Meet the Green Team
Founder, Committee Member, Cemeterian, Eco-Friendly Funeral Expert, and Media Relations Expert
Ed Bixby joined the green burial movement back in 2007 when he developed his first green burial preserve, Steelmantown Cemetery, in Woodbine, New Jersey. In the time since, he has created multiple natural burial preserves across the United State
Founder, Committee Member, Cemeterian, Eco-Friendly Funeral Expert, and Media Relations Expert
Ed Bixby joined the green burial movement back in 2007 when he developed his first green burial preserve, Steelmantown Cemetery, in Woodbine, New Jersey. In the time since, he has created multiple natural burial preserves across the United States, serving the nation premier eco-friendly funeral services. In addition to this, Ed is the co-owner of Eco Warriors Funeral Supplies, offering unique funeral products that are not only green, but economical. Ed also served on the Green Burial Council for fifteen years, ten of which as president. Recently, Ed Bixby founded the Better Death Collective, an online platform that uses social media to educate people on all things deathcare related. With his experience in and knowledge of the eco-friendly funeral industry, he was inspired to create the Global Green Burial Alliance, an international community of eco-friendly funeral professionals. Ed's intention with the GGBA is to bridge gaps between all eco-friendly funeral professionals, processes, and products. In doing so, he hopes to provide a space for open communication, promoting understanding and global changes.
Committee Member, Eco-Friendly Mortician, Eco-Friendly Funeral Expert, and Media Relations Expert
Elizabeth Fournier has dedicated her career to helping individuals access sustainable, meaningful and affordable burials and funerals. She was called to this work at the tender age of 13 after many family deaths. Elizabeth owns and operates Co
Committee Member, Eco-Friendly Mortician, Eco-Friendly Funeral Expert, and Media Relations Expert
Elizabeth Fournier has dedicated her career to helping individuals access sustainable, meaningful and affordable burials and funerals. She was called to this work at the tender age of 13 after many family deaths. Elizabeth owns and operates Cornerstone Funeral Service out of a repurposed goat barn in Boring, Oregon, where she uses traditional burial practices that are kinder to humans and the Earth. In addition to her steadfast work as a funeral director, Elizabeth wrote The Green Burial Guidebook, gave a TEDx talk called, "Going Green: The Last Act of Environmental Volunteerism,” and is the voice of the autopsy exhibit in the forensic wing at the United States National Museum of Medicine. She worked with Herland Forest in Washington to steward the first natural organic reduction human composting. Elizabeth lives on a farm with her husband, daughter and several rescue goats and sheep.
Committee Member, Pledge Coordinator, and Community and Funeral Industry Relations Expert
Gretchen is a business owner, home funeral guide, green burial consultant and presenter. She has experience working with the funeral industry assisting and supporting those who want to incorporate green burial services into their business. She is avai
Committee Member, Pledge Coordinator, and Community and Funeral Industry Relations Expert
Gretchen is a business owner, home funeral guide, green burial consultant and presenter. She has experience working with the funeral industry assisting and supporting those who want to incorporate green burial services into their business. She is available for green burial presentations to local community groups and always available to support and answer questions from the funeral industry or those seeking to learn more about green burial options. Currently she is pursuing her California funeral director’s license.
Committee Member, Cemeterian, and Natural Organic Reduction Specialist
Walt Patrick leads a non-profit sustainability research center that studies how to feed, fuel, and clothe people on marginal land. This work is done on 120 acres of high-land forest on the eastern edge of the Cascadian wilderness some eighty miles east of Portland, OR.
Committee Member, Cemeterian, and Natural Organic Reduction Specialist
Walt Patrick leads a non-profit sustainability research center that studies how to feed, fuel, and clothe people on marginal land. This work is done on 120 acres of high-land forest on the eastern edge of the Cascadian wilderness some eighty miles east of Portland, OR. For more than three decades, Walt has been using the natural organic reduction of large mammals to rejuvenate the productivity of marginal forest land.
In 2015, a portion of that stewarded land became the Herland Forest Cemetery which is exploring the role of human interment as a way to prevent the clearing and development of forest land. The Herland name is a reference to a 1915 novel that dreamed of using the forest to sustainably provide for a community's needs without relying on fossil fuels.
