December 2, 2022

It seems clear that you’ve made kindness your life’s work. What is the story behind that?
My father called me in April 2006 after his terminal lung cancer diagnosis. He was a family therapist, and he had just turned 70. I was 38, with two young school-aged children. We had a difficult relationship, but I flew to Burlington, Vermont, and we started working to heal our relationship. He lived eight months after that call. Those months and the healing process were a gift. We both found peace; he died Dec. 1, 2006, on my son’s sixth birthday.

Kindness is a soft skill. Since kindness can be hard to teach, measure or master, many people dismiss it as a nonessential nicety that won’t make or break your business. They value other capitalist-oriented skills more, such as ambition, grit and skill.

The Montana Department of Labor & Industry’s Business Standards Division (BSD) held informational and listening sessions beginning in August 2022. MFDA staff was especially interested in what the Department planned and appeared on behalf of the Montana Funeral Directors Association.

The funeral directors of the Royal Household are selected and appointed by the Lord Chamberlain’s Office.

The first District Meeting was held in Billings, MT, at the Windmill Bar and Grill. District Governor Matt Coon of Medallion Vault and Casket held a cocktail hour followed by dinner with guest speaker, Sgt. Jay Nelson from the Montana Highway Patrol with an active shooter/incident training. Speakers also included MFDA President T.J. Stevenson and MFDA Executive Director Jim Brown with industry-related updates.

Is your metal recycling program having enough impact on your business and community? Recycling programs with Garfield Refining are built to drive sustainability and social impact through operational efficiencies and targeted metal capture.

The Cloyd Funeral Home opened Oct. 1, 1961, to serve central Montana. The building, built in the early 1950s, was the former home of the Georgian Theatre, owned by the Weidman Brothers. In the mid-1950s, it became the Fergus Theatre until its closing in 1960.

Members of MFDA attended the NFDA Convention October 9-12 and met up with thousands of funeral service peers for networking, education, and much more.

My Name is John O’Leary
I’m 43 years old. I’m married to my beautiful wife, Beth, and we’re raising four wonderful kids together. I’m a college graduate. I own a business that’s taken me all over the world doing a job I love.

But at one time, none of that seemed likely.

The commissioners of the Federal Trade Commission voted unanimously in favor of retaining the Funeral Rule and issuing an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comment on potential updates to modernize the rule, including improvements to the public accessibility of funeral home price information. The Commission also approved the issuance of a staff report that summarizes the results of their review of almost 200 funeral provider websites.

From the day he was born, T.J. Stevenson belonged to a funeral service family. His grandfather, Dale Stevenson, started Stevenson & Sons Funeral Home in Miles City in 1962. Afterward, his father, Todd, and uncles Joe and Jon – along with their respective spouses – have since spread their wings into serving communities in Montana and North Dakota.

TJ Stevenson PresidentStevenson & Sons Funeral Home, Miles Citytj@stevensonandsons.comCell: (406) 853-1860Office: (406) 232-4457 Tyson Moore Vice PresidentGarden City Funeral Home, Missoulatyson@agelessinc.comCell: (505) 985-2712 Steve Kirkegard TreasurerCloyd Funeral Home & Cremation Service Lewistownskirkegard@yahoo.comCell: (406) 868-5437Office: (406) 538-8711 Brianne Mulvaney SecretaryAxelson Funeral & Cremation Services, Buttebri@axelsonfuneralhome.comOffice: (406) 494-4264 Chris Holt Immediate Past PresidentAnderson Stevenson Wilke Funeral Home,

2023 MFDA Membership Renewals Sent Out December 26, 2022 2023 MFDA Membership Renewals Due January 31, 2023 2023 MFDA Midwinter Conference February 8-9, 2023Best Western Great Northern – Helena, MT Winter Board Meeting February 8, 202312:30 pm – 4:00pm NFDA Advocacy Summit April 19-21, 2023Washington D.C. MFDA Spring Board Meeting April, 2023 MFDA Spring District

Welcome to the final 2022 edition of the MFDA Director’s Digest. Where has this year gone? The speed with which this year has passed reminds me of the following Nathaniel Hawthorne quote: “Time flies over us, but leaves its shadow behind.”

It has been a busy fall, and I do not know where the time goes! Winter sure came in with a bang today, and we had to postpone our district meets in both Great Falls and Missoula due to the winter storm. We were able to hold the district meetings in Miles City, Billings, and Butte. I want to thank all the firms that took the time to give me a tour of their funeral homes in those areas – I thoroughly enjoyed it. The meetings had great turnouts, and it was fun seeing everyone again. Attendees should have received an email with their continuing education certificates; if not, please let us know.