Podcast

About the Episode:  Have you ever heard something go bump in the night while working at the funeral home?  Did you ever have an eerie experience you just couldn’t explain?  Do you sometimes wonder if you “not alone”?  Regardless of how you may feel about the paranormal, everyone loves a good ghost story.  In this episode, host, Gabe Schauf sits down with Duane Hills, Todd Harra, Ben Schmidt, and Jason Engler to hear a couple of spooky mortuary tales.

About Duane:  Duane is from rural Pennsylvania but moved into New York State before attending Simmons School of Mortuary Science in Syracuse, New York. He graduated in 1978 and owned and managed many funeral firms across the country.  In 2022 Duane self-published a book on the history of Joseph Gawler’s Sons entitled, “One Block West of the White House.”  Duane retired on May 31, 2024 as the president of Joseph Gawler’s Sons in Washington, DC. Upon his retirement from SCI he was given the title of President Emeritus. 

About Todd:  Todd is a funeral director and embalmer and owner and president of McCrery and Harra Funeral Home.  He has written several books on the funeral profession, the most recent being Last Rites: The Evolution of the American Funeral. He is a former associate editor for Southern Calls Magazine, "The Journal of the Funeral Profession."

About Ben:  Ben Schmidt, MBIT, is a licensed funeral director and embalmer in two states and has been a funeral service educator for nine years at two mortuary colleges. He is currently teaching at Northeast Texas Community College. In addition to his teaching role, he serves as the Community Engagement Coordinator at Frigid Fluid. He is also a textbook author, the host of two podcasts, and a judge for the NFDA’s Funeral Face-Off Trivia. Ben has presented both locally and internationally, including at The Cremation Association of North America's first embalming CE event and the Belgian Institute of Thanatopraxie’s 50th Anniversary. 

About Jason:  Jason Ryan Engler is a funeral director, cremation specialist, and Insight Institute certified celebrant, and is known by many as the Cremation Historian. He is considered a thought leader in cremation products and services, volunteers as the historian for the Cremation Association of North America and is the cremation historian for the National Museum of Funeral History. He is an author, having written for both trade journals and non-funeral-related magazines. He lives in Kansas City with his miniature dachshund, Otto, and he enjoys exploring the mystical mysteries of the Universe.

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 Welton Hong, founder of Ring Ring Marketing, about what the future of the profession looks like in terms of overall call volume, and what funeral homes can do to prepare.

Welton is a leading expert in helping funeral homes convert leads from online directly to the phone line. He’s the author of the book Making Your Phone Ring with Internet Marketing for Funeral Homes and a regular contributor to NFDA’s The Director magazine and several other publications.

Welton has a graduate degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Prior to starting Ring Ring Marketing, he was a senior technologist at R&D facilities for Intel, Sun Microsystems, and Oracle. He regularly speaks at conferences and other events for people in the death care industry.

Click here to learn more about Ring Ring Marketing.

This Episode is Sponsored By:  and 

About the Episode:  The International Convention and Expo is taking place in New Orleans October 20^th to the 23^rd.  To get ready for the event we have 3 convention preview episodes for you to check out.

In this final episode before convention, host, Gabe Schauf, is joined by the 2024 International Convention and Expo keynote speakers, Amy Herman and Jason Arday.  Amy and Jason will share a little about themselves and their experiences and give an idea of what to expect from their keynote addresses.  This episode is sponsored by NGL and Carriage.

Learn more about the 2024 International Convention and Expo
Learn more about our Keynote Speakers

About Amy Herman:  Amy Herman, a lawyer and art historian, uses works of art to sharpen observation, analysis, and communication skills. By showing people how to look closely at painting, sculpture, and photography, she helps them hone their visual intelligence to recognize the most pertinent and useful information as well as recognize biases that impede decision making.

She developed her Art of Perception seminar in 2000 to improve medical students’ observation and communication skills with their patients when she was the Head of Education at The Frick Collection in New York City. She subsequently adapted the program for a wide range of professionals and leads sessions internationally for the New York City Police Department, the FBI, the French National Police, the Department of Defense, Interpol, the State Department, Fortune 500 companies, first responders, retailers, and the military. In her highly participatory presentation, she demonstrates the necessity for astute visual literacy and how the analysis of works of art affords participants an innovative way to refresh their sense of critical inquiry and skills necessary for sharper performance and effective leadership.

