Clipping, Concierge funeral service, Summerlin view, April 2009

Page 10AA ? Tuesday, April 14, 2009 a Summerlin south Friends start concierge? funeral service, specializing in green buria By DANIELLE NADLER______________ VIEW STAFF WRITER They felt obligated. That?s how Laura Sussman and Wendy Kraft explain what brought them to open a funeral home, a venture few feel called to. The notion of women-run funeral services sparked a year ago between the long?time friends. It was realized four weeks ago when they opened the doors of Kraft- Sussman Funeral Services. Their philosophy is to treat each customer as family and to provide the valley with an alternative to corporate-owned funeral homes. They call it concierge funeral service. ?We are the only two people here, so we will work with you from your first call through the end of the process, and if you need us for anything afterward, we?re here,? Kraft said. ?We want people to feel comfort?able. Death is part of life. It?s sad, but you don?t have to be afraid of it.? Kraft?s first encounter with death was in 1992 when her newborn baby was strangled by the umbilical chord, a mis?fortune she said has given her the compassion for mourning families. ?I decided I needed to com?mit my life to helping people who were going through a death,? she said. ?I enjoy people ? learning about them and helping them in any way.? She spoke at bereavement support groups years after her child?s death and was often sought out for comfort. She went on to work as the only woman at a large funeral home, where she was asked to work with the families who suffered the most tragic deaths. ?They felt that as a woman, she was able to handle those situations that needed the most compassion,? Sussman said. ?We want to provide that same compassion and comfort level here.? Sussman worked in non?profits for 30 years before she stepped down a year ago to open the funeral home. Most recently, she served as execu?tive director of the Jewish Com?munity Center and Ttemple Beth Sholom in Las Vegas. ?I?ve always had this need to do something meaningful,? she said. She studied up on psychol?ogy, religious traditions, insur?ance, state laws, finances and all other background needed to run a funeral home. She passed the two tests required to earn her Nevada funeral director license. Kraft and Sussman, both from Summerlin, are long?time members of the Jewish Burial Society, which is a group of volunteers that pre?pares bodies in a process that conforms to Jewish law. Though, the two can pro?vide most any type of burial at the request of families. Kraft and Sussman are able to perform a traditional Jewish, or what?s modernly referred to as a green, burial, which is done without em?balming. They work with an embalmer and cremator for families who request those services. The funeral home is one of just a few in the southwest Las Vegas area, tucked in a new business park at 3975 S. Durango Drive, Suite 104. It is made up of a chapel that fits about 40 people, a kitchen, an office, a prep room and an arrangement room stocked "I decided i needed to commit my life to helping people who were going through a death. I enjoy people ? learning about them and helping them in any way." WENDY KRAFT CO-OWNER, KRAFT-SUSSMAN FUNERAL SERVICES with snacks, stuffed animals, a few toys and a small library of books. Families who stop by the home meet Sussman and Kraft in the arrangement room, where they are given a full price list. They display the list on a monitor so customers can always see the total. Sussman said most people assume services at a boutique funeral home would cost more than big chain homes. ?That?s true in a lot of busi?nesses, but in funeral services, it?s totally different because we don?t have a lot of adminis?trative layers and overhead,? she said. ?We?re able to keep prices low.? Kraft and Sussman will bring their price lists and materials to mourning fami?lies for no additional cost. ?They don?t even have to come in here,? Kraft said. ?We?ll go to them so they can make choices in the comfort of where they are.? DANIELLE NAD Laura Sussman, left, talks with her longtime friend and business partner Wendy Kraft at Kraft-Su Funeral Services, 3975 S. Durango Drive, Suite 104, April 1. The two opened the business last moi offer Las Vegas Valley residents an alternative to corporate-owned funeral homes. Their philosof to treat each customer as family. * Leslie Wall, whose 22-year-old nephew was shot in Las Ve?gas last month, said it was Kraft and Sussman?s professional?ism, patience and kindness that helped them cope. ?They took a really hor?rific situation and made it as positive as it could possibly be made,? Wall said. ?That helped my sister through the most difficult thing she?s ever had to go through.? Kraft and Sussman found MORE INFORMATION For more inform ation on Kraft-Sussman Funeral Services, c 485-6500 or visit kraftsussman.com. Wall?s sister a counselor and called the family days after the memorial service to check in. ?Death is a subject most ?people shy away from,? Wall said. ?The fact that these wom?en are doing this very difficult job so well is something should know. It really mendable.? Contact Southeast and Southv View reporter Danielle Nadler dnadler@viewnews.com or 22 BUDGET DENTAL LOW?PRICES! 220-8488 | 6376 Spring Mt. 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