By Thomas A. Parmalee
Charles “Chad” Snyder III, 42, a third-generation funeral director and the owner of Charles F. Snyder Funeral Homes & Crematory, which serves Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, remembers what convinced him to join the family business.
He’d just graduated from Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida, where he’d earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management and had moved back home.
“And I was watching Dad,” he said. “At some point, your career can plateau – and I think my dad was hitting that plateau in his career. And I thought he needed some new energy … and that maybe my energy could help him.”
But his father, Charles F. “Chip” Snyder Jr., never once asked him to join the business — nor did he push the idea when Snyder was growing up.
“He never said, ‘I need help, son’ – I could just kind of read it,” he said. “And I think his skillset and my skillset … we are different people, but they are very complementary to each other.”
Snyder’s decision to join his dad has paid off for the firm, which has quadrupled the number of families served since Snyder joined as a full timer in 2004 after earning a degree in mortuary science from Northampton Community College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
But even in his immediate family, Snyder may not be the businessperson with bragging rights, as his wife of more than eight years, Lee Snyder, is the co-founder of Benefix, a technology-powered, collaboration hub that is driving the benefits industry to provide better access and results for consumers. She remains an adviser to the company she co-founded and is the funeral home’s chief marketing officer.
Together, they have two children: A 6-year-old girl, Chloe, and Charles Snyder IV, who they call “Charlie.”
Looking back at the approach his dad took with him about joining the family firm, Snyder said it’s one he might take with his own kids, as he wants to at least give them an opportunity to carry on the family tradition.
“Because when you are getting into the fourth generation, the pressure of carrying on another generation can also drive away that generation,” he observed.
Plotting a Path
When Snyder decided to work at the funeral home, he knew what he was getting into.
“I always worked here summers and during winter breaks,” he said. “Growing up in the funeral home, I was washing cars, mowing lawns, mulching, weeding, vacuuming – everything you could imagine, I would do.”
He recalls playing basketball at the funeral home when he was 8 years old with one of the funeral home’s staff members who is still at the firm after all these years: Mark Burkholder.
“He was finishing an internship with my dad and was 23 at the time,” Snyder said of Burkholder. “He is still here now – and he’s 35 years older.”
He noted that numerous other employees have had long tenures at the company, which is a testament to his father’s leadership – and now his. For instance, Jackie Adamson and Kelly Gramola Townsend, who work in the preplanning department, have each been with the firm more than 20 years, he said. “I am super grateful for those relationships,” he said.
He also praised his mom, Doreen, for all that she has contributed over the years in customer-facing roles as well as on the sidelines. “Mom, too grew up in a family business, which is often the case being Greek Orthodox,” he said. “Her parents ran a well-known restaurant in Lancaster. She was eager to help Chip with a ‘whatever it takes approach’ to help with the business, from supporting Chip on working funeral services and viewings with her Greek community to helping in the office and representing the funeral home at community events. Mom was a huge support system and driving force for Chip and the funeral home and her support and advocacy runs strong to this day — and I am ever grateful for that.”
Upon joining the business full time, he knew he had three options: preserve the status quo, which often leads to a gradual decline, prepare the business for a sale or grow it. He made a conscious decision to pursue the third option.
In 2010, he assumed ownership of 25% of the business before becoming sole owner in 2019, buying the entire business and all the real estate from his parents.
“I realized that I wanted to work with Dad, I wanted to help the family business, and I knew there were big shoes to fill,” he said. “There was nothing I had to prove to anyone other than myself – and I had that desire to help people. That pivot was toward the end of college. After graduation, I stopped fighting the idea that ‘I don’t want to do this,’” he said.
He also asked himself what would happen if he didn’t join the family business, and he did not like the answer.
“I also saw an opportunity at that time,” he said. “We had a corporate conglomerate competitor, and I knew we could outpace them. I also knew I could give Dad new energy and our team new challenges.”
The funeral home added its first crematory in 2010 – and it now operates two more across seven locations.
“The onsite cremation is a great tool to have in our toolbox to let families know their loved one never leaves our care,” he said. “Peace of mind is paramount to us, and to our team for our success.”
Snyder also owns Cremation Services of Pennsylvania, an affiliate company that offers low-cost online planning for cremation starting at $1,695; as well as Heritage Monuments LLC, which assists families in creating personalized memorials, headstones or gravesite markers that will be a permanent tribute for their loved ones. The monument company is just down the road from the Charles F. Snyder Funeral Home on Blue Rock Road in Millersville but serves all the locations. Two of Snyder’s aunts, Kathy Snyder Guidos and Chris Snyder Cunha, run the business, which he noted is extremely successful.
If he hadn’t gone into funeral service, Snyder noted that he would have become a businessman or gotten into commercial real estate. He did an internship at Merrill Lynch, which he thoroughly enjoyed, he said.
“But I realized I could take a little bit of each of those things and apply it to funeral service,” he said. “You know … to own a business, you have to be fiscally responsible and know how to financial statements for the company. I was able to accomplish those goals by utilizing my interest in funeral service.”
He also has some personal qualities that have translated well to the profession.
“I have a keen eye for presentation and a natural awareness,” he said. “And I think that is a great trait for funeral service.”
He’s naturally empathetic and can understand people’s needs and get a quick read about what’s happening at the arrangement table or while on a funeral service. “And I tend to naturally question how we can do things better than we have done in the past or even the week before,” he said.
The Right Call
Today, the business serves more than 1,500 families per year, with an overall cremation rate in the 55% to 60% range, Snyder said. He credits much of the firm’s success to the time and care it takes educating families.
