BULLETIN Vol, 13 j No. 1

Li February 1998

THE NATIONAL CONCRETE BURIAL VAULT ASSOCIATION INC.

COPYRIGHT 1960

THE

1998 Annual Convention

Everything You Asked For and More!

y ou asked for a centralized location. You asked for budget conscious

accommodations. You asked for a program that would justify leaving your busi-ness for several days. NCBVA listens to its members and responds. The 1998 Annual Convention has everything you asked for and more!

St. Louis, Missouri, the gateway to the West, is centrally located for a preponder-ance of the NCBVA membership. It is the city selected for the 1998 Annual Conven-tion June 25-27, 1998. The DoubleTree Hotel and Conference Center was chosen for its reasonable convention rate of $105 single or double accommodations. Yet the DoubleTree also offers excellent facilities for our meet-ings and Partnership Plaza trade show.

The annual convention "Gateway to the Future. ..2000 and Beyond" reminds us that we are on the cusp of the new millenium and that sound business decisions are vital to our success. The program has been de-signed to help you plan for today, tomorrow and the next century. Invited speakers in-clude Steve Saltzman, Managing Director of the research department for ABN/AMRO/ Chicago Corp., Jeff Spahn, Safety Consult-ant & Expert Witness and a former Wichita, Kansas area director for OSHA and Fred Watson, Director of Field Program Services, Dept. of Veteran Affairs, National Cemetery System, Washington, DC.

Four breakout sessions will be offered twice each day so that you can customize your convention program to your special interests. Partnership Plaza, the format in-troduced last year for our trade show, will again provide an opportunity for seeing the very latest in industry products and services.

Once again we will offer a plant tour which this year will be followed by a barbecue at Bruns Norwalk Vault Co. Our program will conclude with the annual installation of new officers.

If you can spare an extra day or two, St. Louis has everything you need for a pre or post convention getaway. Our dates were planned with the school calendar in mind so if you decide to bring the family, there's an

exciting variety of things to do and see and a host of free or low cost attractions.There are also a number of easy day trips within a couple hours from your St. Louis base.

Coming your way soon will be the full program brochure, registration form and gen-eral information about this year's conven-tion. We will be offering early bird registra-tion fees so watch your mailbox and mark your calendar today!

The magnificent Gateway Arch is the nation's tallest man -made monument

1998 Annual Convention, June 25-27, St. Louis, Missouri

Ken Robinson Paul Rahill.

Ener-Tek with Auto-Loader

IEE MAY BE THE WORLD'S LEADING MANUFACTURER OF

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Investment Analysis This free analysis will indicate if a crematory is a profitable venture for you. We consider your indi-vidual circumstances and evaluate vital information on costs, depre-ciation, tax savings and estimated profits. We also offer a space and placement evaluation for the pos-sible installation of a cremator within your new or existing facility.

Environmental Permits And Zoning Made Easy We guarantee that our equipment will comply with your state environmental regulations. We'll even assist with local zoning approvals and complete the pa-

perwork for you. If your existing cremators aren't in com-pliance, we can help there too. We'll de-sign and pro-pose upgrades to modernize them to meet compliance standards.

Complete Follow Through

After your crematory is installed, we'll send a

In Canada Contact Bill Bowes The Eckels Company • Guelph, Ontario, Canada

Phone 519-824-8020 • FAX 519-824-7161

Polar-Pak 3 Body Cooler

technician to inspect each unit and train your personnel how to operate and care for it. You'll receive a com-plete owner's manual, and we'll assign you a customer service representative who will remain your personal link to TEE. We also offer a toll-free service hotline, should you need assistance with problems on our cremation equip-ment or any other make or model.

Quality equipment, unsurpassed ser-vice before and after the sale, and our "client first" policy TEE keeps work-ing for you.

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p.o. Box 547796 • Orkincl(), FL 32854-7796 In honda (407) 886-553.3 • FAX (407) 886-5990

Toll Free 1-800-327-2831

,e•

February, 1998

NCBVA BULLETIN 3

President's Message By Jim Wiens NCBVA President

The NCBVA board of directors and staff have been busy prepar-ing for the 1998 Annual Convention in St. Louis. I believe this is one of the finest programs available to the burial vault industry in many years. The membership indicated that they wanted some "meat" in the program and I think this is the meeting you cannot afford to miss. Invited speakers include:

Steve Saltzman, the recognized authority on public companies in the death care industry; Fred Watson, Director of Field Program Services, Dept. of Veteran Affiars, National Cemetery System, who will speak to us on the National Cemetery System voucher plan; Jeff Spahn, a former Wichita, Kansas OSHA area director who is now a safety consultant and expert witness.

