National Funeral Home

Cole Home for Funerals Celebrates 100 years. “Since our business first opened in 1919, we’ve been committed to caring for Detroit-area families in their most pressing time of need,” Cole says. “While we’ve certainly grown over the decades, we’ve remained true to our founding principles of compassion and service to the community..." DETROIT (PRWEB) January 08, 2019 The year 2019 marks the centennial anniversary of a Detroit business fixture, the James H. Cole Home for Funerals. The business will mark this milestone with a yearlong celebration sharing the faces and stories of the people who have been providing compassion and service to Detroiters for 100 years.The James H. Cole Home for Funerals first opened its doors in June 1919 on the lower east side of Detroit on St. Aubin St. in an area commonly known as the “Black Bottom.” The family-owned business was first helmed by James H. Cole Sr. He required every member of his staff to extend compassion to grieving families and superior customer service to all in the community. This focus fueled the business’ growth, and it relocated several times over the next few decades as a result. Today, the James H. Cole Home for Funerals has 50 employees, services approximately 1,800 families annually and has two locations. Its main chapel is located at 2624 W. Grand Blvd; its secondary location is at 16100 Schafer Highway.Now owned and operated by third and fourth generation family members Karla M. Cole, President, and her sons, Antonio and Brice Green, the James H. Cole Home for Funerals has the most licensed funeral directors of any funeral home in the area with a total of 12. The business recently received the prestigious Pursuit of Excellence Award from the National Funeral Directors Association, recognition for its proven track record of maintaining high standards and providing excellent s...

Slocum is the executive director of the Funeral Consumers Alliance, a national nonprofit based in South Burlington, dedicated to making sure Americans know their rights where final rites are concerned. He has spent the last 15 years railing against the funeral home industry, which he believes profits excessively from the raw emotions of grief. "Most people will only arrange a funeral one time for another person, maybe two, so you don't get practice," Slocum said. "It's a perfect scenario for exploitation." A blockbuster book published in 1963, "The American Way of Death," by Jessica Mitford, exposed the corrupt practices of the funeral home industry, and ultimately led to the founding of the Funeral Consumers Alliance. The book also launched an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission that exposed funeral home practices including a refusal to give consumers price quotes by telephone and a refusal to give them written, standardized prices. "The cost of the casket and funeral might vary according to what make of car you drive up in," Slocum said of the FTC's investigation, which resulted in a 500-page staff report. In 1984, the FTC published the Funeral Rule, which gave consumers a long list of rights, including these rights: To buy only the funeral arrangements they wanted. To get price information by telephone. To get a written itemized price list when visiting a funeral home. To make funeral arrangements without embalming.  Chris Palermo, president of the Vermont Funeral Directors Association, rejects the characterization of his industry as exploitative, and questions Slocum's understanding of the funeral home business. "What I find puzzling is there are people out there casting stones against the funeral home industry who have never walked a day in our shoes, never...