“I don’t think you can talk enough about that with your team and how important that is for families,” he said. “A lot of families don’t know what to ask for when they ask for cremation. Funeral homes – we do this day in and day out – and we always need to check with families who may be asking about cremation for the first time. We need to be cognizant of everything before, during and after cremation, so that families are aware of all options. And there is always room for improvement at every funeral home.”
He thinks the profession needs to be careful with its words.
For instance, “traditional” now means cremation. “But when we use the word ‘traditional,’ it is a conflicting term in our profession,” he said, emphasizing that cremation is the preferred form of disposition on a national basis – and that it’s also “traditional” for many families as well, who may have chosen cremation now for generations.
A big part of the firm’s growth is the result of a fresh focus on preneed, something that Snyder thought was important from the day he joined on a full-time basis.
“We were doing what many funeral homes were doing … if we had a prearrangement scheduled for 2 p.m. and three people died the previous night, then guess what? We canceled the prearrangement appointment,” he said.
That left a foul taste in his mouth – and was simply not fair to families that wanted to prearrange, he said.
“But that is what happens at the average preneed program,” he said. “A lot of at-need focused firms trip up over that and feel the need to serve the at-need families first. They find that more important. But I said our preneed families were equally as important. We needed to develop a better program; we cannot cancel these appointments.”
The focus on preneed has driven the firm’s organic growth, Snyder said. “We have also had several acquisitions that have helped with that,” he said.
Every single service held at the funeral home presents preneed opportunities, he said. “Providing an experience at a funeral creates lead generation,” he said. “Having the right people in the parking lot bring in guests when arrive, walking them in the door of your facilities … everything we do is geared toward providing an experience.”
That includes Lunch and Learns, which the firm conducts without fail twice a month. “It’s like clockwork, no negotiation,” Snyder said, jeering at the notion of skipping one. It’s been like that for the last 10 years, he said.
“It has been a great way to grow our business through preneed and to capture new customers in advance, providing them with peace of mind,” he said, adding that unlike some other funeral homes, the price of a prearrangement is guaranteed when families do business with his firm.
He credits his preneed team as well as Precoa for much of the firm’s growth on the preneed side. He also noted that a relationship with Graystone Associates has paid dividends on various fronts.
As for staffing, the business has a full team in place, which Snyder attributes to having built a workplace culture that’s enjoyable.
“And our facilities are attractive,” he said. “Our locations are updated, clean and we have technology at our fingertips. That is the DNA that we buy into.”
That “DNA” is promoted to team members, with messages about “Decisions,” “N-ergy” and “Actions,” which they’re expected to keep top of mind day in and day out. “It’s about how we treat each other internally,” Snyder said, as well as how staff members treat families.
Snyder prides himself on ensuring his business stands out from competitors.
“Our people are very special,” he said. “I would say that is our No. 1 differentiator. We have an incredible team that cares about the well-being of others. Our facilities are absolutely incredible. We have two custom built funeral homes that no one else has, and we have the only funeral homes that were custom built from the ground up. We bought the land and built the funeral homes.”
The fact that the firm has several locations is a big selling point, he said.
“Each of them possesses a different personality, so we have options for families to choose from,” he said. “If someone wants an intimate, historical setting – we have that. If they want a modern setting, we have that. If someone wants a suburban setting, we have that. So, the array of options we have … you can’t compare.”
But like every funeral home owner, he faces challenges.
“Revenue,” he said. “Having everybody at your company buy into how important revenue is … the cost of doing business and running a business continues to grow. It is much different than it was 20 years ago when I first got started.”
The goal of getting every team member to present every option to every family is an idea he’s always working toward, he said. “That is one of the reasons why preplanning is so important to us – it allows us to study our future customers,” he said.
Asked about the product selection available to families, Snyder noted that while he’s “American proud,” everything that most of us are wearing right now was made in another country.
“I am proud to have as much as we can offer American made … but you have to do what you have to do and entertain other options,” he said. “Loyalty is super important, and pricing is super important – and profitability is very important to be sustainable.”
Taking His Responsibility Seriously
As an owner, Snyder takes his duty to about 40 full-time employees and the community at large seriously. “I don’t handle as many arrangements as I did 10 years ago,” he admitted. “But I have a fiscal responsibility to the team, and they do in return to the company. When that is understood and when you work as a unit together, when you embrace and trust each other knowing that mistakes will be made and you learn from them and talk them out and serve each other …” – that is when you can achieve great things, he said.
Looking ahead to the future, Snyder sees the acquisitions of additional funeral homes on the horizon. He’ll continue to focus on growing the business, he said.
“I have been very blessed,” he said. “Dad and I did our succession plan and executed that in 2019. He is still a very active adviser; he is an ambassador for our company, and he still comes to the funeral home because it gives him purpose.”
Snyder is grateful his dad – a cancer survivor who is now 72 – didn’t walk away, which he could have done.
“There is nothing wrong with walking away after doing your life’s work, but with Dad, he enjoys coming in here and talking to our team members and meeting families,” he said. “Even though he does not handle every detail, his presence goes far.”
Watching his dad’s dedication to his community brings tears to his eyes, Snyder said. “He could just say he wants to go golf every day for the rest of his life, but he balances out work and play,” he said. “And people are just thrilled with his presence. I still lean on his advice.”
Related story: Charles F. “Chad” Snyder III was recently appointed to the Pennsylvania State Board of Funeral Directors. Read the story.
In the News: “Snyder Funeral Homes moving event space plans from downtown to Manheim Township.” Read the article on Lancaster Online.
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