RT @MirnaBard: I’m not a driven businessman, but a driven artist. I never think about money. Beautiful things make money. Lord Acton

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Coffee Fun Quote for the Day: “Without my morning coffee, I’m just like a dried up piece of roast goat” Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

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RT @copyblogger: Procrastinators: Leaders of tomorrow. I’ll post that later.

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RT @copyblogger: “The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping from old ones.” ~John Maynard Keynes

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RT @celestinechua: The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.

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Currently have special during month of August. 1 man Junkin Gurney 15% off so it’s only $1450.31 http://bit.ly/MvvcW

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Here’s an interesting innovation in hearse manufacturing, a Prius Hearse!

With all the green incentives and fuel costs going up in the future, does it make since to have a battery operated hearse? Should be the ultimate in quiet rides, which I think is a plus for the experience of loved ones. What do you think?

This article is saying that it’s unlikely to get these in the U.S., but I’m sure there’s someone that will be willing to make them if there’s a profit to be made.

Thanks to Lequios, you can do more for the environment once you’re dead than just become fertilizer for pushing up daisies. The Japanese hearse manufacturer is designing a hearse based on the 2010 Toyota Prius, meaning your last trip in a car can be an environmentally-responsible one. And you thought saving the planet for future generations was best left to the living?

Lequios hasn’t confirmed production of the extended Prius, but it is looking in to the matter based on actual consumer interest. The Prius hearse would be significantly longer than the mid-sized hybrid, measuring an additional 77.2-inches for a total of 256-inches. That’s 21.34 feet!

Fuel-economy would, understandably, suffer with an expected average fuel economy rating of 44mpg – which isn’t bad when you consider the new Prius gets a combined rating of 50 mpg.

If Lequios does go ahead with the Prius Hearse is is expected to cost 7,875,000 Yen, or roughly $83,000 – although the chances of one making its way to the U.S. is unlikely.

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I’m sure glad none of my drivers did this, but you never know, do you? Did quite a few removals from the Santa Clara County Coroner. I also had a contract with a funeral home that used that crematory, it was housed at an old cemetery. My my my.

Pot plants found with dead body cargo in traffic stop

Sophia Kazmi
Valley Times
Posted: 06/25/2009 01:01:49 PM PDT
DUBLIN — A traffic stop became a little bizarre Wednesday night when police found more than 100 marijuana plants and a dead man’s body inside a van they pulled over.
The body was legal, said Dublin police Lt. Kurt Von Savoye. The plants, however, were not.
The incident began about 9:45 p.m. when Dublin police pulled over a full-size Ford Econoline van near Shannon Avenue and San Ramon Road. While speaking to the two people inside, the officers smelled the distinct aroma of marijuana, Von Savoye said.
They detained the two people inside — 26-year-old Cannon McCarter of Discovery Bay and Nicole Schooss, 22, of Livermore — and searched the van. Inside they found 117 pot plants and a large box. Inside the box was a dead man’s body,” said Von Savoye.
The pair said they were transporting the body from the Santa Clara County Coroner’s Office to a Livermore mortuary for cremation.
“It’s definitely unique,” Von Savoye said.
Based on the appearance of the body, which did not seem to be a victim of violence, it appeared they were telling the truth, Von Savoye said. Representatives of the coroner’s office and the mortuary were called out and verified the pair’s story.
McCarter and Schooss were arrested on suspicion of drug violations, Von Savoye said.
Transporting the body was legal, he said. Schoos and Cannon were working for a transport company hired to move the body.
“There was no violation ofbthe law” where the body was concerned, Von Savoye said.

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This article is just another reminder that there are more opportunities in the body removal business than just time of death transportation.

The creative mortuary transport business owner will find ways to encourage families and funeral business owners to use their services for transporting green burials. Since you can ethically charge the same as the original removal or more, you can actually multiply your income on each death, which makes it not so imperative to create more volume.

Quality over quantity is the name of this game. Make your business the preferred transportation because of your attention to detail and the professionalism of your staff.

From a transportation perspective, green burials can be much easier than traditional burials, since you don’t have the bulk and weight of a standard wood or metal casket.

Think about offering your services for green burials, and put the money you spend on equipment (like church trucks, etc.) to use in creative ways to make a more meaningful experience for the families. It’s a win/win for the funeral business if you invest in these things, and you are to go-to person for these kind of jobs.

Green to the end

Ecofriendly funerals are an option but slow to catch on

Lancaster New Era
Published: Jun 23, 2009
10:34 EST

By MARY BETH SCHWEIGERT, Staff Writer

Going green has gone underground — and all the way to the grave.

