OSKALOOSA FUNERAL DIRECTOR HONORED BY PEERS FOR 40 YEARS OF SERVICE AT STATE CONVENTION
Joseph F. Bates was honored for his 40 years of service to the funeral profession on Tuesday, May 14 during the 133rd Annual Iowa Funeral Directors Association Convention. L to R: IFDA President Douglas D. Carlsen and Joseph F. Bates (submitted photo)
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa – Joseph F. Bates of Oskaloosa was honored for 40 years of dedication to funeral service during the 133rd Annual Iowa Funeral Directors Association (IFDA) Convention held May 14-16, 2013, at the Iowa State Center and Gateway Hotel in Ames, Iowa.
Bates was one of seven funeral directors from around the state to receive recognition by peers and colleagues for 40 years of service to Iowa communities.
Bates worked for a funeral home in Remsen while attending college. “While assisting the funeral director, I could see the trust and admiration the families and the public had for the profession, and my interest grew,” Bates said. “However, I knew I could not stay in Remsen, as the dominant funeral home there is Fisch Funeral Home, and I figured Bates & Fisch just didn’t seem a dignified name for a funeral home!”
After graduating from Kentucky School of Mortuary Science in Louisville, Bates began an internship at Patterson-James Funeral Home in Mason City and finished the year at Newman Funeral Chapel in Oskaloosa. He bought out Newman in 1981 and operated it as Bates Funeral Chapel until he retired in 2010.
This year’s Annual IFDA Convention featured highly regarded local and national funeral service speakers who presented current information on bereavement education, business and management practices, regulatory updates, technical skills and training and additional topics related to the funeral service profession. The Annual IFDA Convention provides funeral directors with a forum to receive and exchange information so they may return home with new ideas that will allow them to better serve the families in their communities.
The Iowa Funeral Directors Association “promotes and supports funeral service excellence©” by representing over 700 Iowa licensed funeral directors and 413 funeral home establishments throughout the state and promotes high standards within the field of funeral service through continuing education programs, legislative representation and service to Iowa communities. For consumer information regarding funeral service, please visit IFDA’s website at www.iafda.org.
