Guests Bob Prout and Julie Prout are National Leaders in Green Funerals and Sustainable Funeral Practices
For Immediate Release: April 14, 2021
Brookfield, Wis. – The National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA), through its Remembering A Life consumer education initiative, has released its April Remembering A Life podcast episode, Natural Burials: The Changing Landscape of Saying Goodbye. Guests Bob Prout and Julia Prout from Prout Funeral Home in Verona, New Jersey, share how green funerals can be a meaningful option for anyone wanting to say goodbye in a beautiful, natural setting while also reducing their environmental footprint. As leaders in the green funeral space, Bob Prout, as co-owner and senior director of the funeral home, and the staff have established Prout Funeral Home as the premier provider of green funerals in the Northern New Jersey area and a national leader in sustainable funeral practices.
“Not long ago, green funerals were a relatively foreign concept, but, increasingly, families are choosing this eco-friendly approach when laying a loved one to rest,” said Christine Pepper, CEO, National Funeral Directors Association. “Our April Remembering A Life podcast episode – released just in time for Earth Day – is a perfect listen for anyone who would like to learn more about natural burial options.”
According to a 2020 consumer study conducted by the National Funeral Directors Association, nearly 40% of people would be interested in exploring green funeral options because of potential environmental benefits.
There are many “shades” of green possible when planning a green funeral or natural burial. Based on a family’s preferences, a funeral director may be able to help with funeral home services, cemetery capabilities, and information about local rules and regulations. A green funeral incorporates environment-friendly options and may include any or all of the following: no embalming or embalming with formaldehyde-free products; the use of sustainable biodegradable clothing, shroud or casket; using recycled paper products; serving organic food (if food may be served in a funeral home in the state); locally-grown organic flowers; funeral guest carpooling; as well as a natural or green burial.
Remembering A Life podcast episodes are available at www.RememberingALife.com/Podcast.
Remembering A Life Book Club Book of the Month Also Goes “Green” for April
The Remembering A Life Book Club Book of the Month for April is Nature Heals: Reconciling Your Grief Through Engaging with the Natural World by Dr. Alan Wolfelt. Wolfelt’s book complements the spirit of green funerals and natural burial by inviting people to explore how the natural world can help them on their grief journey. The book is available in the Remembering A Life store (www.RememberingALife.com/store).
Perfect for book lovers of all ages, the Remembering A Life Book Club (www.RememberingALife/bookclub) features resources for readers who would like to learn more about remembering a life and the grief journey by reading classic and/or modern literature. Recommended reading, a book of the month, book reviews and discussion prompts help guide readers, whether they hold an in-person or virtual book club, or simply want to personally reflect on what they’ve read.
To learn more about green funerals and natural burials, visit https://rememberingalife.com/planning-a-service/service-options/green-funerals.
About the Podcast Episode Guests
Robert J. Prout, Co-Owner, Senior Director, Prout Funeral Home
Bob Prout was licensed as a funeral director in 1978 and is a third-generation, co-owner of Prout Funeral Home in Verona New Jersey. In 2004/2005 he was involved in the conversion of his business to solar electric, and in 2007 received the New Jersey Clean Energy Small Business Leader of the Year Award for his work in solar education. In October of 2007, he received the Conservation Award from the Friends of Camp Glen Gray, County of Bergen for efforts in replanting after a forest fire and conservation efforts at camp and was inducted into their Hall of Fame in October 2009. He is the first funeral director in the state of New Jersey, and one of the first in the nation to be certified by the Green Burial Council and the first Funeral Director in the nation to receive the Green Funeral Practices Certificate from NFDA.
Julia Prout, Licensed Funeral Director, Prout Funeral Home
Julia Prout is a fourth-generation licensed Funeral Director working with her family at the Prout Funeral Home, Inc. in Verona, New Jersey. Prior to her career in funeral service, Julia earned a B.A. from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., where she studied Geography with a concentration on sustainability and remote sensing. Julia became a licensed funeral director in 2018 and has since been featured in articles about the trend toward sustainable funeral practices. She has also presented webinars and lectures on green funerals/ natural burials.
About Remembering A Life
Remembering A Life (www.RememberingALife.com) provides educational tools to help families understand the value of a funeral, plan a meaningful service and begin the grief journey following the death of a loved one. Resources include the Remembering A Life website (www.RememberingALife.com), a podcast, book club, blog, conversation cards and thoughtful gifts for grieving family members and friends. Remembering A Life is a consumer education initiative of the National Funeral Directors Association. Follow Remembering A Life on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
About NFDA
NFDA is the world’s leading and largest funeral service association, serving more than 20,000 individual members who represent nearly 11,000 funeral homes in the United States and 49 countries around the world. NFDA is the trusted leader, beacon for ethics and the strongest advocate for the profession. NFDA is the association of choice because it offers funeral professionals comprehensive educational resources, tools to manage successful businesses, guidance to become pillars in their communities and the expertise to foster future generations of funeral professionals. NFDA is headquartered in Brookfield, Wis., and has an office in Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.nfda.org.
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Contact: Jessica Koth, 262-814-1536, jkoth@nfda.org