In 2017, Herland began the development of enhanced natural burial as a way to facilitate the growth of nut-bearing trees such as oaks and honey locus to feed birds, bees, and deer. Another goal is to decrease the methane emissions associated with the anaerobic decomposition of human remains through the creation of an in-ground aerobic chamber
In 2019, when Washington passed legislation permitting the natural organic reduction of human remains, Herland worked with the Washington Cemetery Board and became the first facility in the country to be licensed to offer NOR for human remains. Walt also became the first person to be licensed to operate a NOR facility.
In 2022, the IRS granted Herland Forest 501(c)(13) status as a tax-exempt, non-profit cemetery.
In Washington State, individuals may only be buried in licensed cemeteries. Above ground reduction allows remains to be buried on private land. Below ground reduction facilitates the transformation of a person's remains into a tree. Currently, Herland is the only facility that is licensed to offer reduction in either above ground or below ground formats.
Committee Member, Eco-Friendly Funeral Director, and Best Practices Coordinator
Bob Fertig became a licensed funeral director at age thirty-six; it was the culmination of a calling he felt early in life, following the loss of his father and brother. For several years, he worked with a number of funeral homes, gaining experience and practi
Committee Member, Eco-Friendly Funeral Director, and Best Practices Coordinator
Bob Fertig became a licensed funeral director at age thirty-six; it was the culmination of a calling he felt early in life, following the loss of his father and brother. For several years, he worked with a number of funeral homes, gaining experience and practical knowledge, as well as the desire to open his own funeral home. Bob did just that in 2004, when he established Fertig Funeral Home in Mullica Hill, New Jersey. At last he was able to serve his hometown and its surrounding communities in his own name, rather than on behalf of someone else.
Fertig Funeral Home is a full-service funeral provider, committed from its inception to offering every type of funeral service, to help each family in need plan the service best suited to its members’ particular preferences, traditions, and beliefs. In 2008, Bob began offering natural burial and home funerals, in response to burgeoning interest in green funerals. He discovered an amazing resource in Ed Bixby and Steelmantown Cemetery. Fertig Funeral Home then strode to the forefront of a small cadre of funeral providers offering green and natural funeral options. Each natural burial brought a unique perspective, new challenges, and more experience with, well, the actual experience of the “green burial experience.”
And quite an experience it is! Bob and his wife, Denise, have assisted many families with green burial. Fertig has been able to arrange with families from many states to bring their loved ones to New Jersey and Pennsylvania for the simple, natural green burial they desired. They have gained a wealth of knowledge, as well as an abiding reverence and passion for natural burial methods. In Bob’s words, “It has been an awesome experience, and a sacred trust, that families have chosen me to facilitate green burial for their loved ones, to help them create a profound memorial. Not only is it beneficial to our planet, it’s a uniquely healing experience for us.” Indeed, green burial is the Fertig’s choice for themselves.
Bob is a graduate of Gloucester County College, and Mercer County College Mortuary Sciences Program. Licensed in 2001, he is looking forward to attaining the CFSP (Certified Funeral Service Practitioner) designation for excellence in funeral service, and is a 3rd Degree Knight of Columbus. Bob and Denise have presented to community groups and healthcare professionals informative talks about green and natural burial, and continue to do so.
Bob is excited and honored to be forging into this new venture with the GGBA and is looking forward to the opportunities which will be presented. The Fertig family makes their home in Mullica Hill, New Jersey.
Committee Member and Eco-Friendly Cremation Specialist
Steve Berkoff is the Managing Member of Memorial Reefs, International LLC and Pet Reefs, memorial service companies that build artificial reefs worldwide to help restore coral reefs and marine life lost to the impact of Global Climate Change. The reef structures incorporate cremated r
Committee Member and Eco-Friendly Cremation Specialist
Steve Berkoff is the Managing Member of Memorial Reefs, International LLC and Pet Reefs, memorial service companies that build artificial reefs worldwide to help restore coral reefs and marine life lost to the impact of Global Climate Change. The reef structures incorporate cremated remains during construction. This creates a permanent memorial that honors a loved one with a Living Legacy that produces new life for many years to come. Pet Reefs recently built the first artificial reef dedicated exclusively to pets. Steve and his family-run organization are dedicated to helping heal the damage to the ocean and embrace all efforts to bring greener alternatives to death care.
