I lost my father to a terminal illness 3 weeks from the time of his diagnosis. During those 3 weeks, I learned of the diagnosis, flew from across the country to attend to his care, provided 24 hour end of life care and made all arrangements pertaining to his subsequent demise by myself. While in absolute shock after his passing at the VA hospital in Johnson City, I numbly chose a funeral home in close proximity to his primary residence, Blevins. The funeral home came to retrieve his body within hours of his death, Mr. Seal showed appropriate affect and professionalism during the transportation. Thank you Mr. Seal.
My real experience with the Blevins business began the following day when I met with Funeral Director, Robert Linkous. Mr. Linkous seemed all business as we navigated the many options that exist for end of life choices and services. His demeanor could be likened to a used car sales man who is selling any upgrades and extended warranties he can to increase the profit margin. The many options seemed crass and morbidly grotesque but I surmised that it was not for me to judge and that this was a part of the life cycle that I was not accustomed to dealing with. I deferred to his knowledge and expertise, made moderate choices and put it behind me. I happily handed over my credit card for the charges (which were numerous) to see that my loved one was well cared for.
After our initial meeting, I returned to give the funeral director clothing which I wanted my loved one to wear instead of a hospital gown for his final preparations. At this, our second meeting, I heard him arguing loudly about his compensation and internal business affairs on the telephone. Embarrassed, I sat patiently waiting. Upon the calls conclusion, he had the audacity to come to me and COMPLAIN that in his business it was about "compassion". I was stunned that he was seeking affirmation from ME when I was a paying customer. I merely eked out, "I couldn't agree more" while thinking compassion would be warranted in the present situation and at the present time for ME, the paying customer who was suffering LOSS and GRIEF and didn't need to hear about his financial woes with his business and superiors. I shook the incident off and rationalized that anyone could have a bad day and be clouded by work dealings.
My final meeting with the funeral director at Blevins confirmed all my latent feelings about the business and it's staff. I had tried to be positive but all things affirmed who they were at heart. When I returned to the funeral home to retrieve my father's remains, they were not immediately given to me. I was confused; I had no outstanding balance, I had made an appointment and I had shown up as expected to retrieve the remains when I was notified by Blevins that they were ready, what was the delay? A frenzied Mr. Linkous asked frantically if I had a fingerprint for my father. I did not. He searched the office, turning up papers, asking the administrative staff for a fingerprint and ran back and forth. It was a solid 20 minutes before I finally asked if the fingerprint prevented me from retrieving my father's remains (because it was in fact too late to gather one now!). Mr. Linkous explained that there is a company that makes jewelry from the fingerprint of the deceased. My jaw dropped..... I had been waiting all that time for another marketing opportunity on the part of Blevins! How RUDE and INCONSIDERATE!
I was absolutely aghast by the treatment I received at Blevins. I managed to tell Mr. Linkous before leaving that at any point in our business dealings, it would have been appropriate to say, 'I am sorry for your loss'. I expected a phone call later that day with an apology for the way I was treated, but none came. Their treatment of me is only surpassed in by their repulsive unwillingness to make their mistake right in an apology. No effort to offer condolences, no apology. It would appear that this individual has lost sense of the grief and tragedy associated with losing a loved one and instead is more focused on the monetary compensation that fuels his lifestyle. I have never been more appalled in my life by the lack of compassion one human being has had for another in a moment of raw pain. I am proud that I kept my composure and acted professionally but it was heartbreaking to have to deal with such a business for such an important life decision. I will regret my choice until the day I die and am fortunately NOT left in the care of such callous people.
I could go on with more examples of their failings but at the risk of embarrassing and discrediting a company I think it is best to stop. read more
