Silver Lining of Hope
Silver Lining of Hope
The Silver Lining of Hope is an organization committed to stop the unnecessary killing of young black men by other young black men. From 1984 to 2010 approximately 18,000 young men both African-American and Latino have been killed in gun violence. It’s gotten to a point where the community and the clergy in the inner city have decided that enough is enough. Too many young lives were cut short by senseless acts of violence and “keeping it real.”
Too many young men who live in hopelessness and a world of low expectations are lost to the mean streets of South Central and inner cities all across America. Many of these young men are often innocent bystanders who are students, brothers, fathers and neighbors. Many are cut down before they are allowed to realize their full potential. It is the hope of many inner cities, and the south-central area of Los Angeles that if the community mobilizes it can make a difference, and stop the killings.
Body Donation
Planning your funeral makes sense
Funeral planning guides should have information regarding Body Donation. It has become popular in recent years. Some people honestly want to help to further research in medical science to find cures for disease or assist in the training of new doctors.CemeterySpot, Inc.
There is simply no adequate replication for the human body when it comes to teaching and research. The gift of donation provides the ability to find cures for debilitating conditions such as cancer and Alzheimer’s among many others. Donations are also important to develop new medicines, study human anatomy and practice and perfect new surgical procedures.
Each donation is highly valued and treated with the utmost humanity, compassion and respect. Most people are eligible for donation regardless of their age, disease, or state of health.
Many people are under the impression that you pay nothing. Nothing could be farther from the truth. After medical personnel are done with the body the family is notified to retrieve the body for burial (at the family’s expense).cards&gifts
Categories: donation Tags: funeral, funeral home, funeral planning, newspaper
Remember Customer Service?
In the death care industry you live and die by customer service. It’s one of the final frontiers in American consumerism. Remember in the 50’s, and 60’s when you went to the service station and the attendant would fill your tank; check your tires and oil? Boy are those days gone!
Customer service seems to be a lost art anymore. Very few companies seem to admonish their employees to provide good customer service. There are a few exceptions, for example Nordstrom and elite car dealerships like Lexus, Mercedes and BMW come to mind.
Some businesses who I won’t mention here almost assist clientele begrudgingly! When I spend my money anywhere I want a smile and a good morning or afternoon. It’s incredible how some clerks won’t even acknowledge your presence other than to ask for cash or a credit card.
Can you imagine walking into any funeral home and having an attendant treat you like it’s a bother? Given the nature of our business, good customer service is key. Given all the choices consumers have they can go anywhere to obtain goods and services. Any business worth their salt would be well advised to make sure their staff is up on the latest customer service trends.
Given the demands I place on staff to give good customer service it’s hard to accept anything less. I will go as far as ignore the clerk if I am not greeted properly before I pay for my goods and services. We have the power to demand good customer service wherever we do business. Take charge and take control. Demand good customer service or let that business know you can always go to the competition! That includes all of us in the death care industry! Customer loyalty isn’t given, it’s earned.
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Death Care Providers
There are several large death care providers in North America. I am going to focus on what I believe to be the best in the business. Service Corporation International is the largest death care provider in the world. They offer a host of services both pre-need and at the time of need. Through their partnerships and family brands they are able to offer families the highest quality services in the industry.
One of the family brands used by SCI is Dignity Memorial which was introduced in 1999. This was the first national brand of funeral, cremation and cemetery services in North America. Dignity Memorial providers and dedicated to assisting families with memorial services that respect the memory of departed loved ones and respect for life.
SCI has locations all over North America and beyond. As mentioned previously, know who you’re dealing with. Go with a death care provider that is top shelf and strives to do an honest service to the community which it serves. I believe this to be Service Corporation International! Please visit their website for more information and to find a location near you.
Service Corporation International
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Anotomical Gift Donation
Many of you have requested more information on body and organ donation. The following is an account of how body and organ donation works. Dianne M. Person contributed to this article.
What do you do?
“I am responsible for the daily management of the anatomical gift program, with responsibility for administration, policies and operation of the program. Particular attention is paid to matters surrounding acceptance of donor remains, utilization of cadavers, maintaining our donor database as well as internal organization.”
The bodies are used by medical school students, correct?
“Yes. I also ensure that anatomical donations are properly documented, processed, closely monitored and accurately recorded, and along with our lab manager make sure that we have an adequate supply of donations sufficient to meet the education needs of the medical school.”
How many donors do you have?
“We received our first donor Oct. 30, 1974, and have since accepted 2,377 donations. Our current database consists of 4,530 registered folks who are willing to donate their body after death to the University of Massachusetts Medical School.”
Who assumes the costs?
“It’s a medical school cost. The transfer, the embalming, the storage and the cremation are assumed by us. We utilize all our bodies. We also work with the other Massachusetts medical schools with the permission of the families.”
The anatomical gift program is not the same thing as being an organ donor, right?
“I get that all the time. If one were to donate to the organ donor program, it would keep you out of this program.”
Do you get many late night phone calls?
“I’m on call 24/7. You never know when someone passes away.”
How does someone get involved with the program?
“I’ll field a phone call or an e-mail that expresses some interest in the program. I’ll send out a donor package, and once it’s returned I’ll go over the paperwork and process it. I’ll send a letter of thanks and a wallet card. A letter of instruction also goes out to the person’s next of kin. When death takes place, I’ll get a phone call or a page. I’ll speak to the health care professional to rule out infectious diseases. The funeral director will go and do the removal and bring the body back here. The embalming takes place and the body remains here before it’s ready for dissection.”
How did you get into this field?
“I was an account representative for a company that implemented employee assistance programs. The company I worked for was bought out by a conglomerate from the Midwest, so I immediately started looking for work and answered an ad in the T&G.”
What’s the best part of your job?
“I look forward each year to working with the first-year medical students as the adviser to the student-organized memorial service. The memorial service provides a venue for the families and friends of donors to witness first-hand how deeply appreciative the medical students are of this altruistic donation.”
What’s the worst part?
“I do not enjoy having to decline a donation. I am bound by policy and procedure and must keep the embalmer’s and the students’ safety first and foremost. If, at the time of death, a body is carrying a highly contagious disease … such a body would not qualify for our program, for example.”
What have you learned from this job?
“There are many generous people within the commonwealth who feel that after death if one can continue to give, then let that be their final gift.”
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