NFDA Introduces New Remembering A Life Award to Honor the Profession’s Most Meaningful Funeral and Memorial Services 

Brookfield, Wis. – The National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) has announced a new honor within its renowned Pursuit of Excellence Award program: the Remembering A Life Award. This new recognition, debuting in 2026, will celebrate funeral homes that create the profession’s most personal and meaningful funerals and memorial services – those that go beyond expectations to bring comfort, healing and significance to the families they serve. 

The new award was formally announced during the association’s All-Star Recognition Ceremony on Monday, October 27, at the 2025 NFDA International Convention & Expo in Chicago. 

“The Remembering A Life Award will shine a spotlight on the heart of what funeral service professionals do for grieving families,” said NFDA Director of Public Relations Jessica Koth, who manages the Pursuit of Excellence Program. “It will honor those moments when creativity, compassion and attention to detail come together to help families remember, grieve and begin to heal. We look forward to presenting the first Remembering A Life Awards during next year’s All-Star Recognition Ceremony.” 

Elevating the Heart of Funeral Service 

The Remembering A Life Award aligns closely with NFDA’s consumer initiative, Remembering A Life, which educates families about the value of funerals and memorial services and offers resources for planning meaningful tributes and beginning the grief journey. Each year, up to five funeral homes will be selected by the Pursuit of Excellence Work Group for this distinction.

Recipients will be chosen based on essays submitted as part of their Pursuit of Excellence entry that describe a personal and meaningful funeral or memorial service. Submissions will be evaluated on how creatively the service honored the life of the deceased, incorporated family wishes and cultural traditions and exceeded expectations to provide a truly meaningful experience. 

Building on a Legacy of Excellence 

Established more than 45 years ago by the late NFDA Past President Richard Myers, the Pursuit of Excellence Award program honors funeral homes that consistently demonstrate integrity, innovation and service excellence. In addition to the new Remembering A Life Award, the program includes:

• Pursuit of Excellence Award: The program’s foundational honor, recognizing achievement in six categories of excellence.
• Hall of Excellence: Funeral homes are inducted into the Hall of Excellence upon earning their 10th Pursuit of Excellence Award.
• Richard Myers Pinnacle Award: Recognizes an extraordinary program or service that redefines funeral service excellence.
• Best of the Best Award: Honors up to five funeral homes annually for novel and innovative programs or services.
• Honorable Mention: Acknowledges programs that positively impact the families and communities served. 

Reinforcing NFDA’s Strategic Vision 

The introduction of the Remembering A Life Award supports several priorities outlined in NFDA’s 2024-26 Strategic Plan, including raising the profile of funeral professionals among consumers, increasing understanding of the value of meaningful memorialization and inspiring innovation across the profession.

“The Pursuit of Excellence program has always set the standard for service excellence,” said Koth. “This new award reflects our ongoing commitment to helping funeral professionals elevate their work and demonstrate the deep value of meaningful memorialization to families and communities.”

The first Remembering A Life Awards will be presented during the All-Star Recognition Ceremony at the 2026 NFDA International Convention & Expo in Charlotte, North Carolina. For more information about the Pursuit of Excellence program or to apply by the July 15, 2026, deadline, visit NFDA.org/PursuitOfExcellence. 

NFDA is the world’s leading and largest funeral service association representing 20,000 individual members who represent nearly 11,000 funeral homes in the United States and 49 countries around the world. NFDA is the trusted leader, beacon for ethics and the strongest advocate for the profession. NFDA is the association of choice because it offers funeral professionals comprehensive educational resources, tools to manage successful businesses, guidance to become pillars in their communities and the expertise to foster future generations of funeral professionals. NFDA is headquartered in Brookfield, Wis., and has an office in Washington, D.C. For more information, visit NFDA.org.

New Remembering A Life Conversation Cards Introduced to Help Funeral Professionals Work With Families to Plan Meaningful Funerals

Suite of Conversation Cards Now Covers Every Step of the Journey: Preplanning, Funeral Planning and Aftercare 

Brookfield, Wis. – Remembering A Life, the consumer education initiative of the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA), has introduced two new decks of conversation cards that funeral directors can use to inspire the families they serve to plan meaningful tributes to loved ones. 

Remembering A Life Funeral Planning Conversation Cards are brand new to the Remembering A Life Conversation Card suite. These conversation cards help families and friends create a safe, comfortable environment for having a conversation about a person’s final wishes and help them plan a meaningful tribute for themselves or a loved one with the guidance of a funeral professional.

This deck of 52 thought-provoking questions will help get the conversation started and help put family members and friends at ease while talking about a topic that may generate a variety of emotions. Questions cover five key areas.