The program has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The CBS Evening News, and Smithsonian Magazine, among others. Her TED talk, A Lesson on Looking, went live in December 2018. Ms. Herman holds an A.B., a J.D., and an M.A. in art history. Her book, Visual Intelligence: Sharpen Your Perception, Change Your Life, was published in May 2016 and was on both the New York Times and Washington Post best sellers’ lists. Her second book, Fixed: How to Perfect the Fine Art of Problem- Solving was published in December 2021. Her third book, smART: Use Your Eyes to Boost Your Brain, was published in October 2022.

About Jason Arday:  Professor Jason Arday is a social commentator, presenter and public speaker. He is currently the 2002 Professorial Chair of Education (Sociology of Education) at the University of Cambridge, making him the youngest-ever Black academic to hold a Professorship at Cambridge and one of the youngest academics ever appointed to a Professorial Chair in Oxbridge’s history. At three years old, Jason was diagnosed with global development delay and autism spectrum disorder. He did not speak until he was eleven years old, and could not read or write until he was eighteen.

His Professorial appointment in July 2021, at the University of Glasgow, made him one of the youngest Professors in the UK. He holds an Honorary Professorship at Durham University and Visiting Professorships at The Ohio State University, University of Glasgow and Nelson Mandela University. Jason is also a Trustee of the Runnymede Trust, the UK’s leading race equality thinktank, and the British Sociological Association (BSA). He sits on the Centre for Labour and Social Studies (CLASS) national advisory panel and the NHS Race and Health Observatory Academic Reference Group. Jason is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) and sits on the ITV Cultural Advisory Council.

Outside of academia, Jason has been a prolific fundraiser having raised over £5 million pounds for 80 national charities over an 18-year period most notably Shooting Stars Children’s Hospice and Shelter. He has won numerous prodigious national and community fundraising awards for fundraising and community engagement achievements. His fundraising achievements include running: 30 marathons in 35 days, 300 miles in 3 days and 600 miles in 6 days. He has also undertaken and completed relief work in South America and West Africa with WaterAid installing water points, which provide drinkable and clean water. The highlight of these fundraising achievements culminated in selection to be an Olympic Torch Bearer for the London 2012 Olympics. He has also been shortlisted three times for the Mirror’s Pride of Britain Fundraiser of the Year Award. Additionally, Jason has set up homeless drives across London to develop mobile soup kitchens and cleaning facilities for individuals experiencing homelessness.

In April 2023, Jason was nominated for the Powerlist, a list comprising of the most influential 100 Black Britons and the Genius Within, and was the recipient of the Neurodiversity Achiever of the Year in June 2023. He is the recipient of five Honorary Doctorates for outstanding contribution to global higher education, social justice and charity. He was also named Most Inspirational Person of the Year at the 2023 MBCC Awards and made an Honorary Fellow of the British Science Association for outstanding contribution to equality and diversity. He was listed 4th Most Influential Person with a disability on The Shaw Trust Disability Power 100. He has also had the honor of being the Guest Editor for the BBC’s Today Program.

About the Episode:  To get ready for the NFDA’s International Convention and Expo in New Orleans, host, Gabe Schauf is sitting down with Innovators, Workshop Presenters and Keynote Speaker in our 3-episode convention preview.  In this second episode we will hear from 3 of our workshop presenters, Cate Collins, Cort Bluford, and Mandy Stafford.

 - Cate Collins’ presentation, “Ignite the Powerhouse in You”, will take place on Monday and Wednesday from 8am to 9am.
 - Cort Bluford’s presentation, “Embracing the Digital Frontier”, will take place on Sunday from 1:15pm to 2:15pm
 - Mandy Stafford’s presentation, “Nurture our Nature”, will take place on Monday from 8am to 9am.

Don't miss this event!  Learn more and register for the convention – Click Here

About Cate:  Cate admits to letting her underwear get too tight so much so that she suffered a severe burn out some years ago. She has made it her life’s mission to support like-minded leaders, like you, to prevent burnout or once knee deep in it, how to navigate it.

Cate is president of Powerful Journey Consulting Inc. for over 25 years.  She had the privilege of working with thousands of leaders and their teams across the globe to help them be more resilient, more joyful and more successful.  Cate has authored 2 successful grief MP3’s, presented to funeral services internationally for over 20 years, has an extensive mental health background, is a national board member of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers and is the author of her #1 leadership book on Amazon, The Powerhouse in you: How to Lead with greater resilience, courage and confidence. 

Cate will be offering a special convention book price along with bundle offers for you to purchase to recognize your team after her 2 sessions, “Ignite the Powerhouse in you” and at the trade show booth #1541.Come and visit Cate from Canada to see how she can support your staffing needs.

