120th Annual Convention June 9-11, 2014 Waterfront Place Hotel

June 2014
Morgantown Bound!
120th Annual Convention
June 9-11, 2014
Waterfront Place Hotel
Morgantown, WV
Motorcycle Benefit Ride ~ CE ~ Food ~
Fun ~ Golf Tournament ~ Networking
WVU Coliseum Tour ~ Mountaineer Field
Tour and Much, Much More!
We hope to see you there!
Commitment,
Truth,
Excellence,
Mental
Toughness,
Habit,
Discipline, Faith, Results
and Passion are the
Leadership qualities I
have focused on in my
previous articles. There are many more Leadership
characteristics I would love to share, but the final
one I would like to leave with you is Passion.
“If you can’t get emotional about your work and
about what you believe in your heart, you’re in
the wrong business.”
–Vincent Lombardi
Passion is defined as strong affection or intense
enthusiasm. Right now, you could probably easily
name three things you like, or perhaps even love to
do. But what are you truly passionate about? Are
you truly passionate about what you do each and
every day?
ASK, “WHY?”
When I first decided on a
career in funeral service,
the question frequently
asked of me-- a first
generation director --was,
“why?” Even after a decade
in the business, I still get asked, “why did you chose
to become a funeral director?”
I urge you to first ask yourself, “why? Next, ask
your staff, “why?” Sure, it’s a lot easier to answer
“what?” or “how?” What we do isn’t all that
different and how we do it, though it may vary
based on geographic location and tradition, is
generally the same. We do it with ceremony and
ritual. Next, ask yourself why we do this. What is
our true motivation?
Do you feel the same emotion today that you did
when you first started in the industry or have you
lost your enthusiasm? Revitalize your passion for
funeral service by remembering the, “why?”
The passion that led you to this point will always
remain with in you. To lead in any industry you
must be passionate about why you perform day in
and day out.
I will leave you with a favorite quote from the
inspiration behind my platform of Leadership,
Coach Vincent Lombardi.
“Leaders are made, they are not born. They are
made by hard effort, which is the price all of us
must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile.
Leadership is not just one quality, but rather a
blend of many qualities; and while no one
individual possesses all of the needed talents that
go into leadership, each man can develop a
combination to make him a leader.”
–Vincent Lombardi
Examine yourselves. What leadership qualities do
you possess? Be a leader in your home, be a leader
in your business, be a leader in your community and
be a leader in your industry.
L
eadership
E
xemplifies
A D
ttitude
evelopment
Finally, please accept a heartfelt thank you for the
opportunity to serve the Association; it has truly
been my honor and pleasure to be a part of such an
incredible network. I would like to extend sincere
thanks for the nuggets of wisdom and beneficial
guidance
that
have
graciously been bestowed
upon
me.
The
achievements
of
an
organization
are
the
results of the combined
effort of each individual.
Meet Your New President
Thomas Nichols, Jr.
Tom grew up in a coal camp in rural Boone County in Barrett, West Virginia. He is the son of Thomas
and Garnet Bonds Nichols. His father was a coal miner for 30 years, demonstrating to Tom the
importance of hard work. After graduating in 1984 from Van Senior/Junior High School, Tom went on to
attend West Virginia State University and the University of Charleston. He graduated in 1995 with
honors from the Mid-America College of Funeral Services, where he received the Outstanding Service
Award and was president of the Pi Sigma Eta chapter of Lamda Kappa, the National Morticians
Fraternity. Shortly after graduating, Tom became a licensed funeral director and embalmer under the
State of West Virginia Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors.
In 1984, Tom began his career in the funeral industry with Wayne Johnson and Charles Carl at BarlowBonsall Funeral Home and Crematory in Charleston while he was attending school at West Virginia State
University. Soon after in January of 1986, he started working for John W. Chapman III and his wife,
Debra, at Bartlett-Chapman Funeral Home in St. Albans and Chapman Funeral Homes in Hurricane and
Winfield, where he is still employed today as General Manager with over 29 years of service.
Tom is active in his community as a member of both the Washington Masonic Lodge #58 A.F. & A.M. in
St. Albans and the Scottish Rite Bodies of Charleston, and he enjoys taking part in the annual Wreaths
Across America ceremony (WVFDA). In addition, he is a member of the National Funeral Directors
Association as well as the West Virginia Funeral Directors Association, where he formerly served as
Secretary/Treasurer, Vice President, and Governor for the Kanawha District. More recently, Tom served
as Secretary/Treasurer, Vice President, and President-Elect for the West Virginia Funeral Directors
Association.