Funeral director Charles “Chad” F. Snyder III says the idea of a green burial attracts the most interest from environmentally conscious baby boomers. “This is obviously not for everyone,” he says. “It’s for a very small percentage of people.”
* In a green burial, which uses a biodegradable, metal-free casket and no vault, everything – including the deceased – eventually becomes one with the earth.
“Green” burials are designed to reduce waste and environmental impact, by foregoing metal caskets, embalming and vaults.
The idea is picking up steam in other areas, particularly the West Coast, but it’s slower to catch on in Lancaster County, where many families prefer more traditional farewells.
At Bachman Funeral Home Inc., Strasburg, funeral director John Bachman says people are curious about green burials, but he hasn’t accommodated any actual takers.
“People ask about it, but they don’t ask for it,” he says.
Traditionally caskets and surrounding vaults are designed to withstand the elements, leaving tons of metal and concrete behind in the ground.
And there is some concern about the potential impact of embalming chemicals.
But in a green burial, which uses a biodegradable, metal-free casket and no vault, everything — including the deceased — eventually becomes one with the earth.
Charles “Chad” F. Snyder III, general manager of Charles F. Snyder Funeral Home & Chapel Inc., Lititz, says the idea of a green burial attracts the most interest from environmentally conscious baby boomers.
“This is obviously not for everyone,” he says. “It’s for a very small percentage of people.”
For some families, there’s another appeal: Green burials can actually cost less than a traditional approach, which averages $7,323, according to the National Funeral Directors Association.
Though many Lancaster County funeral directors will work with families who want to go green, there are roadblocks to green burials here.
The lack of embalming means an open-casket viewing — many families’ custom — is not allowed. And nearly all local cemeteries require vaults, to make maintenance easier.
“If you went out and asked if people think (green burials) are a good idea, most people would probably say yes,” says Mark DeBord, president of Kearney A. Snyder Funeral Home Inc., 141 E. Orange St., Lancaster.
“Whether it’s something they would choose to do, I’m not sure.”

Back to the Past

Green burials mark a return to some old ideas, particularly the practices of certain religious or ethnic groups.
“Green burial, in many ways, is not new. It’s how most of the world has cared for its dead for thousands of years,” says Joe Sehee, executive director of the nonprofit Green Burial Council, which has a national network of funeral homes committed to offering green products and services.
While embalming and vaults are traditional for many local families, they are not legally required. (Embalming, however, is required for an open-casket viewing.)
Embalming, which disinfects and preserves the deceased’s body, became common in the United States only around the Civil War.
Vaults, typically made of concrete, surround a casket, keeping out water and insects. Their popularity grew in the late 19th century, primarily to discourage grave robbers.
Caskets promote convenience and a dignified presentation, but they are not legally required.

Why Go Green

Critics, like the 4-year-old, Santa Fe., N.M.-based Green Burial Council, say current burial practices are wasteful and damaging to the environment.
Each year, the GBC says, the United States buries tons of reinforced concrete, steel and hardwood board, all of which require energy to manufacture and transport.
Embalming fluid contains formaldehyde, labeled a “probable human carcinogen” by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Critics cite potential danger to funeral-industry workers. But funeral directors say they wear gowns, masks and gloves, and use sophisticated ventilation systems when working with embalming fluid.
Suggested links between formaldehyde exposure and cancer have not been proven, says Holli Senior, spokeswoman for the state Health Department.
The durability of traditional caskets and vaults makes it unlikely that formaldehyde from an embalmed body could seep into the ground, Snyder says.
Cremation — rates have doubled in the last five years — is “green” in that it conserves space.
But it consumes fossil fuels, particularly when older facilities are used. Whether any emissions could potentially harm people or the environment is widely debated.
The industry is working to develop greener cremation processes, Snyder funeral director Andrew D. Dieck says.
“As for true green cremation, it doesn’t exist in Pennsylvania yet.”

Eco-friendly Options

Unlike their traditional counterparts, green caskets use no metal and are designed to biodegrade without waste.
They may be made of renewable hardwoods, and are held together with wooden pegs and a nontoxic, biodegradable glue.
“What’s natural about it is there will be no waste at all,” Dieck says. “There’s nothing left behind to impact the earth negatively.”
Snyder, the only local funeral home in the GBC’s network of providers, also sells a line of caskets made from willow, seagrass or bamboo.
The caskets are comparable or even less-expensive than the average metal model, which costs $2,255, according to NAFD. Foregoing a vault and embalming would save an average of $1,678.
A new, nontoxic embalming fluid could be used with biodegradable caskets, without worry that it could negatively impact the environment, Snyder says.
Families who don’t want to go all out can choose smaller ways to go green.
Cremation urns can be biodegradable. Prayer cards and registers can be made from recycled paper.
And families can skip flowers or choose to transport the deceased’s body in a more fuel-efficient minivan.

