Don, Jim and Caren Crawford

ESCANABA – A local funeral home has over 145 years of mortuary experience.

Don Crawford, who turned 97 today, and his son Jim Crawford and granddaughter Caren Crawford have held their respective mortuary licenses for a combined 145 years.

Caren’s held her license for 25 years; Jim for 59; and Don for 70.

The license allows an individual to operate a funeral home and the duties that come with it, such as the embalming process and managing the funeral services.

Crawford Funeral Home and Crawford Funeral Chapel have been in operation since 1965, but the family has been involved in the business for 100 years prior to the 1965 purchase.

“My family’s always been in the business,” Don said.

“We had a funeral home in Hancock, which started in 1863. My great-grandfather came from Scotland and started it.”

The business has stayed a family-run business since its beginnings in 1863.

In 1946, Don graduated from Hancock High School before heading to Suomi College. Don married his late wife, Carmen Zerbst of Houghton, in 1947.

In 1948, Don began working as an apprentice at the Hancock Memorial Chapel. Don would go on to attend mortuary school at Wayne University and graduate in 1954.

When asked to describe how difficult mortuary school was, he had one word: tough.

“At mortuary school, we had hours of class every week – 8 to 5, it was all classes, no study periods,” Don said.

Don was required to take intensive courses such as biochemistry and organic chemistry.

Don graduated from mortuary school in 1954, before he and Carmen moved back to Hancock, where he worked at the Memorial Chapel until 1959.

In 1959, the couple moved to Escanaba, where Don became a partner in Allo Funeral Home.

On January 1, 1965, Don purchased both the Degnan Funeral Home in Escanaba (now Crawford Funeral Home) and the Boyle Funeral Home (now Crawford Funeral Chapel) in Bark River.

“Everybody wants to be their own boss,” he said.

He added that purchasing the businesses helped him provide for his family.

“When we moved to Escanaba, we had four children. And after I bought the place there in 1965, by 1966, we had four more kids. We had eight kids. So I was always working,” Don said.

Don semi-retired in 1993, but he still stops by the locations and holds his license.

“I love the business. This was not work for me. This was a pleasure. I enjoyed helping people,” he said regarding keeping his license current for the past three decades.

“He comes in to make sure we’re still doing things right,” Caren joked.

Jim carried on the business, serving as an apprentice under Don before going on to graduate from the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Sciences in 1973 and acquiring his license in 1974.

By 1993, when Don semi-retired, Jim bought and still owns the funeral homes.

The tradition continued as Jim and his wife, Mary Kay Crawford’s youngest daughter, Caren, joined the family business.

Caren received a degree in business administration from Central Michigan University (CMU). She attended Worsham College of Mortuary Science in Wheeling, Ill. She received her mortuary license in 1999 and then returned to Delta County to begin her career with her father and grandfather at Crawford Funeral Home, marking the sixth generation of morticians.

Caren said she didn’t go to college to get into the family business, but when she returned home, she talked to Jim about becoming licensed.

Caren asked Jim why he never brought the idea to her, and Jim told her that the funeral business is not something a person can be talked into.

“It’s 24/7, it’s a demanding job,” Caren said.

The job is intense and requires the Crawfords to drop whatever they’re doing if they are called.

“We have to take care of others prior to sometimes taking care of our own needs, our own activities,” Caren explained.

Jim added, “This business is something you have to want to be in.”

“There are a lot of people whom I know that went into the business and realized after a year or two that, you know, maybe this isn’t for me. You have to have a passion for getting up at 3:00 in the morning and going to work.”

Don shared that roughly 90 percent of deaths happen to people between midnight and 6 a.m., so Jim or Caren are working through the night to help the family.

“They don’t know you’ve been up all night,” Jim said.

Caren added, “Ultimately, it’s up to us to not make that known, right? Even as tired as we are, we always try to be present and try not to bring that into a service or a meeting with the family, so some days are definitely more challenging.”

Don, Jim, and Caren all said they chose and continued in the funeral business because they want to help people.

“I’m like my dad; I enjoy helping people, and I get a lot of satisfaction knowing that I’m doing something that’s helping somebody in a time of need when you’re probably at your lowest point,” Jim said.

Don echoed Jim, saying they are there for the family when a death occurs.

“We are helping families when they’re at their lowest, and (we do) the best that we can do to make them better,” Don said.

Caren agreed, adding that the job isn’t done once the service is planned.

“When we take care of a family, we’re never done taking care of a family. If they call and need something, you know, we’re always here to try to see what else we’re able to do, and sometimes it may be just sitting down and talking to them,” she said.

Don, who has held his license for over 70 years, said he has taken care of “thousands and thousands and thousands” of funeral proceedings.

For the next generation of aspiring morticians, Don emphasized the importance of being passionate about the business.

“I would ask them if they really wanted to or if they were just looking for a job,” Don said.

He also spoke about the job Jim and Caren are doing, saying he knows the business is in good hands.

Crawford is now retired, enjoying life with his wife Rosalee Crawford.

“There was no Crawford Funeral before I came to Escanaba, and Jim and Caren are carrying off what I started. And I feel great about that,” Don said.

“It’s a true family business, and I know that they’re doing well and they can take care of it. And that makes me sleep at night better, too.”

Caren, who shared a smile after hearing her Don say he was happy to see her and Jim continuing with the business, said she wants the business to continue well into the future.

“The three of us would all acknowledge that we’re pretty proud that we chose this profession,” Caren said.

Jim added, “We believe that people support us and we support the community.”