Podcast

The International Convention and Expo is taking place in New Orleans October 20th to the 23rd. To get ready for the event we have 3 convention preview episodes for you to check out. In those episodes, host, Gabe Schauf, is joined by the Innovation Award Finalists, some of the Workshop Presenters, and of course, the Keynote speakers. In this second episode we will hear from 3 of our workshop presenters, Cate Collins, Cort Bluford, and Mandy Stafford.

On "A Brush With Death: 5 Minutes On...," we spend 5 minutes providing listeners with quick insights into various funeral trends, products, events, organizations, and goings-on. In this episode, host, Gabe Schauf, talks with Kevin O’Connor, author of Two Floors Above Grief. Kevin shares his inspiration for the book he wrote about growing up in his family’s funeral home in Elgin, Illinois.

The International Convention and Expo is taking place in New Orleans October 20th to the 23rd. To get ready for the event we have 3 convention preview episodes for you to check out. In those episodes, host, Gabe Schauf, is joined by the Innovation Award Finalists, some of the Workshop Presenters, and of course, the Keynote speakers. In this first episode we will hear from the innovation award finalists. The NFDA Innovation Award is sponsored this year by ASD and gives companies and organizations the opportunity to showcase their new product and service ideas designed to enhance the funeral profession its function. The finalists this year are Nemu, Clear View Caskets, and 1Director.

In September of 2022, the world watched as Queen Elizabeth was given a final farewell. The world watched as every news station and social media outlet broadcast footage and provided updates on the events of her passing and services as they happened. Meanwhile, funeral director, Tim Purves, and his staff worked on location to provide services and care fit for a monarch. In this episode, host, Gabe Schauf, speaks with Tim about those services and how the funeral profession operates on his "side of the pond". Tim Purves is the 5th generation owner of William Purves Funeral Directors, the largest, independent funeral business in Scotland, with a team of more than 100 staff across 25 branches in Scotland and northeast England.

On "A Brush With Death: 5 Minutes On...," we spend 5 minutes providing listeners with quick insights into various funeral trends, products, events, organizations, and goings-on. In this episode, host, Gabe Schauf, talks with Mike McKenna about Core Scientific, an industry leader and the go-to choice for some of the largest corporations and funeral groups in North America in cremation metal recycling. Mike McKenna is a seasoned professional with extensive experience in the funeral and cremation profession. He is dedicated to educating funeral professionals on the latest industry trends and best practices in cremation metal retrieval. Mike ensures clients' interests are protected and their crematory operations are optimized. He also excels in handling total logistics, providing clients with regular updates on the shipping and receiving of materials to provide a seamless and efficient process.

In 2023, the NFDA sent film crews out to various cities to talk with consumers about their impressions of funeral directors. There were mixed reactions and a combination of positive and negative comments that gave an eye-opening perspective on the public’s views of the funeral profession. In this episode, host, Gabe Schauf sits down with funeral directors, Lori Sheeler, Anna Zvirman-Nesbit, and Naomi Bradbury-Marchand to discuss those impressions and what we can do to develop the public’s positive perception of funeral service.

In May of 2023, the NFDA hosted its latest Future’s Forum, a highly focused, forward-looking session held on an as-needed basis to tackle serious challenges impacting funeral service providers. The goal of Future’s Forum 2023 was to develop new growth and innovation strategies funeral providers could use to overcome current revenue challenges, increasing costs and staffing shortages. In the spirit of that theme, host, Gabe Schauf is sitting down with Brie Smith, Erica Hill, and David Hernandez Jr to learn how they are looking to the future and modifying and innovating at their funeral homes for the better.

On "A Brush With Death: 5 Minutes On...," we spend 5 minutes providing listeners with quick insights into various funeral trends, products, events, organizations, and goings-on. In this episode, host, Gabe Schauf, talks with Bill A Johnston, president of Post and Boost and author of the new book, "The Consumer's Journey to Purchasing Funeral Services." Bill is a Facebook expert who invented a proprietary, scalable software platform that creates, posts, and boosts custom advertising for Funeral Homes on Facebook, and is dedicated to inspiring funeral home owners and operators to discover advertising can work for funeral homes.

Summer is here and along with it comes a new crop of funeral service program graduates. In this episode, host, Gabe Schauf, sits down with 4 of them to hear about their experiences, challenges and goals moving forward. Sponsored by Core-Scientific

On "A Brush With Death: 5 Minutes On...," we spend 5 minutes providing listeners with quick insights into various funeral trends, products, events, organizations, and goings-on. In this episode, host, Gabe Schauf, is talking about Tukios with founder, Curtis Funk. Tukios is a software company providing simple solutions to funeral homes, including a tribute video software, website development and hosting, and follow-up services to keep them in touch with their community.