By Bruce Frankel

Locally Owned Funeral Home Proudly Serving the Triad Over 55 Years

Although you may have noticed Hayworth-Miller Funeral Home when passing the corner of North Main Street and Smith Edwards Road, what you may not have realized is that this 3rd generation–and only family owned funeral home in Kernersville–is one of five locations serving the Triad. Thereby making it one of the largest, independent family owned and operated funeral homes in North Carolina. This means business decisions directly affecting families are made at the local level and families have the peace of mind knowing that the staff shares the same customs, traditions, and neighborhood connections.

“We have a great staff who deeply care and work hard to treat families the way they should be treated,” emphasized Jeff Gunter, Hayworth-Miller Kernersville Manager. “We are all committed to helping families by making it a little bit easier to get through such a tough process.”

“As with all of our locations, our Kernersville Chapel provides families with a group of qualified staff that share compassion for others, while taking care of every detail for a proper and respectful ‘Celebrations of Life’. We always have sufficient staff at services who work as a team to carry out the many components of a service. We are very mindful of the emotions that accompany a loss and go far and beyond to provide measures that bring comfort to families, incorporating their ideas wherever possible.”

“Our staff is very attentive, yet our objective is that by the end of the service, we were never noticed,” commented Jeff with pride. All the staff members live in nearby neighborhoods spanning the area, giving families the comfort of seeing a familiar face. As each one has personally experienced a loss in their family, they thoroughly understand the importance of treating others in the same caring way they would want to be treated. As David Ridge, Funeral Director added, “I am so thankful to be working for Hayworth-Miller. We are not just a great team; we are like a family. It is a blessing to serve our families and the community of Kernersville with such a great group of people.”  

The recently renovated Kernersville Chapel can comfortably seat 245 people so there is no concern about overflow and need for extra seating. Yet the facility still has the capability of projecting services into overflow areas for larger crowds. The Kernersville facility also provides ample parking, creating smooth transitions from services to processions and allowing room for outside memorial displays of vehicles and other significant items that depict a part of a loved one’s interests or career. The updated interior also provides a spacious home-feel for all those who enter.

Although final planning is not something one thinks about every day, taking care of these arrangements certainly can offer peace of mind to the individual and his or her family. Each one of the Hayworth-Miller locations has a Pre-Need Consultant available for pre-planning details and financial arrangements.

“I would say the biggest change in the industry is that 15 years ago, basically all funerals were similar, today there is a greater focus on personalization,” commented Jeff. “We are very open to the personalization of funeral services through many different forms of technology, including our “Life Tribute Video” program, giving families the option of selecting a collection of photos for use at visitations and services. Our website features obituary notices, online guest books, and photo albums, where visitors can upload pictures and leave online condolences for families. One can find information on our website for pre-planning funerals and resources for aftercare and counseling services. We have a wide range of products customizing burial merchandise that enable families to highlight a loved one’s interests and character, as well as products like Fingerprint jewelry and Life Symbol pieces that can be used as keepsakes following the death of a loved one. We also provide monument services for families seeking to place visible, enduring tributes at a burial site,” Jeff explained.

“Another significant change I have seen over the years is that we now live in a mobile society.“ Jeff continued, “It is not unusual for individuals to want to go back to a home location for burial that could be out of the area or even out of state. We have the expertise to coordinate with other funeral homes around the country to make that happen.”

Jeff, and wife Page, moved to Kernersville in 1990 when Jeff started working for Hayworth-Miller Funeral Home. They both have been active in the community raising their three sons Andrew (26), Ethan (24), and Brady (18). So there is no surprise that the Kernersville Chapel’s involvement in the community is extensive. They proudly sponsor and participate in events with local organizations like The Shepherd’s Center, area churches and high schools, YMCA-Healthy Active Adult Day, the Kernersville Police Day Camp, Kernersville Cares for Kids, Special Needs Proms, Grief Share, as well as hosting an annual July 4th Veterans Breakfast. They have staff who are active in local civic clubs including the Kernersville Rotary and Kiwanis Clubs and a well enjoyed staff service of providing pizza for many local church Vacation Bible School programs.

Being able to provide families with guided trust and sincere care when death occurs is the utmost goal at Hayworth-Miller. Founders W. Paul Hayworth and Robert F. Miller, were down-to-earth individuals whose shared philosophy was based on treating people with respect. To this day, the company takes great pride in continuing to uphold their well established reputation and maintains the positive values that are at the core of their business. The best testament to the quality and professionalism of their funeral service is the large number of families who return.

As Ashley Samuels, Funeral Director explained, “I truly enjoy working for Hayworth-Miller. I always feel “at home” here. I love the team we have at the Kernersville Branch. It can plainly be seen, we all enjoy serving and genuinely care for our families!” Hayworth-Miller is located at 141 Smith Edwards Road, Kernersville. For more information call 336.993.2136 or visit them online at www.Hayworth-Miller.com.