October 2021

Page A18 OCTOBER 2021 FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS Se c t i on A By Mark Bowser Yankee doodle came to town riding on a pony, stuck a feather in his hat, and called it macaroni. We all know the words but do we know the heri- tage? How a song that was designed to ridicule be- came a victory cry of triumph. The famous tune “Yankee Doodle” was written by Dr. Richard Schuckburgh. He was a British surgeon during the time of the French and Indian war. Dr. Shuckburgh, as well as many British, loved to make fun of the American cousins. During the French and Indian War, the rustic Americans fought on the side of the British. The Americans would march along- side the sharp dressed, well trained British Redcoats. The good doctor took this contrast and made it a joke. British soldiers had great funmaking up their own ver- sus for this little song. But things changed on the way to Lexington. On April 19, 1775, the British troops were singing Yankee Doodle as they were marching from Boston towards Lexington and Concord. All of a sudden, the now tone deaf British found themselves in a battle against the rebels. The colo- nials hid behind trees and under rocks and pum- meled the Redcoats as they marched by. The Ameri- can War for Independence had begun. As the Redcoats retreated hastily from the battle- field, they could hear that old familiar tune again… but, this time it was sung by the Americans. And, on The Foundations of Success for Funeral Directors that day, the Americans captured the song as their own and it became a patriotic classic to this day. The Americans began to refer to the song as the Lexing- ton March. During the war, the Americans found great joy in playing this song as the British surrendered at key battles such as Saratoga and the war ending York- town. At the surrender at Saratoga, Tom Anbury, a British Army officer said, “It was not a little morti- fying to hear them play this tune, when their army marched down to our surrender.” Not bad for a bunch of rebels. Thanks for reading. Make It A Great Day! Yankee Doodle Came to Town Mark Bowser is the Vice President at the Bright Corpora - tion which is one of the leading publishers of quality funeral stationary products in the world today. Mark’s grandfather bought the business in 1945 and the Bowser family is in its fourth generation of running this business. Bright Corp can be reached at www.BrightCorporation.com Mark Bowser is the author of several books including “The 3 Pillars of Success for Funeral Directors” and “Sales Success” with Zig Ziglar. He is a Professional Speaker and the host of the popular podcast “Let Me Tell You A Story with Mark Bowser” which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and other major platforms. He can be reached at mark@BrightCorporation.com F U N E R A L H O M E & C E M E T E R Y N E W S w w w . N o m i s P u b l i c a t i o n s . c o m Monthly Columns online at www. vischerfuneralsupplies.com Funeral Directors Research,Inc. AMRA INSTRUMENT, LLC 623 N. Tower (P.O. Box 359) Centralia, WA 98531 “the shorter the supply line the better off you are” WEB DIRECT GIFT & PRICING TM ® www.amrainstruments.com www.preproomdirect.com By E lleanor S tarks B easley , cfsp Founder and Executive Director 100 B lack W omen of F uneral S ervice , I nc . Funeral Service is a privileged calling to serve the grieving and the bereaved. For Funeral Directors, the meaning of death is service. It is our responsibility to take the mystery out of it and help those who are overwhelmed with emotions. Those in the new generation of Living Legends have lifted the spirits of millions of families through their education, training, service, professionalism and compassion. Their leadership and success have broken down barriers and made them trailblazers, mentors and role models to many funeral colleagues. As we share family heritage and achievements, we recognize that every journey is different. Most importantly, their journeys are not finished yet! Please use them as mentors, ask questions, visit with them, and share their stories with others. Congratulations to the 2021 100BWFS Living Legends of Funeral Service. The 100 Black Women of Funeral Service want to make their profession the go-to career for those who know the importance of compassion, commitment and excellence in service. Email us at 100BWFS@gmail.com. Celebrating a New Generation of L iving L egends of F uneral S ervice and their Contributions to the Industry 100 Black Women of Funeral