• Talking About Death
• Your Body
• The Service
• Honoring Your Life
• The Details 

Each card goes beyond the question itself, offering thoughtful prompts and helpful information to guide a discussion. Families will find insights about the value of a viewing, the benefits of preplanning and why connecting with an NFDA-member funeral home can make a difference. 

“Inspiring people to have meaningful discussions about death and funerals isn’t easy,” said Gail Marquardt, vice president of consumer engagement for NFDA. “These decks help family members and friends create a safe, comfortable environment for having a conversation about a person’s final wishes and guide them in working with a funeral professional to plan a meaningful tribute for themselves or a loved one.” 

Funeral professionals can use the cards as a preneed tool, during the arrangement conference as conversation starters or as a giveaway for a workshop or open house. 

Have the Talk of a Lifetime Conversation Cards have been reimagined and redesigned with new content and additional prompts to help family and friends get to know each other better so when it’s time to create a tribute for a loved one, they are better prepared to make it meaningful. Each of the 50 questions invites people to share stories about meaningful moments, relationships, objects, adventures, accomplishments and more. Additional prompts invite them to further explore their answers to each question, encouraging them to share their stories with others, pull out meaningful mementos or do an activity related to their answer. 

“Funeral directors have embraced Have the Talk of a Lifetime Conversation Cards since they were introduced nearly ten years ago,” said Marquardt. “We were excited to give them a new look and include expanded content to further enrich families’ experiences with the cards. The questions and prompts in this deck help families create a service that beautifully reflects an individual’s interests, passions, relationships and accomplishments.” 

For funeral professionals, Have the Talk of a Lifetime Conversation Cards are the perfect preneed and storytelling tool. Funeral professionals can use the cards as a preneed/lead generation tool, as conversation starters during the arrangement conference and in the funeral home waiting area. The cards are also the perfect thank-you gift for visiting a funeral home open house or preplanning workshop. The new decks complete a set of three conversation card decks that also includes 

Remembering A Life Journey Cards, which feature 52 ideas for remembering loved ones in meaningful ways. This deck helps family members and friends as they explore their grief journey, offering simple yet meaningful ways to keep a loved one’s memory close. All three decks of conversation cards are available at NFDA.org/Store. The decks are $10 each for NFDA members and $15 each for non-members. Quantity discounts are available, and decks can also be customized with a funeral home logo. Funeral professionals attending the 2025 NFDA International Convention & Expo in Chicago can visit the Remembering A Life booth (1831) for free sample packs and can purchase full decks at the convention as well. For more information about the Remembering A Life resources available to funeral professionals, including the Remembering A Life Idea Guide for Funeral Professionals, visit NFDA.org/RememberingALife. 

About Remembering A Life

Remembering A Life helps individuals and families remember their loved ones in meaningful ways, helping to keep the memory of loved ones alive and assisting family members and friends in moving forward in their grief. Remembering A Life educates families about the value of a funeral and helps them find an NFDA-member funeral director (RememberingALife.com/FindAFuneralHome) to help them create a meaningful service. The initiative also helps them as they begin the grief journey following the death of a loved one. Resources include the Remembering A Life website (RememberingALife.com), a podcast, book club, blog, conversation cards and thoughtful gifts for grieving family members and friends. Remembering A Life is a consumer education initiative of the National Funeral Directors Association. Follow Remembering A Life on Facebook and Instagram. 

About the National Funeral Directors Association

NFDA is the world’s leading and largest funeral service association representing 20,000 individual members who represent nearly 11,000 funeral homes in the United States and 49 countries around the world. NFDA is the trusted leader, beacon for ethics and the strongest advocate for the profession. NFDA is the association of choice because it offers funeral professionals comprehensive educational resources, tools to manage successful businesses, guidance to become pillars in their communities and the expertise to foster future generations of funeral professionals. NFDA is headquartered in Brookfield, Wis., and has an office in Washington, D.C. For more information, visit NFDA.org.

Everyone faces the inevitability of death and mourning. It’s never easy, but it’s part of life that we all have to confront at some point. It’s a sorrowful journey. Henrietta, NY Cremation services
provide a way to navigate grief by honoring the deceased respectfully and can form a considerable part of the healing process. One of the most significant ways we can remember our late loved ones is by putting together a compassionate memorial.

Transforming Full-Size Urns into Memorials

When you think about a memorial, the first thing that may come to mind is a gravesite. However, for those who chose cremation, a beautiful full-size urn becomes the resting place for the deceased’s remains. The urn itself can be customized and turned into a home-based memorial that serves as a poignant reminder of the love and joy the departed person brought.

