Working with Funeral Homes

https://youtu.be/uLvpho9fCjU

She was barely able to speak.

She lost her father years ago, but the memories were fresh. He was still with her, not just in spirit, but on her finger, his remains crafted into a beautiful ring she once proudly wore as she walked down the aisle.

She still couldn’t speak.

I offered her a tissue. A moment. Whatever she needed. This interview would take time. Of course I understood. Telling these stories is always difficult.

Still, she insisted. She wanted to share her story. Not just the story of her father. Not just the story of his funeral. But the story of how Connor and Steven Eline treated her like family.

It was the night of her father’s passing. She knew Connor from their days together in school. The Elines have been a staple of the community since the 1860s. Everybody knew the Elines.

On that night, the Elines made sure she knew they knew her as well. They came to her house, offered condolences, and lent a helping hand.

Over the next few days, the Elines and their hard-working staff put together a a celebration of life that honored her father and gave her something she could be proud of. The services highlighted the man he was, not just the incredible loss.

She wept as she told us this story, but she was right. This story — her story — was important to share.

The Eline Funeral Home is special. But their work is not unique. Funeral homes across the country can share similar stories of love, community, and compassion.

As we left the shoot, I told Colin that I was touched to be a small part of this story. I honestly didn’t know that funeral homes such as Eline existed. I didn’t know how much funeral services had evolved in my lifetime. I wanted to learn more.

My favorite part about Uproot Creative Services has always been the freedom to tell stories of people the way they would want their stories told. Some of our best work has come in the form of documentary, when we let people be themselves. That’s how we ended up telling the story of Arrie Carter, a trailblazer in her Harrisburg community. And it’s how we captured the story of a beloved family member — in a video that was eventually played at her own funeral.

Funeral homes have the capacity to tell more of these amazing stories. And Uproot is here to offer our services to help tell those stories, and to guide people who are navigating a death for the first time. If you run a funeral home and would like your story told, or if you have a loved one whose story deserves to be captured on video, please reach out to me at kevin@uprootcs.com. I would be honored to be a part of your story as well.