Service 2021 S cholarships net), reaching over 2 billion people around the world. The media helped connect over 30 new families associ- ated with the history of FTLF 739. Some of these new families shared their history and included such stories as: • A woman who was married just two weeks before the flight left and awaited her newlywed husband for a honeymoon she never had. • One of Bob hope’s USO tour Pilots and the inspira- tion for his granddaughter to become a pilot • Being credited as the life affirming driving force for 1 Fortune 500 CEO. • And creating a family healing moment as a family, scattered across the United States, tuned into the so- cial media ceremony via conference call, so they could all watch and discuss their families’ legacy together. PhillipWaite, Chief, Strategic Engagement, The United States of America VietnamWar Commemoration stated at the unveiling of the FTLF 739 monument “This monu- ment is a first-step, there are many to come.” The introduc- tion of this new Senate bill, 2571 gives hope to the fami- lies that their loved ones contributions and sacrifice will be recognized federally ahead of the 60th anniversary of this memorable mission commissioned by John F. Kennedy. Flying Tiger Continued from Page A16 P recious H ardy 2021 BWFS Scholarship Awardee W orsham C ollege of M ortuary S cience Wheeling, IL Precious Hardy, a beloved wife and mother of three, enrolled in the program after bring laid off from work due to Covid-19. It took her two years to start school. She states, “It was heartbreaking and financially heavy to sudden- ly lose my job. Fortunately, I was accepted with a group of my peers who could not be more supportive and positive. I’m in the right place at the right time and my classmates at Worsham College that I truly care about, make a great family and community unit.” Hardy looks forward to completing her career in mor- tuary science because she understands there are so many opportunities to explore within the field. “I hope that I encourage others as I give my insight into who I am, and what I have set out to become,” says Hardy. Precious Hardy Spring scholarship awardee, Mo- nique Holmes always knew her mother wanted to be a mortician but was not willing to go to school. She learned later in life that her fa- ther also wanted to be a mortician but life did not allow him to fulfill his professional dream. This moti- vated her to pursue not only their dreams but to have a successful ca- reer in funeral service. Being in the funeral business has al- ways been her passion and wants to set an example for her children to follow their dreams and life goal. Monique stated, “No matter how old you are, one should always follow your heart’s desire, and for me, it is and will always be the mortuary profession.” Monique Holmes M onique H olmes 2021 BWFS Scholarship Awardee W orsham C ollege of M ortuary S cience Wheeling, IL Andrea M. Miner, a non-tradi- tional student, is dedicated to be- come a part of the growing number of females in the funeral profession. Her passion began from time spent with her grandfather, who worked for local mortuaries when she was younger. Although she ultimate- ly pursued a degree in early child- hood education, Miner quick- ly came to the realization that it wasn’t what she wanted to do. Thus, enrolling in the mortu- ary science program at the Carl Sandburg College in hopes of becoming a licensed funeral director in the state of Illinois. For additional information on the 100BWFS Program Scholarship, email Hundredbwfs@aol.com. Andrea M. Miner A ndrea M. M iner 2021 BWFS Scholarship Awardee C arl S andburg C ollege of F uneral S ervice Galesburg, IL The 100 BWFS honored two students from the Worsh- am College of Mortuary Science and one student from the Carl Sandburg College of Funeral Service with scholarships. Wreaths Across America is the non-profit organiza- tion best known for plac- ing wreaths on veteran’s headstones at Arlington National Cemetery. How- ever, in 2020, the organiza- tion placed more than 1.7 million sponsored veterans’ wreaths at 2,557 participat- ing locations nationwide. You can find local partic- ipating cemeteries or spon- sor a veteran’s wreath for $15 at www.wreathacros- samerica.org. Each spon- sorship goes toward a live, balsam wreath that will be placed on the headstone of an American hero as we en- deavor to honor all veterans laid to rest at noon on Sat- urday, December 18, 2021, as part of National Wreaths across America Day. @Nomis.Publications Like us on