Chasing perfection…attaining excellence….

I am so excited to share the news that Miles Funeral Home is one of only 104 funeral homes to be honored with the 2023 National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) Pursuit of Excellence Award, placing us in an elite group of funeral service professionals. The award is conferred on Miles Funeral Home Holden and Miles-Sterling Funeral & Tribute Center.

In the United States there are 24,636 funeral home businesses, in the state of Massachusetts there are 970. Only one other funeral home in Massachusetts received the award which requires recipients to demonstrate and adhere to the highest ethical and professional standards. Judges selected only funeral homes that provide “unsurpassed service to families and communities.”

To earn an NFDA Pursuit of Excellence Award, we had to meet or exceed business standards set forth by the program and demonstrate proficiency in key areas of funeral service, including: “compliance with state and federal regulations; providing ongoing education and professional development opportunities for staff; offering outstanding programs and resources to bereaved families; maintaining an active level of involvement within the community; participating and actively serving in the funeral service profession; and promoting funeral home services through a variety of marketing, advertising and public relations programs. Participants are also required to adhere to a Pledge of Ethical Practices.”

“This year’s Pursuit of Excellence honorees are a truly exceptional group. Not only are they serving grieving families with dignity and compassion, but they are finding meaningful ways to support and give back to the community,” said NFDA Director of Public Relations Jessica Koth, who manages the Pursuit of Excellence Award program.”

Vince Lombardi once said, “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.” At Miles we strive to go the extra mile and then some, we continuously seek to exceed customer expectations, and we are dedicated to the advancement of our communities. In our application we highlighted our success in educating the community in after-life care and bereavement. Since April of 2021 we have offered more than 35 in-person educational events, increasing funeral home literacy among nurses, hospice staff, educators, social service workers, and the public. Additionally, this Thoughtful Thursdays blog has more than 100 original educational, inspirational postings in the following categories: children and death, cremation, the opioid epidemic, funeral etiquette, grief, loss and bereavement, and preneed services. Education is our means for creating a culture in which death is less feared and grief is supported.

When notified of the award, winning our first national award for excellence, owner and President of Miles Funeral Home, Richard S. Mansfield, Jr said, “We are honored to receive this prestigious award and are grateful to our outstanding staff and the families who put their trust in us. We value dedication to the community and are encouraged by this recognition of our hard work. We thank the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA).

We will continue to chase perfection, knowing that we will not always meet the expectations of those we serve, but that the pursuit of excellence is at the heart of our mission to honor lives and celebrate memories.

Congratulations to all the Miles team members, you are each a worthy recipient of this prestigious award.