BAXTER “RAY” ADCOCK of Fayetteville, NC died June 28, 2024 at the age of 81. He was employed by Pugh Funeral Home in Asheboro before moving to Lillington, where he worked for 10 years as a funeral director at O’Quinn Funeral Home. In 1970, Ray joined Jernigan-Warren Funeral Home in Fayetteville and in 1974, he and his wife, Ann opened...
JOHN “JAY” ALBERT SCHOEDINGER of Columbus, OH died June 26, 2024 at the age of 83. He worked alongside his father, John; uncle, Robert, and brother, David, in the family business, Schoedinger Funeral and Cremation Service until his retirement in 2021. A 1963 graduate of the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science, Jay was a member of OMNI, which was a group...
JAMES R. BARTHOLOMEW of Bath, PA died July 26, 2024 at the age of 70. A funeral director, he was the owner and operator of Bartholomew Funeral Home. Bartholomew graduated from the Eckels School of Mortuary Science and was a member of the Eastern Pennsylvania Funeral Directors Association.
KENNETH W. CLAUSSEN of Fort Atkinson/Lake Mills, WI died June 25, 2024 at the age of 79. In 1969, Claussen and his wife, Pam, purchased a funeral home in Lake Mills, WI, naming it Claussen Funeral Home. He learned from his father-in-law, Earl Dunlap and worked alongside him and Tim Dunlap at Dunlap Memorial for many years and upon Earl’s retirement...
JOE A. MOORE of Bidwell, OH died June 23, 2024 at the age of 57. In 1991, he started working in the family business, McCoy-Moore Funeral Homes. Moore was also the former owner of McCoy-Moore Insurance, which he operated alongside his wife, Sarah Evans, for over 30 years. A 1991 graduate of the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science, he was...
ANTHONY J. “A.J.” PAPAVERO, JR of Branchburg, NJ died June 22, 2024 at the age of 58. A licensed New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania funeral director, he was co-owner of Branchburg Funeral Home. A.J. pursued his vocation as a 4th and 5th generation licensed funeral director influenced by his grandfathers, Bartolomeo V. Papavero and Anthony C. Bongiovi, Sr, his...
MAURICE C. WIGHTMAN of Syracuse, NY died June 21, 2024 at the age of 79. A 1963 graduate of the Simmons Institute of Funeral Service, he served as president of the college. Wightman was a member of the New York State Funeral Directors Association, National Funeral Directors Association and the Central New York Funeral Directors Association.
PAT A. RILEY, JR of Woodville, TX formerly of Nederland, TX died June 15, 2024 at the age of 72. He established the Pat A. Riley Funeral Home and ambulance service in Nederland, TX at the age of 23. Riley opened a second location in Port Neches, TX in the mid 1990’s. A lifetime member of Houston Livestock & Rodeo,...
WAYNE LEE “BUTCH” WHEAT of Dayton, OH died June 11, 2024 at the age of 80. He served his apprenticeship under the tenure of the late C. Joseph McLin, Sr at the McLin Funeral Home. Wheat also received experience at the Donald Watson Funeral Home in Cleveland during the summers of 1962 and 1963, as well as the Houston Funeral Home...
JOSEPH “JODY” ALVA BRANDENBURG of Jacksonville, FL died June 10, 2024 at the age of 81. A licensed funeral director and embalmer, he entered the corporate and management side of the business as the Houston-based Southern region president for Service Corporation International. Brandenburg began leading Hardage-Giddens Funeral Homes in Jacksonville in 1990. For nearly 20 years, he was a member of...