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The ADVANCE, June 16, 2021/Page 11A
Honoring
Tradition and
Moving Forward
for purchase. He met with
Stewart, who was planning
to retire, and closed the sale
on December 4, 2020.
Roberts visited the
Toombs County communi
ty twice before he made the
decision to buy the funeral
home and he liked what he
saw. “The people here are
phenomenal,” he said. He
deliberately chose to be in
a smaller community and
not part of a corporate en
terprise where people may
not always come ahead of
profit. “These are families,
not numbers,” he observed.
Being a funeral direc
tor means dealing with
people when they are going
through a very emotional
time. “People need to be
able to trust you,” he said
of his profession. “No two
people are ever the same,
and they handle grief in dif
ferent ways.” Learning how
to accommodate each fam
ily’s needs was gleaned from
Roberts’ years in the funeral
home business. “They teach
you the national boards in
(mortuary) college — the
science — but the best
NEW LOOK — Brandon Roberts, President of Roberts-Stewart Funeral Home, stands in the newly-redecorated lobby
at local mortuary. He is an avid outdoorsman with roots in the mountains of Tennessee, and wanted the space to
resemble a comfortable mountain lodge retreat
STAFF — The team that serves the funeral home's Vidalia and Glenwood Chapels
are Jimmy Sharpton, a funeral assistant who was formerly with Stewart Funeral Home;
Anna Helms, director's assistant; and Lisa Gore, the administrative manager, who han
dles clerical duties.
NEW DIRECTION — Brandon Rob
erts has assumed ownership of
the former Ronnie Stewart Fu
neral Home, The business has
been part of the landscape at
1722 Mt, Vernon Road for several
decades. Roberts has respected
traditions established by the fu
neral home while moving for
ward with his own updates,
ICONIC HEARSE — Roberts has honored the
iconic trademark of the Ronnie Stewart Funer
al Home, a horse-drawn hearse, by retaining
it in the Roberts-Stewart Funeral Home's logo.
The actual hearse that inspired the logo sits
beneath a shelter in front of the funeral home.
training is experience. Real
knowledge comes from ex
perience.” He added, “We
are providing a service for
the deceased, but we are
there more for the living.”
Roberts has been
mindful of tradition as he
assumed ownership of the
funeral home operated
by Ronnie Stewart for so
many years. That is why he
retained Stewart in the fu
neral home’s name. He has
honored the iconic trade
mark of the Stewart fu
neral home, a horse drawn
hearse, by keeping it in the
funeral home’s logo. The ac
tual hearse that inspired the
logo sits beneath a shelter
in front of the funeral home
and Roberts plans to re
place the glass and do other
restorative work to main
tain the 19th century relic.
But other changes
made at the funeral home
are definitely reflective of
Roberts’ taste and person
ality. He has redecorated
the funeral home’s entrance
hall and main sitting room.
“We just finished this,” he
said of the area that resem
bles a comfortable moun
tain lodge retreat and was
perhaps inspired by his
Tennessee roots. Roberts
noted, “The front lobby has
changed, but everything
else has remained the same.
You don’t want to forget
where you come from in
any situation and make too
many changes. People here
are just like where I come
from, they like to know who
they are dealing with.”
Roberts defines him
self as an avid outdoorsman
and loves to hunt, fish, hike
and camp when he has the
time. A bachelor, he lives in
an apartment at the back of
the funeral home but plans
to invest in land and build a
home in the near future. He
describes himself as “pretty
laid back. It takes a lot to
stretch me out.”
He is also a history buff
who appreciates tradition.
Roberts has a photograph
of his great-great-grand-
father, John Pardue, who
drove a hearse for a funeral
home in Mountain City in
the early 1900s. “Back then,
funerals were usually held
in homes and churches,
not in funeral homes. The
funeral business consisted
of a big bam where they
stored the caskets,” Rob
erts explained. He owns an
embalming kit like the ones
that were used in his great-
great-grandfather’s day.
Another nod to tradition is
an antique pump organ he
brought from his home and
placed in the foyer of the fu
neral home.
