Tony Coder

Executive Director
Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation

As Executive Director of the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation, Tony leads the charge to support community-based efforts in Ohio to reduce the stigma of suicide, promote education and awareness about suicide prevention, provide training and development, and increase resources and programs that reduce the risk of lives lost to suicide. Prior to joining the OSPF, Tony served as the Director of Programs and Services for the Ohio Association of County Behavioral Health Authorities, where he managed Recovery-Oriented Systems of Care, the Statewide Advocacy Network and the Committee to Address Suicide for the organization. He has also served as the Director of State and Local Affairs for Smart Approaches to Marijuana and as legislative director for the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Toledo.

Learning Lab: There is Help and There is Hope

• 1 CE Hour

Amanda Crates

Board Member
State of Ohio Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors

Amanda E. Crates of Findlay, Ohio is a Funeral Director/Embalmer member of the Board appointed by Governor Mike DeWine. Ms. Crates holds a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science from Urbana University and an MBA from University of Findlay. She currently manages Colden-Crates Funeral Home in Findlay and is a managing member of Schindewolf-Stout-Crates Funeral Home in Kenton. 

She has served on the Ohio Funeral Directors Association Board of Directors as an At-Large Director, has been a member of multiple committees and is a Past President of District #7. 

She received the Three Arches Leadership Award and is involved in Rotary Club and Soroptimist Club. Ms. Crates is also a Certified Personal Trainer and co-owner of Baylifft Gym & Box.

Learning Lab: Fostering a Successful Apprentice/Master Relationship

• 1 CE Hour, Laws & Rules

Sherrie Dunlevy

Author, Speaker, Podcast Host

Sherrie Dunlevy is a former radio talk host and TV news anchor. She is also a bereaved mom and daughter. She is the author of the #1 bestselling book “how Can I Help?” and offers talks, workshops and retreats on grief recovery and rebuilding and redesigning your life after loss. She is the former host of the Grief Anonymous podcast and the Founder of the Graduating Grief Academy and online support community and host of the Graduating Grief podcase, all designed to help move grieving people from living in pain to living with JOY.

Learning Lab: How Can I Help?  How to Help Offer Support to Those Suffering Loss

• 1 CE Hour

Coleen Ellis, CT, CPLP

Pet Loss Pioneer
Pet Loss & Grief Companioning Certified
Author, International Speaker, Consultant, Blogger

A chance encounter with a pet parent facing the death of her pet was a defining moment for Coleen in 1998.    It was the beginning of her vision of how to best meet the needs of pet parents in their desire to mourn, memorialize and pay tribute to their beloved pets when they die.  In 2003, the experience of the death of her dog, Mico, guided her in starting the nation’s first stand-alone pet’s-only funeral home, Pet Angel Memorial Center.  Soon, publications such as Kates-Boylston’s Pet Loss Insider deemed her the “most well-known pet funeral director” and a true “pet loss pioneer.” 

In 2009, Coleen founded Two Hearts Pet Loss Center, to guide people who wish to provide meaningful pet death care services in their communities, as well to be an educational resource in the pet grief discipline.  In 2009, she received the first Death and Grief Studies Certification specializing in Pet Loss Companioning by Dr. Alan Wolfelt as well as releasing her first book, Pet Parents:  A Journey Through Unconditional Love and Grief.  Her second book co-authored with colleague Dr. Mary Gardner, Forever Friend, released in 2022. She is Certified in Thanatology and is a Certified Pet Loss Professional.

By 2014, Coleen was ready to take her vision to a new level. She was a co-founder of The Pet Loss Center and assisted the company in opening pet loss operations across the United States, with this operation being acquired by a national acquisition company in 2020.

Learning Lab: The Unconditional Love & Stories of a Pet Loss Business

• 1 CE Hour

Kevin Gaffney

Regional Sales VP
Funeral Directors Life

Kevin has been in the Funeral and Cemetery industry for the past 25 years. He has consulted with funeral homes and cemeteries From Washington D.C. to San Francisco. In June of 2007 he joined Funeral Director’s Life Insurance Company as a Director with responsibilities in Ohio, Kentucky and a variety of development projects, and in 2010 became a Regional Vice President for the eastern U.S. He is actively involved in the International Cemetery and Funeral Association as a member of the Education Foundation Board and Chairman of the Membership Committee. He has also been a speaker at state and national conventions.   

