Tomorrow is the last day of the federal government’s fiscal year.  That is not necessarily a big deal except that the new federal budget year begins on Wednesday and as I write this on Sunday no agreement to fund the federal government of the United States is in place moving forward.  If there is no agreement on how to fund the government, then the government will shut down with only “essential services” continuing to operate.

While threatened many times over the past several years, we have not had a government shutdown in the United States for 7 years.

The good news in all of this is that “business generally grinds on”.  Private businesses continue to operate and in the funeral home business where the federal government intersects with funeral homes — at least in the National Veteran Cemetery operations — those operations are considered “essential”.

Here is a Veterans Administration “contingency planning” document that was released in anticipation of a federal government shutdown.  From the VA cemetery side of things here’s what I believe funeral directors would need to know:

• Burials will continue at VA national cemeteries.
• Applications for headstones, markers, and burial benefits will continue to be processed.

And, here’s a couple of things that will not be moving forward:

• The VA will not permanently place headstones or maintain the grounds at national cemeteries.
• The VA will not process applications for pre-need burials.

Thoughts on a potential government shutdown —  On Friday of last week the Yahoo Finance Morning Brief had a short overview on their thoughts about the looming government shutdown.  I found it a pretty fair observation of what the United States is facing and why we may actually see a government shutdown for the first time in seven years.  The following is an exerpt from that article:

By the time you read this. . . . or within the next 48 hours or so, we will probably have an answer on which way the federal government will move.

Related — “What’s opened or closed in a federal shutdown”.  USA Today

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“A servant’s attitude guided by Christ leads to a significant life”

Dead Ringers Welcomes Industry Veteran Brent Thomas and Unveils Enhanced Customer Experience Support Services for Deathcare Professionals 

Cincinnati, Ohio – May 22, 2025 – Dead Ringers, pioneering customer experience expert for the deathcare profession, officially announces the appointment of Brent Thomas as Head of Business Development—alongside a slew of new service options designed to support businesses at a higher level. 

With nearly a decade of research encompassing over 50,000 mystery calls to funeral homes and cemeteries, Dead Ringers has evolved beyond mystery shopping to become a premier training partner for deathcare establishments seeking measurable growth. 

“Bringing Brent Thomas on board represents a pivotal moment in Dead Ringers’ journey,” says Mandie Hungarland, COO at Dead Ringers. “To date, we’ve relied on word-of-mouth to grow—which has worked surprisingly well, but it’s time the world sees what we’re really capable of. Brent’s industry expertise and proven track record in developing effective sales and training strategies align perfectly with our mission to transform CX in the deathcare profession.” 

Brent brings over 28 years of experience in the deathcare profession, beginning his journey in cemetery and funeral preneed sales before quickly advancing into sales leadership roles. Joining Batesville in 2002, he has played instrumental roles, including helping to launch a pet cremation startup, serving as a cremation subject matter expert, and consulting on key accounts. More recently, Brent led the sales training and development team at Homesteaders Life Co. He’s gained award-winning recognition as a business consultant, trainer, coach, mentor, and strategic sales leader. 

“I am thrilled to join Dead Ringers because of the company’s innovation and stellar reputation,” Brent shares. “The extensive training Dead Ringers provides to deathcare professionals daily is remarkable, though often underappreciated. I knew I had to be part of this impactful journey to help funeral professionals deliver the best possible customer experience.” 

In conjunction with this strategic hire, Dead Ringers has formally unveiled its enhanced service offerings. The company’s cornerstone “Growth Plan” establishes a long-term partnership with funeral home and cemetery owners, delivering comprehensive leadership strategy, one-on-one staff coaching, group training sessions, and ongoing CX evaluations. 

Complementing this hands-on approach is CXpertise, Dead Ringers’ new on-demand learning platform featuring video modules, downloadable resources, monthly webinars, and specialized classes. When utilized together, these programs enable professionals to achieve “Dead Ringers Certification,” a new milestone for customer experience excellence in deathcare. 

The results speak for themselves: Clients implementing the Dead Ringers Growth Plan have experienced remarkable revenue increases ranging from 11% to 33%—a figure that is anticipated to increase with the launch of the CXpertise platform. 

This powerful combination of industry-leading expertise and innovative training solutions positions Dead Ringers to continue its mission of elevating the customer experience and helping deathcare professionals thrive. 

About Dead Ringers 

Dead Ringers is the customer experience expert for the deathcare profession, specializing in providing telephone CX evaluation, training and coaching. Through proprietary data collection, comprehensive training programs, and on-demand learning platform, Dead Ringers empowers deathcare professionals to deliver exceptional customer experiences while achieving measurable business growth. For more information, visit deadringers.co.

Batesville Appoints Company Veteran Matt Wessel to Lead its Growing Cremation Business

BATESVILLE, Ind., October 14, 2024 – Batesville, a leading provider of burial, cremation and technology solutions to deathcare professionals in North America, announced the appointment of Matt Wessel as Vice President of its Cremation Business. A 22-year veteran of Batesville, Wessel will lead the development and execution of the company’s cremation strategy, working with product managers, designers, engineers, and analysts to build and maintain a robust array of cremation urns, keepsakes, alternative containers, hardboards, remembrance jewelry, and memorialization products that provide the value that today’s families demand.

Wessel has served in a variety of strategy and marketing leadership roles at Batesville, including Director of Strategy, where he had responsibility for leading the company’s strategy management and business planning process. He was named Director of Strategic Initiatives – Cremation in 2022 and led a cross-functional team that has successfully reinvigorated the company’s cremation value proposition. Under his leadership, Batesville has added several consumer-facing retail tools, as well as more than 150 new cremation products, including a collection of value-priced NewPointe^® cremation urns, new rental products, contemporary jewelry, and an exclusive line of artisan-made Rookwood ceramic pottery urns.

“Matt understands the unique challenges funeral homes face in serving cremation families but also recognizes there are tremendous opportunities to help customers meet their business goals, while providing meaningful experiences for families,” said Jenn Parvin, Batesville SVP and Chief Marketing Officer.

Wessel received a BS in Marketing from Clemson University and completed his MBA at Xavier University.

ABOUT BATESVILLE SERVICES, LLC

Batesville (www.Batesville.com) is a recognized leader in the death care industry in North America, offering a comprehensive portfolio of burial and cremation products, memorialization options and innovative technology solutions. For more than 125 years, Batesville has supported licensed funeral professionals in helping families honor the lives of those they love.^® A history of manufacturing excellence, product innovation, superior customer service, and reliable delivery helped Batesville become – and remain – a market leader.