them through it .”
Funeral directors are quick to acknowledge that it takes a village to make a funeral service go smoothly . They mention coroners and sometimes emergency workers , the burial vault company , grave diggers , and cemetery workers as part of the team making sure every detail is completed promptly and professionally . Most funeral homes also have part time workers who help with visitations and other details .
“ They ’ re all unsung heroes too , because they had to continue working through Covid , and they often have to work seven days a week too . It takes all of us ,” Hibbard said .
“ Our part time people are some of our most valuable people ,” Phelps said . “ They ’ ve been elements in our community for a long time , and in a way , they are also the public face of who we are .”
While much of a funeral director ’ s job is done outside the spotlight , there are many times when they feel that their work is rewarding – especially when families express their appreciation .
“ It ’ s a ministry to be able to help them ,” Lange added . “ I get a lot of satisfaction out of helping people . Afterwards , people are very appreciative . Once the funeral is over , I ’ ll see somebody at a store , and they ’ ll give me a big hug and say , ‘ I never got to say thank you , but I wanted to tell you how much I appreciated what you did for us .’”
“ This is the most difficult thing a family is going to go through ,” Stephens said . “ If you can help that family , and if they can leave and say , ‘ I think I did everything that mom or dad would have wanted because they helped me through this ,’ that ’ s the reward .”
“ America is a death-denying society ,” Phelps said . “ People don ’ t want to hear about all that surrounds the process of dying . Their focus is on life and living , as it should be . But when they do have that need , after we ’ ve served a family , we hear continuously , ‘ Everything was great . Thank you . We just didn ’ t realize how much was involved .’ And that ’ s just it . The person who isn ’ t in here every day doesn ’ t realize how much detail and how much work goes in to coordinating all this .”
“ A lot of families say , ‘ We ’ ve never been through this ,’” Hibbard concluded . “ I tell them , ‘ That ’ s what we ’ re here for . We ’ re going to guide you through the entire process .’ I guess at the end of the day , we just try to make life ’ s most difficult moment a little bit easier .
Bruce Phelps , manager and co-owner of Pulaski Funeral Home .
Rogers Photography photos , submitted
Tyler Hibbard , funeral director and embalmer at Morris and Hislope Funeral Home .
Rogers Photography photos , submitted
12 Commonwealth Journal - Unsung Heroes - 2024