Tom and his wife Eva reside in St. Albans, and they have four children: Courtney, Chelsea, and Lucas
Nichols and William Delisle. Family is very important to Tom, and he enjoys spending time with them,
including his 96-year-old grandmother, Jewel Nichols, his sister, Penny Nichols-Green, and his nephew,
Nicholas Green. In his spare time, Tom enjoys riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle and cheering on his
favorite teams, the Marshall Thundering Herd and the Atlanta Braves. His other interests include
baseball, basketball, and football. Tom is also a charter member of the Wharton-Barrett Volunteer Fire
Department and a former coach of his daughter's Nitro Little League Girls Softball team.
West Virginia Funeral Directors Association
1st Annual Motorcycle Benefit Ride
Sunday, June 8, 2014
Waterfront Place Hotel, Morgantown, WV
Registration Starts at 1pm
$10.00 per rider
Portion of proceeds benefit the Wounded Warrior Project ®
2013-2014 Officers
June 9-11, 2014
Annual Convention
Waterfront Place Hotel
Morgantown, WV
120th
Jared S. Jenkins -- President
Fred L. Jenkins Funeral Home, Inc.
10 South High Street
Morgantown, WV 26501
Telephone: 304-296-6446
Thomas Nichols, Jr. – President Elect
Bartlett-Chapman Funeral Home, LLC
P. O. Box 1112
St. Albans, WV 25177
Telephone: 304-727-4325
Fax: 304- 727-6003
June 17, 2014
Tygart District Meeting
Minards Restaurant
Clarksburg, WV
5:30pm
Jeff Faucette Presenting on WV PreNeed Funeral Trust
Stephen Leavitt – Vice President
Leavitt Funeral Home
403 7th Street
Parkersburg, WV 26101
Telephone: 304-422-6459
Fax: 304- 422-4313
Fax: 304-296-0226
Anthony M. Paletti – Secretary/Treasurer
Hardman-Paletti Funeral Home
730 N. Main Avenue
Weston, WV 26452
Phone: 304-269-5005
Fax: 304-517-1096
400 Allen Drive
Suite 20
Charleston, WV 25302
1-304-345-4711
West Virginia Funeral Directors Association
Political Action Committee (PAC)
Golf Tournament
Lakeview Resort Golf Course, Morgantown WV
4 Man Scramble
Sunday, June 8, 2014 at 1:30pm
$100.00 per person or $400.00 per team
Individuals may register and be placed on a team
Entry includes round of golf, entry into on course
prizes, two mulligans and the Hackers and Hogs
Reception afterwards.
Register the day of the tournament!
Cash or personal checks only, make checks payable to
WVFDA PAC
West Virginia Funeral Directors Association
120th Annual Convention, Waterfront Place Hotel, Morgantown, WV
Sunday June 8, 2014
1pm-8pm………………………………………………………………………….……………………….Vendor Set-Up
1pm-7pm…………………………………….…………………………………….Golf Outing at Lakeview Resort
1pm-7pm………………………………………………………...Wounded Warrior Motorcycle Benefit Ride
7pm-9pm……….Hackers and Hogs Reception, Sponsored by the WV Preneed Funeral Trust
Monday June 9, 2014
8am-12pm……………………………………………………………………..………………………..…Vendor Set-Up
10am-3pm…………………………………………………………………………………………………..…Registration
1pm-2pm……………………………………………………Opening Session, Jared Jenkins, William Kerns
2pm-3pm……………………………………………………….……………….Honor Guard General Funeral CE
3pm-6pm…………………………………………………………...……………………………………….Exhibits Open
6pm-8pm………………………………………Welcome Reception Sponsored by Batesville Casket Co.