A Tough Sell

Green burials can be a particularly tough sell for families of certain religious traditions, and those who are used to an open-casket viewing.
“This is too far outside the box for them,” Snyder says.
State law and Occupational Health and Safety Administration regulations prohibit open-casket viewing of an unembalmed body, he says. Refrigeration may be used instead, and the family can have a closed-casket visitation.
Any fears of unembalmed bodies transmitting disease are unfounded, Senior says. Pathogens, particularly viruses, do not survive for long after a person dies, she says.
Individual cemeteries decide whether or not to require vaults. Without a vault, graves may shift over time, displacing headstones and creating uneven surfaces.
Mellinger Mennonite Cemetery, 11 Greenfield Road, Lancaster, is one of the few local cemeteries (not including Jewish or Amish) that doesn’t require vaults.
“Fifty, maybe 60, percent of my burials do not use vaults,” caretaker Noah Zimmerman says.
A few families have mentioned environmental concerns, but he suspects that many forego vaults to save money.
Plots without vaults require a bit more effort to maintain, Zimmerman says. But he is committed to following families’ wishes, even if it means simply wrapping the deceased in a sheet for burial.
“The first heavy rain, their loved one will be more than likely wet,” Zimmerman says. “It’s fine with me if it’s fine with you.”

Going Green in Mount Joy

A handful of green cemeteries have opened nationwide, and one is proposed near Pittsburgh.
The park-like cemeteries typically have engraved rocks or plaques, instead of tombstones. Graves are unadorned with artificial flowers, flags or candles.
Steve Rice, who runs the Mount Joy Cemetery, hopes to open an adjacent green section by next spring.
Rice says his plan has drawn a lot of interest, including from people in other states.
“Eighty percent think it’s really neat,” he says. ” … Other people don’t like it.”
Rice envisions a meadow with tail grasses, wildflowers, memorial plantings and perhaps even a stream.
He plans to offer families simple pine-box caskets, as well as cardboard models that cost just $75.
The deceased can also simply be wrapped in a shroud, blanket or nothing at all. Simple pins will mark graves.
The main cemetery, which dates to the 1700s, is approaching capacity, Rice says.
“When the rest of it’s full, we’re going to have to go green.”

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Now here’s something you don’t see every day. Or do you? Two women are accused of faking everything from the identity, to the expenses to the disposition, and were trying to get a bunch of other people help them to do it! A notary and a funeral home owner already plead guilty, but these women are still saying they didn’t do it!

2 women accused of staging bogus funerals to collect insurance

The pair bought policies on fictitious people and, after the policies matured, arranged for phony death certificates and burials or cremations for the nonexistent corpses, a federal indictment says.
By Rich Connell
10:22 PM PDT, April 8, 2009

Federal agents arrested two women Wednesday — including one who worked at a mortuary — on charges of staging phony funerals to collect an estimated $1 million in life insurance and other payments.

The women bought insurance policies on fictitious people and, after the policies matured, arranged for bogus death certificates and burials or cremations for their nonexistent corpses, according to a federal grand jury indictment.
In one sham funeral for a “Jim Davis” at a Long Beach mortuary, authorities allege, the casket was loaded with various items to simulate the weight of a corpse. A grave plot was purchased in Compton and the casket buried, according to court records.

After the staged funeral and burial, the women, working with others, filed false paperwork with the county indicating that the remains had been cremated and scattered at sea, according to court records.

Besides collecting life insurance payments, advance payments secured by the policies were collected from financing companies to pay inflated funeral costs, authorities say. Fake billings totaling tens of thousands of dollars were created, the indictment says.

“The level of deception is shocking,” said Special Assistant U.S. Atty. Anthony Montero. “You’d like to think that funerals happening in funeral homes . . . are legitimate and real.”

The women, Faye Schilling, 60, a Hawthorne phlebotomist, and Jean Crump, 66, of Los Angeles, a mortuary worker, allegedly had accomplices, and more arrests could be made, officials said.

“I do think it’s a larger scheme,” Montero said.

Two other women, Lydia Eileen Pearce, 37, who owned Steward-Pearce Mortuary in Long Beach, and notary Barbara Lynn, 54, of Los Angeles previously pleaded guilty in connection with the alleged scam, Montero said.

Reached Wednesday evening, Schilling, who was freed on bail, denied the charges. “That’s a lie,” she said. “That’s not my line of work, that’s not something I do. . . . That’s not true.” She declined to comment further. Crump and her attorney could not be reached immediately.

Investigators are still trying to determine if the identities of actual people were stolen or if fake decedents were made up, Montero said. “Ultimately, I believe they are going to end up being purely fictitious,” he said.

The insurance polices were purchased in amounts ranging from $50,000 to $450,000, Montero said. The defendants collected on polices as large as $250,000, he said.

In one instance, Crump offered a doctor $50,000 to fabricate medical records to support the cause of death listed on the phony death certificate, the indictment says.

In another case, the defendants are accused of faking the cremation of a “Laura Urich” and collecting $5,000 in funeral expenses and $50,000 in insurance death benefits through two purported beneficiaries, according to court records.

The scheme continued from 2004 to early 2007, Montero said. Federal agents began investigating after people who were approached by the women to join the scam reported it to authorities, he said.

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