Timothy J. Schramm CFSP, CCO, CCSP, CMFP

Tim has over 36 years of funeral service experience at Howe-Peterson Funeral Home & Cremation Services. Howe-Peterson has three suburban locations in the metro Detroit, Michigan area and Quality Funeral Choices in Toledo, Ohio. Tim began his career at Howe-Peterson as a funeral service associate, went on as a resident trainee, licensed funeral director, location manager, and was named Vice President Director of Operations in 2005. In 2011, Tim was named Chief Operating Officer and in 2015 began an ownership transition and became Owner and CEO of Howe-Peterson Funeral Homes LLC.

Tim is Past-President of the Michigan Funeral Directors Association as the first non-owner ever elected in its 136-year history. He is also Past-President of the MFDA Services Corporation, Past-President of the Michigan Mortuary Science Foundation and still serves as a Trustee. Tim is currently a Trustee with the Funeral Service Foundation and chairs the Grants Committee. The Wayne State University Alumni Association Board and chairs the Philanthropy Committee. Past-Chair and current member of the Wayne State University Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Board of Visitors and the Wayne State University Mortuary Science Advisory Board. Tim serves on the NFDA Advocacy Committee and on the NFDA Spokesperson Team.

Tim serves as Commander of MI-MORT, the Michigan Mortuary Operations Response Team, a member of TEAM VIC of the National Disaster Medical System and DMORT the Disaster Mortuary Operations Response Team. Tim led MI-MORT’s COVID-19 Response in 2020 and deployed on the Maui Wildfire Response in 2023.

Tim and his wife Cheryl, of nearly 35 years, have a son Joshua (Tabbitha) who is a Master of Social Work in community mental health and daughter Sophie, who works as cybersecurity manger and consultant. Tim officiated 20 years for the Michigan High School Athletic Association and 22 years as a NCCA football official and baseball umpire.

Camelia L. Clarke

Camelia is a longtime Wisconsin native who has worked as a death care expert in the funeral profession for nearly thirty years. She is the president of Paradise Memorial Funerary Corp.

In 2022, Camelia was elected to the board of directors of Federated Mutual Insurance Companies, a Fortune 800 company in Owatonna, Minnesota. She serves on the executive, investment, and compensation committees.

In 2022, she was awarded the American Funeral Director of the Year distinction. She is a spokesperson for the National Funeral Directors Association and a recognized national and international expert frequently sought by media outlets for insightful opinions on the death care profession. She is also a former NFDA Meet the Mentors alum. Her firm was awarded the Pursuit of Excellence in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024.

She is a past president of the Wisconsin Funeral Directors Association, where she currently chairs the educational committee and serves on the legislative committee. She is also a past president of the Milwaukee Waukesha Funeral Directors Association and served on the Milwaukee Area Technical College Advisory Board for Funeral Service.

Camelia has extensive experience on non-profit boards, including ten years on the Outreach Community Health Center board, a federally qualified healthcare center.

She is a founding member of the Wisconsin Chapter of Entrepreneurial Organization and an active member of Sarah's Joy Chapter #8 of Unity Grand Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Epsilon Kappa Omega Chapter, and Cream City (W.I.) Chapter Links, Incorporated. She has also been a longtime member of the Holy Redeemer Institutional Church of God in Christ in Milwaukee, WI, where she serves as a youth leader of the Puritan Young Women of Excellence.

Camelia's educational background includes an Applied Science Diploma from Worsham College of Mortuary Science; a B.S. in Business Administration from Cardinal Stritch University; an Executive MBA from Marquette University; and a Doctor of Business Administration program (DBA) from the University of Wisconsin, Whitewater. She has published research in top-tier academic journals.

She is Marcel's proud wife and mother to Raja'ee Jazzmin, Mariah, and Mia.

Lori Sheeler

Lori is licensed funeral director and is the general manager for St. Pierre Family Funeral Service and Crematory in Indianapolis, IN. She grew up in LaPorte, IN and earned a B.S. in Biology at Purdue University. Prior to mortuary school, she worked for a few years in a pathology laboratory. She graduated in 2005 from Worsham College of Mortuary Science and has worked in nearly every position in funeral business. She served her internship in Charleston, SC and spent the first 11 years of her career serving families in The Lowcountry. She has mentored several mortuary students, interns and young funeral directors over her career. She understands the importance of having a strong mentor in funeral service and has spent countless hours helping others advance in their careers in the funeral profession. Lori earned her Certified Funeral Service Practitioner certification with The Academy of Professional Funeral Service Practice in 2016. She is a member of the National Funeral Directors Association Leadership and Development Committee, the former Vice-Chairman of the Indiana Funeral Education Foundation Board of Directors, the current District 7 Director for The Indiana Funeral Directors Board of Directors and a member of the Ivy Tech Mortuary Science Advisory Board. She has also volunteered with The Office of Civilian Volunteers Medical Reserve Corps as a Regional and National Deployment Cadre Member and Mortuary Specialist. Lori and her husband, Adam, have been married for 29 years and they have two daughters, two granddaughters, a grandson and two very spoiled dogs.