CONVENTION AGENDA* (12 NYS CEUs offered)
Reminder: To receive credit you must be present in the session room for the full presentation. You will not receive credit if you arrive late and/or leave early.
MONDAY, AUGUST 18 (4 CEUs offered)
9:00 – 11:00 a.m. - General Session: Shed or Your Funeral Home is Dead: How to Stay Alive, Thrive and Navigate the Future | 2 CEUs
Speaker: Kathy Dempsey
11:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. - General Session: HUH, Can You Hear Me Now? Understanding the Importance of Strategic Listening in All Conversations | 1 CEU
Speaker: Jan Hargrave
12:15 – 1:30 p.m. - Lunch Break (Ticketed Buffet Available)
We’re offering a buffet lunch, but have also built in extra time. Feel free to explore downtown Saratoga Springs!
1:30 – 2:30 p.m. - General Session: Facing Addiction in America | 1 CEU
Speaker: Brandon Novak
2:45 – 4:30 p.m. - Service of Healing & Remembrance & Annual Meeting
Please join us for our Annual Service of Healing and Remembrance where we will honor those colleagues lost over the past 12 months. Together we will celebrate their contributions to our great association, this humble profession, their local communities, and most importantly, their families and friends.
We'll then move into Association business and updates during the Annual Meeting.
4:30 – 7:30 p.m. - Exhibit Preview and Silent Auction
8:30 – 11:00 p.m. - Funeral Directors Night Out
TUESDAY, AUGUST 19 (4 CEUs offered)
8:30 – 10:30 a.m. - Concurrent Sessions | 2 CEUs each; choose 1
- Assessment and Treatment of Motor Vehicle Accidents and Gunshot Wounds of the Head
Speaker: Dominick Astorino - Embracing the New Employee: Strategies for Recruitment and Interviewing
Speaker: Leili McMurrough - FTC Compliance and Business Law
Speaker: Jennifer Graziano
10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Exhibit Hall Open Strolling Brunch/Ice Cream Break
Sponsored by PrePlan Funeral Trust
12:00 – 1:30 p.m. Running Your Business: A Peer-to-Peer Forum
Facilitated by Mark J. Nolan, Nolan Funeral Home, Inc.
1:30 - 3:45 p.m. - Concurrent Sessions
- 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. Document and Form Compliance | 2 Law CEUs
Speaker: Thomas Fuller (Repeated on Wednesday) - 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. The Power of Meta Platforms: Elevating Funeral Home Visibility | 1 CEU
Speaker: Bill Johnston - 2:45 – 3:45 p.m. Supporting Bereaved Families and Caring for Yourself | 1 CEU
Speaker: Eileen Clinton
6:00 - 10:00 p.m. - Annual Banquet (Ticketed Event)
Saratoga National; pre-registration required; transportation provided
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20 (4 CEUs offered)
8:30 – 9:30 a.m. - General Session: AI: Overcoming the Hype and Discovering the Opportunity | 1 CEU
Speaker: Jeff Butler
9:45 – 10:45 a.m. - General Session: The “F” Words of Funeral Services | 1 CEU
Speaker: Justin Zabor
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. - General Session: Document and Form Compliance | 2 Law CEUs
Speaker: Thomas Fuller (Repeated from Tuesday)
Looking for more details? Check out the Session Descriptions.
For Information on the Special Events, click here.
Reminder: To receive credit you must be present in the session room for the full presentation. You will not receive credit if you arrive late and/or leave early.
* Schedule as of May 1, 2025; subject to change