What’s new in the funeral profession? Plenty! At the 2026 National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) International Convention & Expo in Charlotte, North Carolina, join me, Gail Rubin, The Doyenne of Death®, and Martie McNabb, founder of Show & Tales®, as we explore the expo floor to discover interesting products, services, and ideas.
In this first installment of exhibitor interviews, discover a new international week of remembrance, shop for unusual funeral-themed gifts, and learn how technology can turn spoken family stories into keepsake books, complete with recordings of loved ones’ voices.
Who knew there was so much to explore at a funeral directors convention?
Remembering a Life Week: A New Way to Honor Loved Ones in 2027
What if people visited funeral homes when nobody had died recently? That’s the idea behind International Remembering a Life Week, a new initiative from the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA).
At the 2026 NFDA International Convention & Expo in Charlotte, North Carolina, I interviewed Gail Marquardt about this new opportunity to bring communities together to remember those who have died.
International Remembering a Life Week will take place April 24–30, 2027. It’s the first time NFDA has organized this weeklong observance, building upon its Remembering a Life consumer education initiative.
The goal is to encourage funeral homes to invite community members into their facilities, not for a funeral, but for activities that celebrate and honor the memories of loved ones.
What might these events look like? Marquardt suggested decorating memory jars, offering aromatherapy and grief workshops, or hosting storytelling gatherings where people can share memories of those who have died.
Different days during the week will offer opportunities to remember people who died under different circumstances, including those who died in war or by suicide. Other remembrance opportunities will honor friends and family members regardless of how they died.
And, naturally, I suggested a Mortality Movies event. Marquardt enthusiastically agreed that movies could be part of the activities!
Funeral homes aren’t the only ones who can participate. Individuals and families can create their own remembrance rituals at home, whether that’s sharing stories, looking through photographs, or simply taking time to reflect.
NFDA plans to release additional information and resources in early 2027.
The message behind Remembering a Life Week is simple: Keep saying their names. Keep telling their stories. Keep their memories alive.
Learn more at RememberingALife.com.
Funeral Gifts? You Bet! Shopping with the National Museum of Funeral History
Who says funeral professionals don’t enjoy a little retail therapy? Especially when the merchandise includes skulls, unusual handbags, funeral-themed accessories, and books about death!
At the 2026 National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) International Convention & Expo in Charlotte, North Carolina, I caught up with my friend Genevieve Keeney-Vasquez, President and CEO of the National Museum of Funeral History.
The museum, based in Houston, Texas, brought a selection of its popular gift shop merchandise to the convention. As Keeney-Vasquez explained, funeral professionals love finding unusual gifts for themselves and their staff members.
Among the merchandise were my books, including 98.6 Mortality Movies to See Before You Die. In fact, there was only one copy left at the booth when we recorded the interview! The book is also available on Amazon.
But the National Museum of Funeral History offers much more than memorable merchandise.
The museum provides an educational journey through the history of funeral service, helping visitors understand the important work funeral directors do behind the scenes. Its exhibits also encourage people to consider their own funeral planning preferences.
One of the displays featured at the NFDA convention highlighted 150 years of cremation history in North America, with a timeline of significant developments that helped shape today’s cremation practices.
The museum also operates an online gift shop, although Keeney-Vasquez noted that some seasonal and specialty items sell out quickly and may not always be available online.
Whether you’re a funeral professional, a history enthusiast, or someone who appreciates a good skull-themed accessory, the National Museum of Funeral History offers an entertaining way to learn about mortality and memorialization.
Visit www.nmfh.org to explore the museum and its online gift shop.
And remember, talking about funerals won’t make you dead. But shopping for funeral-themed gifts might make your day!
Remento Preserves Family Stories in Books That Speak
Imagine being able to open a book of family stories and hear your mother’s voice telling those stories, even decades after she’s gone. That’s the idea behind Remento, a company making it easier to preserve personal histories without having to write a single word.
At the 2026 National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) International Convention & Expo in Charlotte, North Carolina, Martie McNabb, founder of Show & Tales®, interviewed Charlie Greene, CEO and co-founder of Remento, about the company’s innovative approach to preserving family legacies.
The name Remento combines two words: remember and memento. Its product is described as a “no-write life story book.”
Here’s how it works. A storyteller receives weekly prompts by text message or email, inviting them to record memories using their phone. No apps, downloads, or passwords are required. Prompts can be questions or photographs, and family members can contribute ideas for stories they’d like to preserve.
Remento uses speech technology to transform the recordings into written narratives. The stories and accompanying photographs are compiled into a hardcover, full-color keepsake book.
But here’s the really special part: Each story includes a QR code that connects readers to the original voice recording. Families don’t just inherit the stories. They can hear the storyteller telling them.
Greene said Remento has recorded more than one million stories over the past three years. The goal is to make preserving family memories easier and more accessible than traditional approaches that require extensive writing or hiring a professional biographer.
McNabb, who has used Remento to create her own book, enthusiastically endorsed the experience. She especially appreciated being able to use photographs as storytelling prompts and described the process as remarkably simple.
For funeral professionals, Remento offers an interesting opportunity to encourage families to preserve memories while their loved ones are still alive. And for individuals, it’s a way to leave future generations something more personal than photographs and written words alone.
After all, the stories we tell are part of the legacy we leave.
Learn more at Remento.co.