Roberts, who is li
censed to practice in North
Carolina, South Carolina,
Tennessee and Georgia,
works with a team includ
ing Lisa Gore, the adminis
trative manager, who han
dles clerical duties; Anna
Helms, director’s assistant;
and Jimmy Sharpton, a
funeral assistant who was
formerly with Stewart. The
team serves both the Vida
lia and Glenwood chapels
of the funeral home.
Roberts said of his de
cision to become a funeral
director, “I didn’t pick it, it
picked me.” But he has no
doubt that he was influ
enced by his grandfather, al
though his grandfather may
not be aware of the fact. “I
was mentored by my grand
father. He is a bigger part of
this than he realizes.”
Roberts defines his
work as rewarding because
he is providing a commu
nity service and helping
people when they most
need support. “Here, they
can expect to be treated like
family. We want them to
know that when they come
here, they are dealing with
home folks.” It is a commit
ment Roberts has adopted
as a slogan: “Neighbors
Serving Neighbors.”
Brandon Roberts Founds
Roberts-Stewart
Funeral Home
By Deborah Clark
Regional Editor
dclarkadvance@gmail.com
The first impression
of Brandon Roberts is that
he is friendly and outgoing
and that he loves meeting
people. He is also young
— only 36 — and may not
conform to general percep
tions about funeral direc
tors. “When people learn
that I am a funeral director,
they are surprised. They
may be expecting an older
gentleman,” he quipped.
But make no mistake, he
has almost two decades of
experience and is fully com
mitted to the path he chose
while still in high school.
In December 2020,
Roberts assumed owner
ship of one of Vidalia’s old
est mortuaries and since
that time has been careful
to preserve
many of the
traditions
FUNERAL HOME
area resi
dents came ^ROBERTS - STEWART
to expect
with Ron
nie Stewart
Funeral Home. But he also
made some changes to up
date his new business.
Roberts was bom and
reared in Mountain City,
Tennessee, where his father,
John W. Roberts, was in law
enforcement and his moth
er, Sheelagh Porter, worked
with juvenile probation ser
vices. He spent a lot of time
with his grandparents, and
because his grandfather,
the Rev. Eddie Porter, was
a Baptist minister, he was
often at church services,
funerals and visitations. In
the company of his grand
parents, Roberts became
comfortable at these kinds
of events. His grandfather
was not surprised when
Roberts informed him that
he wanted to be a funeral
director; in fact, his grandfa
ther was friends with one of
the town’s funeral directors
and made the connections
for his grandson. At age 18,
Roberts started working at
Hux-Lipford Funeral Home
in Mountain City.
Intent on progressing
in the business, Roberts at
tended Gupton-Jones Mor
tuary College in Atlanta,
where he earned a degree
in mortuary science. While
attending college, Roberts
worked with Parrott Funer
al Home in Atlanta.
After graduation, Rob
erts returned to Hux-Lip-
ford, where he worked in
management from 2010
until 2013. He then joined
Eggers Fu
neral Home,
which had
two chapels
in Spartan
burg, South
Carolina.
That busi
ness was owned by John
Eggers, who was also from
Mountain City. During the
last seven and a half years
he was with Eggers, Rob
erts was vice president of
the company. When Eggers
died, Roberts was looking
into buying the business,
but an opportunity arose in
Vidalia. Through a salesman
who served both Eggers and
Ronnie Stewart, Roberts
heard that the Vidalia funer
al home might be available
*Ai\vntijm
ANTIQUE EMBALMING KIT — Brandon Roberts is a history buff and col
lector of antiques. He has a photograph of his great-great grandfather,
John Pardue, who drove a hearse for a funeral home in Mountain City
in the early 1900s and an embalming kit like the ones that were used
in his great-great grandfather's day. Above, he shows Assistant Anna
Helms an item from the kit.
AFFINITY FOR THE PAST—Brandon Roberts appreciates tradition. Among
the antiques in his collection is an antique pump organ that he brought
from his home in Tennessee to his new business in Vidalia.