October 2018

Page A34 OCTOBER 2018 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS S ec t i on A Starting as low as $2795 Standard 8 mil Body Bag Starting at $5.65 1 ~ 800 ~ 515 ~ 0400 www.acsupplies.com Body Lift Mortuary Stretcher Starting as low as $895 Great Prices & High Quality Cot Covers & Pouches Church Trucks Starting as low as $445 Starting as low as $1074 Hydraulic Embalming Table B O O T H 2 5 0 7 Funeral Directors SaraWood and Heidi Hinman Roland Funeral Home with Funeral Car Photo of new funeral cars and the four car garage taken in July 1976. Roland Brothers Roland’s Horse and Carriage his father continued working with him until just before he passed away, at the age of 91, in 1986. Warren and wife, Amy are the parents of six children. The children and several of their spouses have worked at some level within the business over the years. In 2016, their old- est daughter, Heidi Hinman began buying into ownership and currently serves as co-manager. Warren, Amy and their family delight in excellence and innovation. Now a seasoned funeral director of over fifty years, Warren tells, that in wisdom, his dad taught him early on that “if a family asks to hold their service at three o’clock in the morning out under the old apple tree, you hold that service at three o’clock in the morning under the old apple tree!” Fulfilling his dad’s wishes has been fruitful as Warren and staff had that mindset long before encourag- ing families to personalize was the trend. For example, a few times Warren led a procession of about a hundred motorcycles and more recently, special family vehicles and even a fire truck have led processions. Occasionally a family will map out a meaningful route past their loved one’s favorite places on the way to the burial. Warren has used several successful horse drawn hearses and carriages over the decades – until the service of a family friend and well-known area horseman – when a strap on a harness broke, causing the two horses to bolt and the carriage hitch to break! The horses found them- selves free and the carriage didn’t stop until it was caught straddling a little tree which miraculously halted the run away. As it turned out, the driver and Warren were both thrown off the carriage – yet were able to get on their feet, and the horses returned of their own accord. Though Warren was shaken, he was able to brush himself off and gracefully resume his part in the service, insisting “a li- censed director has to be on that committal!” What a re- lief when the beloved family’s happy response to Warren’s apologies was, “Dad would have just loved going out in a blaze of glory!” Later, when interviewed about that ser- vice by the Des Moines Register – in Warren’s typical up- beat way, he answered with a smile, “It went off without a hitch!” Regarding dealing with larger services, Rolands’ have used venues such as churches, area high schools and the Cass County Community Building. However, creativity has kicked in when families elected to have their services in the funeral home, regardless of possible crowding. When one such visitation took place, the loving turnout was backed up a block in each direction. Some of the family members glad- Roland Funeral Service to reach Centennial in 2019 Continued from Front Page ly went outdoors to receive their guests; tables, chairs and water were provided for the crowd and once again, the fam- ily was served with excellence in the way they desired. Rolands’ provide families with complimentary, personal- ized slideshow videos and have added a scrapbook section to be included in each register book, which includes fam- ily history information and requested photos - making it a priceless keepsake album. Their tailored service folders are designed on an individual basis. They are able to trans- form the chapels into an elegant reception room with table cloths, candles and soft music for a soothing atmosphere at luncheons and provide the use of a kitchen, as well. For visitations and services, Rolands’ create diverse settings to suit the tastes of the families, whether traditional, formal or casual - occasionally tables are used to create a relaxed, sit-down atmosphere for a memorial service. The staff also maintains a web site, www.rolandfuneralservice.com, that provides obituaries, service information as well as includ- ing community related information. Among the many events hosted for the local community, the annual Evening of Remembrance features a revolving Christmas Memorial Tree, presented at the local Festival of Trees, in celebration of those who have passed during the year and in recognition of loved ones for grief support par- ticipants. The event includes testimonies and vocal and in- strumental holiday music. Rolands’ offer Heavenly Hug Bundles which include stuffed animals, blankets and two educational story book coloring books. Created by Amy Jo Roland, one book is the Hope of what is happening in Heaven and the other is Ad- ventures in Dreamland. Both were written with the prem- ise of helping children to process mixed emotions, concerns and questions about eternity. Amy andWarren also conduct weekly grief support meetings in their home, which include support groups and one-on-one counseling at no charge. The staff specializes in offering families as much time and care as needed, based on each family, and Heidi says, “The goal of all at Roland Funeral Service is making a warm, wel- coming setting to help folks embrace the next step in their time of need. Our business is blessed with an amazing team that works together to provide our services.” Warren and Amy agree that folks benefit from draw- ing from the opportunities provided by Rolands’. “There is great value in sharing with the community, as loved- ones are honored. The surviving families find themselves expanding on their loved-ones’ legacies, which will bless throughout the generations.” University of Minnesota , Department of Mortuary Science, Warren received his funeral director’s li- cense in 1966, and began working with his father. Always evolving with the times, Rolands’ has experienced many re- model projects. In 1965, they added of- fice space, a four-car garage and a north en- trance. 1976 saw the ad- dition of two new view- ing rooms, two new restrooms, more seat- ing and a coat rack area. There were more chang- es in the 1980’s, includ- ing the ground-break- ing use of pre-recorded dicta-phone messages, giving current funer- al and service informa- tion, 24-hour fax service and expansion of park- ing space areas. Warren purchased the business from his par- ents in the 1970’s, and