About Cort:  From the basketball court to the tech world, Cort’s journey has been anything but conventional. As a former professional basketball player and self-taught coder, he transitioned from writing Swift code during night shifts at the Ritz Carlton to becoming a SwiftUI expert with dozens of published iOS apps.

Recognizing the potential of SwiftUI early on, Cort embraced this technology, leading to a successful career shift. Now, as the Head of Product for a mobile app company, he not only developed innovative personal apps but also consulted on over three dozen external projects.

Cort’s focus has since evolved to user experience in digital spaces. Using psychology to drive revenue rather than traditional marketing methods, he has consistently delivered the most profitable year-over-year results since 2020. This approach has transformed businesses across various industries, including the lottery sector and family funeral services, demonstrating how a blend of creative problem-solving and a deep understanding of human behavior can turn ideas into impactful, profitable digital experiences.

About Mandy:  Mandy Stafford has been a licensed funeral director for just shy of 15 years in both Minnesota and Wisconsin. “Interra Natural Burial” was a dream that came to life while she was working at Mueller Memorial Funeral Home. From coming up with the name, to learning about natural caskets and urns, and partnering with Return Home for terramation, she acquired extensive knowledge in the field. Being a funeral director is her passion, and natural funerals have only heightened her enthusiasm.

When Mandy and her husband decided to purchase the farm she grew up on in southern Minnesota, it meant finding a new job. Mandy remains on call one weekend a month for Mueller Memorial and helps out at her local funeral home. Most recently, she became a preneed coordinator for Return Home. Despite a seemingly chaotic schedule, she still enjoys some free time, which she commonly spends outside fishing, hunting, camping, and traveling with family and friends.

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. 

Kevin’s book Two Floors Above Grief has reached Amazon best seller status in categories such as Teens/Young Adults, Parenting, Family Relationships, Death/Grief, and Biographies/Memoirs.

Through his social media presence at thegriefnavigator, Kevin provides invaluable resources to those navigating their grief journeys. Kevin has been a guest on numerous radio broadcasts, podcasts, and videos discussing his experiences with writing, publishing, grief, education, and his unique family time growing up in an apartment above a funeral home in the 1950s through 1970s.

Kevin has performed in over 30 theater productions since the 1970s. His educational career spanned from 1973 to 2020, during which he served as an elementary teacher, principal, professor, and curriculum coordinator in California, Illinois, and Florida.

Kevin resides in Ft. Lauderdale with his husband, Leon. Their family includes five sons and seven granddaughters. For more insights into his book, ongoing stories, and interests, visit www.kevinoconnorauthor.com.

Sponsored by: 

About the Episode: The International Convention and Expo is taking place in New Orleans October 20^th to the 23^rd.  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.

To learn more about Nemu – Click Here

To learn more about Clear View Caskets – Click Here

To learn more about 1Director – Click Here

To learn more and register for the convention – Click Here

About Sarah Powers:  Sarah Powers is the founder of Nemu, an innovative application to help families manage and divide heirlooms. She is passionate about helping families think through the difficult decision of who-gets-what-and-why after first hand experience with the tedious task. Prior to Nemu, Sarah received her MBA from The Wharton School and led operations for healthcare companies of varying sizes. Outside of work, Sarah loves to spend time with her partner and young children as well as exploring new places.

About Rangel and Andrea Fernandez:  Clear View Caskets was co-founded by Rangel and Andrea Fernandez with the desire to offer a revolutionary way to view a loved one. Rangel and Andrea are the proud owners of the patent rights to the concept of the transparent casket as well as all design variations in America and other countries abroad. They created a place, where you can truly see your loved one for the last time. and lay them to rest in a casket that is like no other.  These are more than caskets.  They are pieces of art.

About Rianne Lund:  Rianne Lund is an entrepreneur and marketing expert on a mission to revolutionize the world of funeral service. Before diving into the funeral industry, Rianne was the Vice President of Digital at a leading health and technology company. She lead innovative projects that seamlessly combined technology with compassion, paving the way for her future work in funeral software. Now, as CEO and co-founder of 1Director, Rianne is leading the charge in empowering funeral directors with the tools they need to navigate the digital age with confidence and grace.

Sponsored by: 

About the Episode:  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".

About Tim:  Tim Purves is the 5th generation to be the Chairman, and owner of William Purves Funeral Directors. This Edinburgh based company was established in 1888 by a cabinetmaker turned undertaker from the Scottish Borders. It is today the largest, independent funeral business in Scotland, with a team of more than 100 staff across 25 branches in Scotland and northeast England and looking after around 3500 funerals each year. The company continues to uphold core values of compassion, dedication, integrity, and respect and is trusted to regularly conduct many high-profile funerals, including most recently the funeral for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth. Tim is married to Ali, and they have three children, Freya, Jacob & Elodie. A committed Christian, Tim’s faith is core to all he seeks to be a husband, father, and funeral director.

