Louis C. James of Bethlehem, a licensed Pennsylvania funeral director for 25 years, was honored for dedicated professional service by the Pennsylvania Funeral Directors Association (PFDA).

The award was presented by Frank Kapr, PFDA president, at a special recognition ceremony event at the 139th annual PFDA Convention & Expo.

James is a graduate of DeSales University and Northampton Community College - Funeral Service Program and owns the James Funeral Home and Cremation Service PC, which is now in its 10th year, but funeral service was not his primary career choice.

When he first came to Bethlehem in 1981, he was a seminarian and student at DeSales University, and after graduation, transferred and was accepted as a seminarian for the Diocese of Allentown, where he was assigned to the former Mary Immaculate Seminary. After deciding to change career paths, he took a position as a Children and Youth Caseworker with Pinebrook Services in Allentown and later Northampton County DHS.

James then decided to begin studies toward his funeral director’s license in 1993 and graduated from the program in 1996. He is also a past President of the Eastern PA Funeral Directors Association.

“Everything I have done in my life has brought me to this career choice,” James says. “Ministry, counseling and serving the families who have chosen my firm, is my vocation and helping those in need to say goodbye to a loved one is what this career is all about.”

Organized in 1881, the Pennsylvania Funeral Directors Association) is the largest state funeral directors’ association in the nation, and a member of the National Funeral Directors Association. The Pennsylvania Funeral Directors Associations exists to inform and educate the funeral director, the public and government about the value of funeral service and licensed funeral directors on a pre-need, at-need and post-need basis.

Contributed article