Committee Member and Eco-Friendly Cremation Expert
Laura Boehm is the co-founder and general manager at Memorial Reefs International and Pet Reefs. She is the former professor of nursing at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, as well as the former chief nursing executive at North Hawaii Community Hospital. She has a Masters degree in Nursin
Committee Member and Eco-Friendly Cremation Expert
Laura Boehm is the co-founder and general manager at Memorial Reefs International and Pet Reefs. She is the former professor of nursing at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, as well as the former chief nursing executive at North Hawaii Community Hospital. She has a Masters degree in Nursing Leadership and Management and a PhD in Nursing from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Currently, she directs Memorial Reefs’ worldwide operations and was instrumental in creating Pet Reefs—MRI’s newest reef site developed exclusively to memorialize beloved pets. As an avid surfer, Laura is committed to help restore coral reef habitat damaged by global climate change.
Committee Member, All Faith Funeral Consultant, and Eco-Friendly Funeral Director
Reuben Houston is a licensed funeral director, a cremation specialist, and managing partner for Colma Cremation and Funeral Services in Colma, California. Reuben has years of experience in all kinds of mortuary services, including green end-of-life-care. In
Committee Member, All Faith Funeral Consultant, and Eco-Friendly Funeral Director
Reuben Houston is a licensed funeral director, a cremation specialist, and managing partner for Colma Cremation and Funeral Services in Colma, California. Reuben has years of experience in all kinds of mortuary services, including green end-of-life-care. In the last five years, Reuben has assisted hundreds of families in having natural burials at Purissima Natural Burial Preserve in Half Moon Bay, California, alone. He is an expert in the natural burial process and experience, from preparing for such funerals to conducting the services themselves.
Committee Member, Eco-Friendly Mortician, Eco-Friendly Funeral Expert, and Media Relations Expert
Melissa is a dual licensed funeral professional, carrying active licenses in Washington, Oregon, and Texas. Online, as the Modern Mortician, her goal is education on all options at end of life, providing a unique insight into the funeral servi
Committee Member, Eco-Friendly Mortician, Eco-Friendly Funeral Expert, and Media Relations Expert
Melissa is a dual licensed funeral professional, carrying active licenses in Washington, Oregon, and Texas. Online, as the Modern Mortician, her goal is education on all options at end of life, providing a unique insight into the funeral service industry with over 20 years observation and participation. After years of working for others, seeing corners cut at the detriment of the families in her care and her own well being, she decided now, Fall of 2022, was the time to create change in the death care industry beyond educating and working under the thumb of others...it was time for action; thus The End Green Funeral Care for People and Pets, along with The End Foundation, was stirred to life. Melissa is almost always shadowed by her sidekick, Kermit the Dog. Melissa and Kermit have served their communities together for 6+ years, and present often to non-profit organizations & educators across the world both in person and via online. Melissa is the visionary behind The End Green Funeral Care for People and Pets as the founder/owner, and shares it with the community it is seated in.
Committee Member and Eco-Friendly Funeral Product Expert
Mark is the founder of Eco Warriors Funeral Supplies International and the co-owner of Eco Warriors Funeral Supplies. He has decades of experience in business, kicking it off in the 1980s with a very successful property maintenance and landscape installation and maintenance company.
Committee Member and Eco-Friendly Funeral Product Expert
Mark is the founder of Eco Warriors Funeral Supplies International and the co-owner of Eco Warriors Funeral Supplies. He has decades of experience in business, kicking it off in the 1980s with a very successful property maintenance and landscape installation and maintenance company. Mark first entered the funeral product industry in 1993, when he invested in a memorial urn known as the Everlasting Urn. He then spent a few years working in the human and pet funeral markets, primarily focusing on revamping the pet cremation marketplace. After taking a step back for a few years to work in the rainwater harvesting market, Mark decided to jump back into the death care world once more by partnering with Ed Bixby to create Eco Warriors Funeral Supplies. He brings top quality eco-friendly funeral products to the market without the hefty price tag. He currently lives in Australia with his wife and pets.
