60 Minutes Feature: Final Resting Place, A Must See for Consumers

Paid Newspaper Ad From SCI Funeral Chain Has Texans Crying Foul

Austin, Texas

A well-known (well, former well-known name) in Austin funeral service has created a debate that’s growing bigger than Texas. A former funeral home owner, Charles Walden, allowed his name to appear in an advertisement (designed to look like an open-letter) placed by Houston-based funeral corporation, Service Corporation International. The advertisement appeared in the Austin American Statesman’s May 26th edition.

In the ad, Walden attempts to convince Austin readers that all Cook-Walden funeral service locations are the same now as they have been for the last 100 years. Well, that statement has stirred up more than a few Texans (and others) who claim the statement is misleading. You see, Cook-Walden originally had just one funeral home 40 years ago. It is now owned by Service Corporation International (SCI)-the largest funeral and cemetery chain in the world.


According to the history of Cook-Walden funeral services published at its own website, in the late 1800s a funeral home was opened in downtown Austin by Samuel E. Rosengren. In 1920, Charles B. Cook purchased that business. In 1971, Charles Walden purchased Cook Funeral Home. The name was changed to Cook-Walden. Shortly thereafter, Charles Walden bought two adjacent cemeteries in the Pflugerville area. In 1985, he bought Davis Funeral Home in Georgetown, then Forest Oaks funeral and cemetery in 1992. The two funeral homes at the Pflugerville cemeteries location and on Hwy. 183 at Anderson Mill were built more recently.

In 1997, Cook-Walden sold all of its operations to SCI. The recent open letter in the Statesman claims that in 1993 the Cook-Walden chain joined the Dignity Memorial(R) network (a registered service mark of SCI). But Cook-Walden could not have joined the Dignity Memorial(R) network until 2004 because that network did not exist until then, and that network is used only by SCI-owned facilities.

Charles Walden has continued to provide some consulting services, since the 1997 purchase by the corporation. However, local sources are unclear on his exact involvement. It is clear that SCI focuses mainly on making profits, which is the primary responsibility of all corporations. If, as its ad claims, it can provide “compassionate care” in doing so, that is a benefit to families.

However, another debate is unfolding – in addition to the botched history lesson by Charles Walden. The debate is now focusing on the overall reputation of Service Corporation International. The company is no stranger to bad press, lawsuits and now, online employee message forums. These forums are accusing the company of being extremely uncompassionate to its employees, even when those employees are trying to provide compassionate service to grieving families. In the original article, a number of examples pulled from forums are given.

“I am a funeral director and embalmer for SCI. It is a terrible company to work for, and I would discourage anyone from applying with them. The management is terrible, from the top all the way down the the location manager. You have no home life, you are expected to get the work done, but get in trouble for getting overtime hours. There is no such thing as christmas bonuses or raises in this company. You are not respected as a professional in your field. Bottom line, in my oppinion, this company cares about nothing but money. I got into this field to help people, not rob them without a gun.”

“This place is horrible! We got baught by SCI about 3 years ago and its been down hill from there. We’ve had 4 different managers. The average employee leaves within a few years. Im on my fourth year and havent even broke a dollar as far as raises. Micro-management, Micro-management. You work your ass off just to keep your job. They will suck the life out of your ability to care for grieving families. STAY AWAY!”

A local columnist has this to say:

Local families who need to plan a funeral would be wise to ignore SCI’s self-promotion and shop around. There are many good and fair-priced funeral services available in the Austin area. Cost comparisons are made simple by the annual survey of funeral costs published by AMBIS-the nonprofit Funeral Consumers Alliance affiliate serving central Texas. The 2011 survey can be found on-line.

I think we all have our own opinions about service providers of all types. And I also think we understand the goal of newspaper and television ads. As for the forums, I have looked at a few, but understand the subjective nature of opinions. In my own experience with the corporation, I would not choose them to take care of a loved one of mine. Now, regardless of your opinion of SCI, the part of this article that I would pay closer attention to is the idea of shopping around.

Why The Cost of Cremations Will Probably Go Higher

Houston, Texas

The largest funeral and cremation provider in North America, Houston-based Service Corporation International, has taken steps to increase their size. The company (NYSE:SCI) has officially announced the purchase of 70% of the outstanding shares of The Neptune Society.

Includes:

• The Neptune Society
• Neptune Cremation Service
• Trident Society

Neptune is the nation's largest direct cremation organization, with annual revenues of more than $55 million and a network of 30 locations in nine states. Through an active preneed sales program, Neptune has built a backlog of future revenues of more than $125 million. Neptune operates under the brand names Neptune Society, Neptune Cremation Service and Trident Society.

Neptune's owner, BG Capital Management Corp., a diversified private equity company, will continue to hold 30% of the outstanding shares, and the company will continue to be managed by its current Chief Executive Officer, Marco Markin.

"We look forward to welcoming Neptune's associates into the SCI family of businesses," said Thomas L. Ryan, SCI President and CEO. "This partnership is a wonderful opportunity for us to join forces with the largest and fastest growing direct cremation company in North America. Neptune serves a segment of the market that will continue to grow and that we do not currently target through our traditional funeral service and cemetery network. In addition to building on Neptune's successful growth and customer service we will be able to yield immediate synergies by providing back office and fulfilment support through SCI's infrastructure."

Marco Markin, CEO of Neptune commented, "In our stage of rapid growth and development, it is the perfect time to partner with a company having SCI's scale, resources and capital. Neptune is a great organization with fabulous employees and we are all excited to pursue the tremendous growth prospects ahead of us."

It's no secret, traditional funerals are not as popular as they once were. Cremation has been on the rise for many years, actually becoming the dominant choice. There are a number of reasons, one of which is price. Of course, with funeral homes struggling to find ways to revive revenue streams, we could have seen this move by SCI coming. Now, more than ever, it appears to be a battle over controlling consumer choices. 

If history proves anything, I suspect you will notice a price increase over at the mighty Neptune pretty soon. Remember, shopping around is key.