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 joined by Mike McKenna to learn more 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. His thorough knowledge of the precious metals refining industry provides invaluable guidance. He ensures clients' interests are protected and their crematory operations are optimized. Mike 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.

Mike continues to make significant contributions to the funeral and cremation profession, helping clients navigate the complexities of recycling cremation implants with confidence and ease.

CLICK HERE - To learn more about Core Scientific

Sponsored by: 

 About the Episode:  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.  

To View the Consumer Video, CLICK HERE.

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.

About Lori:  Lori Sheeler is an Indiana licensed funeral director and the general manager of St. Pierre Family Funeral Service. They have 11 funeral homes in Indianapolis, Greenwood, Zionsville, Avon, Roachdale, Ladoga, Waveland and Seymour, Indiana. She is a graduate of Worsham College of Mortuary Science and has since performed nearly every position in the funeral business from embalming to preneed marketing to management. She 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 Association 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. 

About Anna:  Anna Zvirman-Nesbit is a licensed funeral director and co-owner of Soxman Funeral Homes in Pittsburgh, PA. She is a 2007 graduate from the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science.  Anna coordinates the funeral home’s Aftercare and Advanced Funeral Planning programs.  She is a member of the National, Pennsylvania and Allegheny County Funeral Director Associations (NFDA, PFDA, ACFDA), ICCFA, as well as serving on the Board of Directors for the Plum Chamber of Commerce. Her designation as CPC from the NFDA has marked her as achieving the standard of excellence in funeral service for individuals who help families plan funerals, memorial services and other life tribute events in advance.

About Naomi:  Naomi Bradbury-Marchand is a licensed funeral director and the co-owner of Bradbury Memorial Center in Lake Havasu City, AZ.  She was born and raised in Minnesota, studied criminal justice at Minnesota State University Moorhead, and later studied mortuary science. While raising their family, her husband Charles was transferred to different states due to his career, moving the family across the country and eventually settling in Lake Havasu City in 2017.  While working for the Nebraska Health and Human Services of Omaha, Naomi was introduced to the death care industry. Since 1999, she has worked in various funeral industry roles across Nebraska, Minnesota, North Dakota, Texas, and Arizona. Some of her proudest achievements include traveling to Washington, D.C. with veterans for the dedication of the World War II Memorial and establishing an Angel of Hope Garden in Texas for those who have lost child family members.

Sponsored by: 

About the Episode:  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.

About Brie:  Brie Smith is the longest-standing Senior Executive at Return Home, initially serving as Director of Services and COO, and now leading community outreach efforts. She has been a licensed funeral director and embalmer in Washington State since 2014, after graduating with honors from Mesa Community College’s mortuary science program.

Brie began her career in the funeral industry in 2011, quickly developing a passion for helping those in grief. Known for her compassionate guidance and deep commitment to sustainable death care, Brie actively promotes the science behind natural body decomposition. Outside of work, Brie enjoys gardening, whale watching, and exploring the Pacific Northwest with her husband Zach and their dog, Pepper May.  

About David:  David Lee Hernandez Jr. embarked on his professional journey soon after graduating from Calvary Christian Academy in Philadelphia. A native of Northeast Philadelphia, he relocated to Morganville, New Jersey, and began his career in funeral service at Waitt Funeral Home.

In 2009, he ventured into ownership, acquiring his first funeral home. Since then, his firm has expanded into New Jersey’s largest network of family-owned funeral homes, operating under the banner of Jersey Memorial Group. His holdings include funeral homes in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

David is a member of the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA), and his firm has received many NFDA Pursuit of Excellence Awards, been inducted into the Hall of Excellence, and has been nationally recognized with the Best of the Best Award from NFDA as the country's top funeral home operator three times.

Beyond his professional commitments, David and his family actively engage in ministry at Calvary Chapel Old Bridge. He relishes spending quality time with his wife and children, prioritizing an active lifestyle, and enthusiastically supporting his children in their athletic pursuits.

About Erica:  Erica Hill‘s experiences with loss led her to transform her creative career in video production, retail and philanthropy to create a contemporary funeral home brand with the main location in Brooklyn, NY.  At Sparrow A Contemporary Funeral Home, people’s unique lives are uniquely celebrated with the people who love them most.  Now a licensed funeral director, Erica helps people tell their final story with heart at both Sparrow and The Alpha Society by Sparrow in Los Angeles.