Committee Member, Cemetery Specialist, and Technical Advisor
Rich works in studio production for Fox Sports. He is an expert in videography and video editing. He is the technical advisor for both Destination Destiny Memorials and the Better Death Collective, in charge of managing their digital operations. Rich also serves as a sales repres
Committee Member, Cemetery Specialist, and Technical Advisor
Rich works in studio production for Fox Sports. He is an expert in videography and video editing. He is the technical advisor for both Destination Destiny Memorials and the Better Death Collective, in charge of managing their digital operations. Rich also serves as a sales representative for Destination Destiny Memorials, tending to customers and arranging services to fulfill their needs. He lives in southern California.
Committee Member, Cemeterian, and Cemetery Land Use and Regulatory Management Expert
Matt Connell is the co-owner of Loving Earth Memorial Gardens, a green burial preserve in Barnum, Minnesota. Here, people are buried naturally along eco-trails in a beautiful meadow. Matt has acquired vast knowledge and understanding of the regulatory pro
Committee Member, Cemeterian, and Cemetery Land Use and Regulatory Management Expert
Matt Connell is the co-owner of Loving Earth Memorial Gardens, a green burial preserve in Barnum, Minnesota. Here, people are buried naturally along eco-trails in a beautiful meadow. Matt has acquired vast knowledge and understanding of the regulatory process while developing Loving Earth Memorial Gardens. Back in 2022, Matt and Ed Bixby created the Better Death Collective, an online platform dedicated to educating all about all things deathcare-related. Prior to becoming a cemeterian, Matt worked in marketing and advertising, having years of experience in the field. Matt currently lives in Minnesota with his wife Kristen and two sons Egan and Jonas.
Committee Member and Consumer Advocate
Helena is an administrative assistant for Destination Destiny Memorials, an eco-friendly cemetery company. She travels across the country restoring historic burial grounds, transforming them into green burial preserves. She has years of experience in sustainable landscape design and land restoration.
Committee Member and Consumer Advocate
Helena is an administrative assistant for Destination Destiny Memorials, an eco-friendly cemetery company. She travels across the country restoring historic burial grounds, transforming them into green burial preserves. She has years of experience in sustainable landscape design and land restoration. Helena also has a long history in customer service, helping families navigate end-of-life processes in a friendly and comfortable fashion. Additionally, Helena is the media manager for the Better Death Collective, overseeing content creation. Helena resides in southern New Jersey with her husband and four children.
Committee Member, Nature Photographer, and Film Maker
Mina Bixby is the founder of Bixby Films and director of Imagination Theater. As a film student at an arts high school, she has extensive knowledge in production equipment, editing, and of course, acting. In 2020, Mina created Bixby Films, her own filmmaking company that has since crea
Committee Member, Nature Photographer, and Film Maker
Mina Bixby is the founder of Bixby Films and director of Imagination Theater. As a film student at an arts high school, she has extensive knowledge in production equipment, editing, and of course, acting. In 2020, Mina created Bixby Films, her own filmmaking company that has since created twenty-five feature films. As a member of the Better Death Collective, she creates short social media videos about an array of deathcare-related topics. Mina also enjoys creating documentaries, currently working on a piece about the natural burial experience. In addition to her love for filmmaking, Mina also enjoys nature photography, providing social media content for Destination Destiny Memorials. Outside of her love for the arts, Mina is the owner of Bixby Lawn Care, a property maintenance business in southern New Jersey.
Committee Member and Media Manager
Ava Bixby is the head content creator for the Better Death Collective and the social media manager for Destination Destiny Memorials. Since the Better Death Collective’s start, Ava has created over two hundred educational videos, two of which receiving over three million views on Tik Tok. The platform now
Committee Member and Media Manager
Ava Bixby is the head content creator for the Better Death Collective and the social media manager for Destination Destiny Memorials. Since the Better Death Collective’s start, Ava has created over two hundred educational videos, two of which receiving over three million views on Tik Tok. The platform now has over 34,000 followers across all social media platforms, a diverse group of followers brought together by interesting and informative deathcare-related videos. In her time working for the Better Death Collective, Ava has navigated the social media world from the ground up, learning everything from trends to ideal posting times. On top of managing social media pages, Ava also works as a groundskeeper for Destination Destiny Memorials. She is responsible for the property maintenance of Steelmantown Cemetery, Historic Goshen Cemetery, and Moravian High Acres Cemetery. Ava is currently restoring Historic Goshen Church, located in Historic Goshen Cemetery, turning it into a community theater.
Global Green Burial Alliance
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