Miniature Keepsake Urns as Mementoes

Just as unique and treasured are miniature keepsakes or keepsake urns. Usually, these tiny urns hold less of the deceased’s ashes and can be shared among family members. These memorials are more personal, allowing each family member to have something tangible to hold onto. Keepsake urns can be curated and designed personally to reflect the deceased loved one’s personality and individuality.

Jewelry Keepsakes: Keeping Them Close

With cremation becoming a popular choice
, memorial merchandise has evolved to include artful and fashionable items like keepsake jewelry. This allows mourners to keep a piece of their loved one close to them at all times. The innovative jewelry keepsakes can contain a small amount of the cremated remains and can be worn as pendants, bracelets, or even rings.

Introducing Art Glass Keepsakes

The beauty of art glass keepsakes is that it can be infused with a small portion of ashes, creating swirling patterns and colors. Not only are these gorgeous to look at, but they also serve as a daily reminder of the bond shared with the person who has moved on.

Seeking Professional Help

There is no specific way to grieve or mourn the loss of a loved one. The process is deeply personal and individual. Consider seeking help from professionals to guide you along the heartbreaking path of grieving. Many bereavement organizations can help with this challenging journey, ensuring you handle your feelings in a healthy, therapeutic way.

In conclusion, the process of mourning is a tough journey, and coping with grief can be a painstaking endeavor for many of us in Henrietta, NY. Cremation services
, like those we offer at Rochester Cremation, serve as both a respectful tribute to the departed and a comforting remembrance for the ones left behind. By personalizing memorials, from full-size urns to keepsake jewelry, you can honor your loved ones notably. This act often brings solace during moments of grief, by providing a tangible reminder of the love and life shared. Though death stirs considerable sorrow, it can also open a path towards a new beginning—where we cherish the invaluable memories and honor the life lived by our departed. Let our team guide you
through creating a compassionate memorial that reflects the unique spirit of your loved one.

“Rest in Pizza”: Remembering The Great Michigan Pizza Funeral

The 1970s will be remembered as the decade that brought us polyester leisure suits, pet rocks, and shag carpeting — and perhaps one of the most unusual funerals in American history. This funeral, held in 1973, attracted the governor of Michigan, required an 18-foot-deep grave, and cost $39,000 at a time when the average funeral would run about $1,000. The craziest part though? This expensive funeral was for 29,000 cheese-and-mushroom pizzas.

Poison pizzas

The Great Michigan Pizza Funeral was the brainchild of Mario Fabbrini, the president of Fabbrini Family Foods of Ossineke, Michigan. Since immigrating to the United States from fascist Croatia, Fabbrini had gone from selling frozen pizzas from his home kitchen to running a factory that employed 22 people and produced 45,000 pizzas for about 1,000 Michigan outlets every week. 

It was in the midst of shipping some of those pizzas in February 1973 that Fabbrini received an alarming call from one of his suppliers that stopped his delivery trucks in their tracks. The supplier shared that an inspector had found botulism toxin — a potentially lethal bacteria — in some of the cans of mushrooms they’d sent to Fabbrini. He had no choice but to recall and dispose of the pizzas containing those mushrooms — about 44,000 of them, at first count.

Pretty cheesy

What does one do with 44,000 poisonous frozen pizzas? For Fabbrini, the answer was to bury them, complete with a high-profile funeral that would serve as part protest, part promotional stunt.

On March 5, 1973, dozens of folks came from far and wide to participate in the graveside service. As a bulldozer shoved what turned out to be about 29,000 cellophane-wrapped pizzas valued at $39,000 into the 18-foot-deep hole, Michigan governor William G. Milliken gave a “brief homily ‘on courage in the face of tragedy,’” according to Atlas Obscura. Afterward, Fabbrini laid a “two-colored flower garland on the grave: red gladioli for sauce, white carnations for cheese.”

Blame the mice

Sadly, the entire incident was all for naught; as one newspaper punnily called it, the recall that started the whole thing was a “grave error.” 

While it was true that two mice died after eating test samples of the pizzas containing the supposedly-tainted mushrooms, the federal government later determined that they didn’t actually die from botulism. It was all a false alarm.

“I think it was indigestion,” Fabbrini told a reporter. “Maybe they didn’t like my pizza.”

(They actually died of peritonitis.)

Fabbrini later sued the mushroom supplier and the canning company for $1 million, the case was settled in 1979 in the Michigan Court of Appeals for about $211,000. Fabbrini’s company went out of business in the 1980s.