his web-
site a
or
Observations
Desperate Acts
“How do trusted people and organizations become cheats?
Not just once but repeatedly and systematically?”
–
Why Do Good People Sometimes Do Bad Things?
By Muel Kaptein
Jeffrey Skilling, CEO of Enron at the time of its demise in
2001, said this shortly before the energy corporation’s abrupt
bankruptcy: “We are doing something magical, it isn’t a job
– it is a mission. We are changing the world. We are doing
God’s work.” He is currently serving his 24 and a half year
sentence in a federal prison for security fraud and several oth-
er high crimes.
We watch with mouths agape as persons in a position of
public trust engage in unethical and criminal behavior.
In the past several months, several established funeral homes
have been discovered in alleged abuses of the law and the con-
fidence that was placed in them as their businesses self-de-
structed.
July 2014, Providence, Rhode Island
The last time anyone saw Alfred Pennine, owner of the Pen-
nine Funeral Home of Providence Rhode Island was when
he went camping in New Hampshire this past July. Pennine’s
body was found hanging at a popular campground by a work-
er. Pennine’s mother asked friend and fellow funeral director
Michael Berarducci to bring her son’s body home. The next
day Berarducci made a shocking discovery at the Pennine Fu-
neral Home. He found five bodies of elderly adults, three in
caskets and two in “shipping containers” (wooden tray bot-
tom with fiberboard tops). Later the remains of an infant and
two cremated remains were discovered. Some of the dece-
dents may have died ten years ago.
The state health officials had revoked Pennine Funeral
Home’s license in July.
Further investigation has led to a storage locker in Johnson,
Rhode Island, rented by Alfred Pennine where three “badly
decomposed” remains were found. The locker was seized for
non-payment and auctioned off. The new owner made the
grisly discovery of its contents. The medical examiner is ex-
amining the remains.
Pennine had his funeral director and embalmers license sus-
pended for two years in 2007. His history of problems with
the state is extensive.
He failed to perform a cremation in a timely manner in 2004.
He used unlicensed staff to direct funerals at least five times.
There was a confrontation with one family as the staff mem-
ber had no idea how to conduct a funeral service. Pennine
failed to report deaths in a timely manner, did not complete
burials when promised and used an overdrawn check to re-
new his license.
This second generation funeral home owner had lost his
ownership of the building in March for nonpayment of taxes
and was renting the facilities.
August 2014, Dorchester, Massachusetts
Carol and Leo Shamshack paid $12,000 to Joseph V.
O’Donnell who operated the O’Donnell & Mulry Funeral
Home in Boston area Dorchester, Massachusetts. They were
notified that he was trying to cash in the funds for himself.
O’Donnell was arrested last April for the larceny and is held
on bail. O’Donnell had lost his funeral directors licenses in
2008 but continued to operate the funeral home. The Suffolk
County District County Attorney’s investigation led them to
a locker in Weymouth, Massachusetts this past July where
twelve bodies were discovered. The investigation further led
to another storage locker in Somerville, Massachusetts where
cremated remains were discovered.
August 2014, Dover, Delaware
Nine hundred-eleven people, members of the People’s Tem-
ple of the San Francisco area, went to Guyana with their lead-
er the Rev. Jim Jones, seeking religious freedom. Congress-
man Leo Ryan, several staff members and reporters flew to
the Guyana compound, in response to worried US family
members. After meeting with Jones and his cult parishioners,
Congressman Ryan offered transportation back to the US for
any Temple member. The delegation was followed back to the
airstrip by armed Temple members sent by Rev. Jones. They
shot and killed the Congressman and several others. Rev.
Jones, back at the Temple compound, convinced the mem-
bers to drink cyanide laced Kool-Aid in a mass suicide. These
Temple members’ bodies were flown back to Dover Air Force
Base where they were processed. Many of the remains were
buried in a common grave with a memorial for the Peoples
Temple members in the San Francisco area. Five or six funer-
al homes were asked by the Air Force to assist in processing
of the remains. The former Minus Funeral Home of Dover,
Delaware was one of those firms. When funeral home owner
Edward G. Minus, Sr. died in 2012, the bank took possession
of the building. This August, employees of Eastern Savings
Bank and its subsidiary Sunningdale Ventures, Inc. of Mary-
land went to inspect one of their properties, a former funeral
home in Dover, Delaware. They discovered 38 containers of
cremated remains; 33 of those containers were clearly labeled.
Upon investigation it was learned that nine of the cremated
decedents were victims of the 1978 Jonestown Massacre. The
remains have been taken by the Department of Forensic Sci-
ence. There is no indication of wrongdoing by the late Mr.
Minus. Why were these remains not found or dealt with ear-
lier? Several of these families were finding out, thirty–six years
later, where their loved one’s remains were.
By Steven Palmer
Alexander Wynn Purchases Rosewood
Classic Coach
DAYTONA BEACH,FL—
Alexander Wynn III
(C)
owner of
Gainous Funer-
al Home Inc
and presi-
dent-elect of the
Nation-
al Funeral Directors and
Morticians Association
for
2015 receives keys to his
new Grand Oval Rose-
wood Coach from
John
Muster
(L) of
Muster
Coaches,
Calhoun, IN
during the NFDMA con-
vention in Dallas, TX.
The unit was hand built
over a new Chevy truck
frame, motor and trans-
mission, by
Richard Neal
(R) of
Rosewood Classic
Coach,
Morrilton, AR.
This timeless traditional
design is truly a bench-
mark to the funeral in-
dustry. Wynn operates fu-
neral homes in Orlando,
Daytona Beach and New
Smyrna Beach, FL.