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Ross-Clayton Funeral Home Turns 100 B Y S ANDRA L ONG , JD P HOTOGRAPHY BY D I A NNA P AULK I T ’ S UNLIKELY YOU ’ LL SEE A FUNERAL HOME QUITE LIKE R OSS -C LAYTON AGAIN . F OUNDED IN 1918, THE FUNERAL HOME HAS A PARTICULAR MEANING HERE — CELEBRATING ITS 100 TH ANNIVERSARY ! oss-Clayton Funeral Home, Inc., one of Montgomery’s oldest African-American owned businesses was established in April of 1918. Robert Ambers Ross, an insur- ance agent from Mississippi formed a part- nership withWilliamClayton and his wife, Frazzie, when the busi- ness was originally housed on Monroe Street. As the family grew its business, they not only focused on the professionalism of the industry in undertaking, but on the community in which it lived. The business is now located at 1412 Adams Avenue in downtown Montgomery in an 18,000 square foot building including a beau- tiful chapel, private family meeting and viewing rooms, several conference rooms and offices, and a top fleet of limousines. While running the funeral home, the Ross family also played a prominent role in the black community. During the bus boycott, they offered rides to citizens who did not have transportation to work, they offered hearses for black voters to get to the polls, the sick to get to the doctor and to bus boycott meetings during the civil rights era. That community spirit continues today. Now, direct descendants of both the Ross and Clayton families work at the funeral home and the fourth generation of the Ross family are funeral directors, while 70-year old Robert Ross, Jr. still actively works alongside his family. One of their primary goals is to extend to future generations as they strive each day to mold and train new directors and other personnel to continue their es- tablished level of excellence. David Ross, III said, “We provide so many services to the com- munity that many people aren’t even aware we do, including offer- ing a place for members of the community to drop by, some come every week. Its similar to a barber shop. Everyone is welcome. Our doors are always open.” Committed to a tradition of rendering exceptional service they demonstrate deep compassion for bereaved families. It takes special people to help others through some of the most difficult days, and Ross-Clayton staff are special, in that they have a special legacy including burying generations of members in the commu- nity. “As a funeral-home owner, you wear so many hats,” said Ross III. “There’s the business side, the maintenance side, the technical side, and the service side, which requires compassion. We run the funeral business like any other business but there’s that personal side you have to offer. It makes it rewarding. We’re burying their loved ones. It’s our goal to provide the best service we can at the worst time in a family’s life.” They help families to design meaningful services that observe special religious rules, traditions and preferences. This is an im- portant time for mourners to share stories, create memories, fulfill religious beliefs and customs and the staff offers a support system for families to gather at a peaceful place during a time of confusion and uncertainty. Their primary focus is on the family. “Our main objective is to properly care for the deceased and to provide clear and compassionate assistance to each family as they become in- volved in making final arrangements,” said Ross III. During a time of grief and sorrow, they are committed to making the entire experience easier. There can easily be over 200 tasks when planning a funeral and it can be overwhelming for a family to do on their own. Ross-Clayton’s funeral directors will meet with the family in a private consultation and determine how they can help. Some of the duties that they can assist with are: obtaining the signature of the attending physician, coroner or medical ex- aminer on the required certificate and file the certificate with the registrar of vital statistics where the death occurred; ensure com- pliance with government regulators; transfer the deceased from the place of death to the funeral home (local or out of town); obtain family history; determine the budget; plan for the viewing/visitation and determine the funeral or memorial service location, such as church, chapel, or gravesite; select a monument; order and schedule the delivery of all products/merchandise; com- 48 AL/ Metro 360 www.almetro360.com David Ross, III