The CFSA Board of Directors in September enthusiastically and unanimously approved the recommendation of the Lifetime Recognition Awards Committee to honor two deserving recipients in 2018: Mike Beardsley (Thacker Caskets, Marsellus Casket Company), pictured below, left, and, posthumously, Bob York (StarCorp). The awards will be presented at the President’s Reception on Monday, October 29th, during the Fall Conference & Trade Show at the Columbus Hilton Downtown in Columbus, Ohio. A full tribute to each of these award winners will be showcased during the event, and we will include detailed, deserving articles in a future issue of the CFSA Newsletter.
The Lifetime Recognition Award is the highest and most prestigious honor conferred by CFSA, limited to individuals who have been in the industry for at least 35 years and who have had a positive and considerable impact on the association. The award was first given in 2002, and a complete list of past recipients is available on the CFSAA.org website.
This year’s selection committee – impressive in its own right – brought a wealth of experience to the table and exacted high standards in determining this year’s recipients. Committee members were: Betsy VerPlank-Kerl, Chair (VerPlank Enterprises, former CFSA Board member); Bob Galletly (Tiedemann-Bevs Industries, CFSA Past President); Steve Duffy (Matthews Aurora Funeral Solutions, CFSA Past President and past Lifetime Recognition Award recipient in 2017); Alan Elder (Vandor Corporation, former CFSA Board member); and, Rodney Robinson (Southern Craft Manufacturing, CFSA President), ex officio.