Preconvention Seminar: Ethics in Today’s Business and Meeting the Insurance Needs of the Senior Market

• 5 CEC Hours (Insurance Hours Only) 

Doug Gober

Partner
The Foresight Companies

Doug Gober began his funeral service career forty-one years ago as a sales representative in the casket industry. He has earned numerous national awards from various organizations within the deathcare industry. Doug also served as a consultant on various marketing and merchandising projects conducted on an international scale. In 2018, Doug partnered with The Foresight Companies in his quest to provide funeral and cemetery owners successful business solutions. Foresight enables Doug to expand his service offerings to include Accounting, Business Valuations, Human Resource Services, Strategic Performance Analysis, as well as Financing.

A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Doug graduated from the University of Alabama in 1977, where he earned a Business Degree in Accounting. Subsequently, he become a Certified Public Accountant specializing in industrial audits and corporate taxes.

Learning Lab: The Future is NOW for Funeral Service

• 1 CE Hour

Thomas B. Holland II, PhD, CPC

Vice President National Accounts
Atlantic Coast Life

Tom Holland has been helping counselors for over 20 years in the insurance and Preneed Industry. He has held positions as Agent, Account Executive, Sales Manager, Regional Training Director, Regional Sales Director, Director of Conservation and Training Director-Field Development, Director Development and National Accounts, Vice President Sales/Marketing and currently Vice President National Accounts.

Tom has his CPC (Certified Pre-Planning Consultant) designation through the National Foundation Funeral Service and National Funeral Directors Association and is a member of the NFDA development board. He has held Life and Health Insurance License in the following states: Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, and Illinois. His teaching experience includes a Life Underwriters Training Course Moderator. Tom has been approved as an instructor for numerous continuing education classes in many states and all Canadian Provinces. He holds his DTM designation through Toastmasters International, his Certificate in Management through the American Management Association. He has taught and instructed classes in insurance sales, management development, pre-license certification, ethics and marketing and sales development. Tom holds a master’s and PhD degrees in marketing.

Tom spent five years with the Federal Bureau of Investigation before moving into the insurance business.

Preconvention Seminar: Insurance Industry/Preneed/Final Expense

• 5 CEC Hours (Insurance Hours Only) 

David Ingram, Esq.

The Ingram Firm
OFDA General Counsel

David is a Columbus-based attorney practicing in a range of areas such as emerging businesses and non-profit and tax-exempt organizations. He draws on his experience as the previous executive director for the Ohio Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors to serve OFDA and its membership. He enjoys the opportunity to assist funeral service entrepreneurs and family-owned businesses in navigating compliance, licensing, risk, and the unique challenges that they face each day.

Learning Lab: Whose Right Is It Anyway?

• 1 CE Hour, Laws & Rules

Kelly Manion

Grief Specialist
Director of Community Engagement
Funeral Service Foundation

Kelly Manion has spent 20 years immersed in mission-driven work. She has served organizations in the arts and higher education communities, and for the last eight years has served the funeral service profession through her roles as the Director of Communication, and most recently, as the Director of Community Engagement for the Funeral Service Foundation. In her work, Kelly carries out the Foundation’s mission of investing in people and programs to strengthen funeral service and lift grieving communities by promoting the value of funerals and memorialization to organizations across the end-of-life continuum, and helping funeral professionals build meaningful relationships within their communities. Kelly was instrumental in creating resources and initiatives that help funeral directors support their communities and staff, including Youth & Funerals, Grieving Alone & Together, Caring for Families & Caring for Yourself, and Journey to Serve. She also helps oversee the Foundation’s scholarship program, which offers support to more than 500 funeral service professionals and students of funeral service each year.

Learning Lab: Caring for Families & Caring For Yourself: The Importance of Self-care in the Funeral Service Profession

• 1 CE Hour

Leili McMurrough

Licensed Funeral Director
Attorney at Law
Program Director, Worsham College of Mortuary Science

Leili McMurrough is a licensed funeral director and embalmer and a licensed attorney. Leili received her B.A. from Lehigh University, her J.D. from Syracuse University College of Law, and her Associate degree from Simmons Institute of Funeral Service. Leili is the Program Director at Worsham College and works at McMurrough Funeral Chapel in Libertyville, Illinois. She is also the Chair of the American Board of Funeral Service Education Committee on Accreditation.

