Losing my husband was the worst thing that ever happened. It happened suddenly, and my family was…read morein a state of shock. Two days later, we had an appointment - my three adult kids and I went to meet with Veronica. She was very nice, and very compassionate while she listened to us tell stories about Bobby, even as we were picking out his urn and described why the one we chose was *perfect* for him and that he would approve.
During that appointment, I filled out all the necessary forms for the cremation, and I checked the box requesting they preserve a lock of his hair for me. I also requested Jewish memorial candles, which were included in their 'catalog'. Veronica looked over the form, and confirmed with me that (1) I wanted a lock of his hair, and (2) that she would look into finding the memorial candles. I told her I wanted to put together the slideshow for his service, as I knew he would have wanted. Veronica and I spoke several times after our appointment, and I felt good about everything.
Veronica scheduled an appointment with me which was set for a couple of days prior to the memorial, to make sure the slide show was acceptable, AND that it would work. I went to the mortuary at the appointed day/time, and the door was locked. When I called, I got an answering service. I called Veronica on her cell, and she told me she forgot she had something at her child's school, and couldn't make it - but that I could just get there a little early before the service and I could check it with the gentleman who would be running the service.
The man who came in and helped me was very nice, and he helped ensure the slide show and the service went off without a hitch. The slide show played while people were coming into the chapel, a military honor guard gave my husband honors, and then we began with eulogies, with the slide show playing at the end. The service was lovely.
After the service, the gentleman who ran the service gave me an Evans-Brown mortuary bag with extra 'prayer cards', the thumb drive with the slide show on it, and the urn. I asked him if the hair and candles were in the bag (it was big and very heavy), and he said that whatever was there for me was in the bag.
When I got home, I found that there was NO hair, and NO candles. I called the mortuary the following day (Monday), and the call went straight to voicemail. I called *several times* and no one responded. I even left a long and detailed message on her cell phone voicemail, and I got a call back from someone at the mortuary saying Veronica saw I called her, and could she please get a message for Veronica (??). The message on the voicemail was crystal clear.
I called quite a few times after that, but got no response. Many months later, I finally sat down and wrote an obituary, which I had been unable to do at the time of his passing. I sent Veronica an email and asked if she could add the text to his obituary, which at that time consisted solely of his name, birth/death dates, and a photo. Again, no response, and no addition to the obituary. (I looked for it today, and now the photo has been removed, but nothing else added.) I had to make a lot of changes in my life, including moving away several months later, so I never ended up calling again after a few months.
Forward to holiday season 2025. I randomly got a call from "someone" at Evans Brown, saying they were following up with past clients about the services they received. I told him EVERYTHING noted above. This man was shocked, said it didn't SOUND like Veronica, he apologized and said that he would get to the bottom of it, and that someone would call me on Monday. If I'm not mistaken, it was the day after Christmas when we spoke. AGAIN, *I didn't get a single phone call*. I wasn't surprised, because this is what I have come to expect from them.
I would DEFINITELY not recommend them. They show great customer service at the beginning of the whole ordeal, but they ignore you the first chance they get. And adding insult to injury in my case, I at least was going to have a lock of my husband's hair, but nope - they just didn't follow instructions, and never ever responded to my concerns.