MR. F. CHRISTOPHER TAPIA
It is interesting to note that when I was looking to inte rview funeral directors, out of the twelve funeral homes that I called, only Mr. Tapia agreed to talk to me. The interview involved myself and Mr. Tapia, and a friend who videotaped some of the questions. Mr. Tapia seemed hesitant about the camera, but still proceeded with the interview. I conducted the interview in a 'consulting' room of the 'funeral home.' Mr. Tapia was very helpful, interesting, and well-spoken.
Mr. Tapia has a bachelor degree in Psychology and he is also a licensed funeral director. He entered into the funeral industry because he saw the need for "good" funeral directors. Previously he worked in Houston in a corporate office of the funeral industry. He seemed to define good as people who were knowledgeable about funeral costs, considerate of the families, and that still kept in mind that they were in a business.
The first question I asked dealt with stereotypes of funeral directors. Mr. Tapia recognized the stereotypes of funeral directors. He said that he had heard not only the 'creepy' funeral director description, but also the 'money-hungry' funeral director. His response was that there are some funeral directors who are obsessed with dead bodies and are "weird," but he felt most were normal people. He also stated that the funeral business was hard because it was a business that dealt with money, but also was a place where grieving families found comfort.
I next asked the hardest part of his job. He replied that he had to wear many "different hats." He was a business man who had to be very concerned with details and money, and also a grief counselor. He said he had to access what every different family needed, and he had to respond to their needs.
Mr. Tapia, off camera, expanded on some of these questions. He addressed his relationship with police and people in the medical profession. He said that he felt that of all of the death professionals, that funeral directors were most stereotyped. He found that it was hard to work with police and medical personal such as doctors because they look down on funeral directors. Mr. Tapia also said that dealing with death has made him appreciate life more.