Learning Lab: The Young and the Restless

• 1 CE Hour, Ethics

Scott Serafin

UBS Financial The 770 Group

Scott started his career in the financial services industry in 2006 with Smith Barney and joined The 770 Group in 2008. He graduated with honors from the Terry College of Business School at the University of Georgia in 2003 and holds the Chartered Sustainable and Responsible Investment Counselor (CSRIC) designation. Scott focuses on providing investment advice to high-net-worth families and individuals. He and his wife, Sabrina, have two children, Perri and Jack, and live in the Virginia-Highlands neighborhood of Atlanta. He is a supporter of the Atlanta United Soccer team and spends as much time as possible outdoors playing golf, tennis, and soccer.

Learning Lab: Your Most Common Master Trust Questions, Answered!

• 1 CE Hour, Preneed

Matthew Smith

Owner & President of Homeward Bound Shipping, Inc.
Founder, Professional Embalmers Institute (PEI)

The opportunity to impact the lives of others can present itself in many ways. But for Matt Smith, he answers that calling every day in his life’s work. In death, he restores beauty and creates a greater family experience by making the loved one Perfectly Presentable.

If there ever were a trailblazer in a profession, it is Matt Smith. In the past 25 years, Matt has become an international educator in embalming and professional instruction.

“Matt MAKES the impossible POSSIBLE and the overwhelmingly challenging EASIER.” ~S. Hill

Matt is well-known for his innovative solutions for difficult case restoration and feature setting. The one to transform bodies and mindset in the most difficult cases.

Severe edema, auto accident trauma, Jaundice, gun-shot trauma, decomposition case, severe tissue gas cases, severe emaciation, burn victim, creating the smile…and others.

Developing and teaching his rarified technical procedures and artistic enhancements with his extensive experience, Matt inspires his community of colleagues. He has designed well-documented visuals and instructional courses to transform the profession. Matt is an inspirational, encouraging, and compelling coach but most importantly, he is driven to make an impact on others.

Preconvention Seminar: Embalming 101 - Advanced Technician

• 4 CE Hours

Nicole Wiedeman, CSE

Funeral Celebrant, First Call Facilitator
Dead Ringers

Nicole has served the Death Care Profession for 32 years. Her first 25 years were with Forethought/Global Atlantic.

The past 6 years she has served as key analyst and trainer for Dead Ringers. She is on a mission to save us from ourselves in our phone interactions. She is a student of stellar customer service. Nicole conducts etiquette and sales training to hundreds of Death Care Professionals every year. She is an expert in SWOT analysis, business strategy, and communication techniques.

She is a familiar face at Death Care industry events whether visiting with friends and colleagues or a featured speaker and serves on the Board of The Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science.

Nicole has a designation of CSE - Certified Supplier Executive with ICCFA. She is a Certified Funeral Celebrant. She also has the designation of Certified Tour Ambassador.

Keynote: Is Phone Etiquette Killing Your Business?

• 1.5 CE Hours, Includes 1 CE Hour Preeed

Justin P. Zabor, CFSP

Funeral Director and Professional Speaker
The Zabor Funeral Home, Inc.
Justin Zabor Enterprises, LLC

Justin P. Zabor, CFSP is “The Director of Death who speaks the Language of Life” for you and your business.  He is a third-generation funeral director and professional speaker who works with associations, organizations and corporations to help them create customer experiences To Die For!

Justin has been granted the designation of Certified Funeral Service Professional (CFSP) by the Academy of Professional Funeral Service Practice. There are over 35,000 funeral directors in the U.S. alone and only 4% of the entire profession have achieved this distinct honor. 

He is the President of Justin Zabor Enterprises LLC, a professional speaking firm based in Cleveland, OH. He has been speaking professionally in the funeral industry for over 15 years. Justin was elected the second-youngest President ever of The Ohio Chapter of the National Speakers Association.

Learning Lab: The 'F-Words' of Funeral Service; What I Wish Someone Had Told Me Before Mortuary School Graduation