Tuesday June 10, 2014
7am-8am……………………………………………………………..……………Breakfast Sponsored by FDLIC
7am-3pm………..……………………………………………………………………………………………..Registration
8am-9am………………………………………………………...…….……..Steve Jenkins, FDLIC, Insurance CE
9am-11am…………………...…………….…Mike Lake, Aurora Casket Company, General Funeral CE
11am-12pm…………………………………………..Keynote Speaker, Bryan Dodge, Sponsored by ASI
12pm-1pm………………………………Lunch, Annual Business Meeting, Scholarship Presentation,
Sponsored by State Auto
1pm-3pm……………………………………………..….…………………Breakout Session with Bryan Dodge
3pm-6pm……………………………………………………………………Convention Floor Open for Exhibits
6pm-8pm…………………………………………..Installation of Officers Dinner, Sponsored by Aurora
8pm-11pm………………………………………………………….Officers Reception, Sponsored by Aurora
Wednesday June 11, 2014
7am-8am……………………………………………………………………………Breakfast Sponsored by FDLIC
7am-8am……………………………………………………………………………………………………….Registration
8am-10am………………………………………………Debbie DeWeerd, Regulatory Support, OSHA CE
10am-12pm…………………………………………Memorial Service at Wharf AB, Sponsored by FDAS
12pm-1pm………………………………………………………..Lunch, Sponsored by ASI and Jeff Faucette
1pm-3pm…………………………………………………………………………………………………...Coliseum Tour
3pm-5pm………………………………………………………………………..……………Mountaineer Field Tour
6pm-9pm………………………………………………………………………………………………….Closing Session
From the executive Director’s Desk
The 120th West Virginia Funeral Directors Association Convention will kick off
on June 8th with the Wounded Warrior Project Motorcycle Ride and the
WVFDA PAC Golf Tournament. After these events there will be a Hackers and
Hogs reception. Then Monday June 9th through Wednesday June 11th the
convention will sponsor various events to include CE classes, Bryan Dodge a
nationally recognized speaker, supplier exhibits, memorial service, the officer
installation dinner with NFDA Representative Ken Cahall, and tours of the
WVU basketball coliseum and WVU Milan Puskar football stadium. The
convention agenda is on our webpage (www.wvfda.org) under the “join us”
tab, then under “convention agenda”.
The upcoming convention signals the end of President Jared Jenkins’ term as
WVFDA President and I would like to thank Jared for serving WVFDA as our
President and for the excellent job he did. We also need to welcome in Thomas
Nichols Jr as our incoming WVFDA President.
Since our last newsletter the WVDHHR stopped accepting applications and
making payments for indigent burials. They are to resume application
acceptance again July 1, 2014. Burials handled during the period in which
they did not accept applications are subject to the court of claims. I have
asked them to provide me with the process of court of claims cases and when
the send it to me I will get it out to the membership.
I look forward to seeing everyone at the convention and have a great
summer!!
Rob Kimes, Executive Director
WVFDA - PAC
Please contribute to the PAC now,
so we can continue the successes
we have had in the past.
Your contribution should be sent
to:
WVFDA—PAC
400 Allen Drive
Suite 20
Charleston, WV 25302
All contributions should be in the
form of a personal check as
corporate checks are not allowed.
(This information is intended for
Association members only, and all
contributions are voluntary. Nonmembers, please disregard.)
Death Notice Policy
It is the policy of the Association to send
a notice of death of a member or their
immediate family (spouse, child, parent)
by email immediately after we are
contacted and the necessary information
is provided to us.
All death notices received by the
Association are placed in the next
newsletter and each person is
remembered at our annual “Service of
Remembrance.” Notices received after
our Annual Convention Program goes to
print will be remembered the next year.
We need your help since we are not
always contacted regarding the death of a
member or their immediate family. There
have been instances where we were told
three to six months later in some cases
and it has created hard feelings . It is
much better for us to receive several calls
as opposed to none.
Please help us by calling the Association
office as soon as the information is
available for us to send out.
WVFDA Mission Statement
WVFDA’s mission is to serve its members and the public by
furthering the profession of funeral service through enhanced
educational opportunity, involvement in the public and private areas,
and development of communications with its membership and all
involved with the profession.
Athletic Outfitters
Cole and Lindsay Waybright, Owners
332 S. Church Street – Ripley, WV 25271
304-372-9385
info@athleticoutfittersstore.com
Charleston Mortuary Service
1101 Bigley Avenue
Charleston, WV 25302
1-304-344-8792
Lamcraft, Inc.
4131 N. E. Port Drive
Lee's Summit, MO 64064
Phone: 816.795.5505
1.800.821.1333
FAX: 816.795.8310
E-Mail: customer-service@lamcraft.com
Mike Bianchini
Phone: 1-301-401-0062
Fax: 1-301-865-8662
mike.bianchini@batesville.com
Brown Funeral Home is looking for a funeral director/embalmer in Martinsburg, WV.
Contact Bob Fields at 1-304- 263-8896