OUR HISTORY
Our History
When Richard Parker purchased Brunswick Memorial Park in 1986, it was simply a cemetery with a dirt road that led to the gravesites.
Brunswick Memorial Park has grown considerably since then, including the addition of a funeral home, crematory, and a third mausoleum. “With more and more funeral homes being bought out by ‘out of town’ corporations, we are very proud to be locally owned and operated,” Parker, a veteran of the Marine Corps, stated.
In fact, one of those same ‘out of town’ corporations purchased Brunswick Memorial Park in 1994. While they may have had the financial backing to take on projects such as building a mausoleum and paving the roadways, the business failed to thrive under a corporate hand. Richard Parker bought the business back in 2001. “It really is a David and Goliath story,” said Candice Parker Jones. “The pressure corporations push on funeral homes in this country isn’t going anywhere any time soon, but it is nothing short of refreshing to see a local business take a stand and come out on top.”
In addition to a full service funeral home, Brunswick Memorial Park is also home to an on-site crematory. “Everything is done right here, by a member of our staff,” Funeral Director Brad Whiddon said. “I believe that is very important, as so many of our families do.”
Brunswick Memorial Park can also offer a service that no other funeral home in town can - the ability to take care of all of your loved one’s funeral and cemetery needs in one place, as they own and operate Chapel Park Cemetery and A Little Bit of Heaven Pet Cemetery in Brunswick and Oglethorpe Memorial Gardens on Saint Simons Island as well. “It can take an immeasurable amount of stress off of a family in their time of need to come to one place and handle all of their arrangements there rather than having to visit multiple businesses,” Parker said. “I pride myself on our caring, compassionate staff, and can say without a doubt that they work hard to go above and beyond for each and every one of the families who walk through our doors.”
Parker’s daughter, Candice Parker Jones, serves as administrative director. Cale Parker Thorpe is a member of the maintenance staff. Brad Whiddon serves as funeral director/embalmer and Arianna DeBlois as his funeral director/embalmer apprentice.
Melody Clifton is a pre-need counselor who works to help those who wish to pre-plan their funeral/cremation services, as well as the cemetery representative. Angela Clayborn and Kimberly Stevenot are office assistants who work tirelessly to support the rest of the staff in the behind-the-scenes of daily function.
Larry Champion and Lacie Poindexter are removal specialists and funeral assistants who are tasked with bringing loved ones into the funeral home’s care.
Brunswick Memorial Park Funeral Home especially prides itself on its ability to make each and every service unique and special to the life that was lived. “We customize everything,” Jones said. “There is no template on how to best serve a family.”
The role of Brunswick Memorial Park Funeral Home is to serve families who have experienced a loss in a way that uniquely matches their needs with kindness, compassion, and empathy.
