In the
early 1990s, Tracy Joiner dreamed of building an independently- owned
funeral home. At the time, there was only a corporately-owned funeral
home in operation in Statesboro. He had begun his apprentice work in
the funeral home industry in Statesboro at the age of 16. With many
years of experience in funeral services, he felt a great commitment
to maintain the highest honor, integrity and service possible in his
profession.
“At a
time when many large, out-of-town conglomerates were buying out independent
funeral homes, I felt the people in Bulloch County still needed a locally
owned funeral home. I believe it is important for families to have a
choice and to be able to walk in our doors and do business with the
owner.” He continues, “I have always strived to help create funeral
arrangements that reflect the wishes of the family. The people we serve
every day love their parents, spouses and children just as much as we
love ours, and deserve the very best we can give them.”
With
great community support and the financial backing of several families
from Bulloch County, Tracy Joiner and Jason Shepard opened Joiner-Shepard
Funeral Home in December 1996. The funeral home was successful from
the beginning, and as Tracy had imagined, the community responded positively
to it. In 1998, after the birth of their first child, Jason Shepard
and his wife returned to his hometown in Alabama to be closer to their
families.
Tracy
turned to Mark Anderson to become his new partner. Mark was working
with Joiner-Shepard as its Pre-Need Manager. Mark’s background was in
the insurance business and he had worked as an insurance adjustor for
ten years. In March 1998, the two men, who were among the original owners,
acquired the funeral home from the group of investors and renamed it
Joiner-Anderson Funeral Home. Mark started his work as an Apprentice
Funeral Director.
Since
1999, Tracy and Mark have built the business with the promise to uphold
the highest standards of excellence in funeral service. In 2004, the funeral home expanded with the addition of an on-premise crematory. Joiner-Anderson Funeral Home and Crematory also purchased Bulloch Memorial Gardens, a perpetual care cemetary in 2004. “We are committed
to helping families and their individual needs,” says Mark. “By being
locally owned, we have the flexibility to make decisions based on the
family’s desires. We are here to serve families....not a corporate bottom
line.”