And, last, but not least, members and outside experts will conduct breakout sessions where you will have the opportunity to ask questions one-on-one.

The financial statements for 1997 have been reviewed by the accounting firm of Schafer, Mitchell, and Sheridan and are printed in this newsletter. Membership dues and convention income are our two major sources of revenue and we are doing everything we can to increase these areas for 1998.

The NCBVA office continues to receive membership renewals and we have a number of new members. We are printing their names in each issue of The Bulletin so you will know who they are and welcome them if you happen to see them at another industry meeting. We have much potential to grow in strength by having more members. If you have not paid your 1998 dues, please take the time to do so today.

I would like to thank Holly Bridgers for designing and producing a new, all-purpose membership brochure for us. We have a supply available at headquarters and will send you one if there is someone you know who isnt' yet an NCBVA member. If you prefer, the office staff will send the materials out for you if you provide the name and address.

If you haven't visited the NCBVA Web site lately I encourage you to get on the Internet and look it up at http://www.NCBVA.org . You don't have to be a computer whiz to do a little surfing on the Net. But it is rapidly becoming a valuable marketing and communications tool for associations and I am pleased to see that we are keeping up with the technology. If you want to learn more about computers and technology, there will be a session for you at the convention, too. See you in St. Louis.

National Concrete Burial Vault

Association, Inc.

926 Great Pond Drive Suite 1003 Altamonte Springs, FL 32714

http://www.ncbva.org (800) 538-1423 Fax: (407) 774-6751

President

Jim Wiens Doric Concrete Vaults, Inc.

Newton, KS

President-Elect and District 5 Director

Hugh McQuestion Lakeshore Burial Vault Co., Inc.

Brookfield, WI

Secretary/Treasurer Warren Chandler

Master Grave Services, Inc. Bogart, GA

Immediate Past President

William Clementz Fort Myers Vault Service

Fort Myers, FL

Directors, District I

Robert D. Brouse Ringtown Wilbert Vault Works

Ringtown, PA

Robert Hardy Hardy Doric, Inc. Chelmsford, MA

Directors, District 2

Warren Chandler Master Grave Services, Inc

Bogart, GA

Dan Hicks Carlton Wilbert Vault, Inc.

Miami, FL

Directors, District 3

Bob DonateIlt Baumgardner Products Co.

Akron, OH

Holly Baxter Bridgers Baxter Burial Vault Service

Cincinnati, OH

Directors, District 4

Timothy Brutsche Brutsche Concrete Products

Battle Creek, MI

Jack Swihart Saginaw Wilbert Vault Corp

Siginaw, MI

Director, District 5

Richard Cooper Central Burial Vaults, Inc.

Tulsa, OK

Executive Director

Thomas A. Monahan, CAE Certified Association Management Company

Altamonte Springs, FL

Legal Counsel

J. Scott Calkins Calkins & Campbell

Harrisburg, PA

BOBKART

QUALITY

Built by people that use them. vault hauler

Will carry 2000# up a 30 degree incline. Will brake 2000# on a 30 degree incline. Heavy 185# wire-welded frame. Built to last. 7 X 30 treaded rollers for floatation. 12 Volt. No engine to start. No hydrolics to leak. All Copper wiring, soldered, not crimped. Constant duty solenoids. Safety disconnect. Easy access to all components. Full, removable, treadplate deck. 1 1/4" axles, #60 roller chain. Cast bearing mnts. Narrow width, Just the vault plus 9".

210 S 4th Hebron NE 68370 (402)768-7251 fax 768-6180

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4

NCBVA BULLETIN

February, 1998

Tax-Time Tips on Telephone Deductions

By J. Scott Calkins, Esq. NCBVA Legal Counsel

A taxpayer who uses a home telephone for business purposes my deduct any charges incurred exclusive of the monthly base rate, such as business long distance phone calls. The base rate including taxes for the first phone line into the home is not deductible; the cost of a business-only second line is de-ductible.

Business calls made while traveling away from home are a deductible item. This includes any business com-munication by devices such as a fax machine.

Cellular phones that are used for business purposes can give rise to a depreciation deductible. However, if the phone does not have more than 50% business use, depreciation deductions are limited and the section 179 deduction is not allowed.

Commuting to work is a nondeductible expense. Having a tele-phone installed in your car to make occasional business calls dur-ing the commute does not make the expense deductible.

Don't rely on IRS telephone advice The Internal Revenue Service is not bound by the advice it gives tax-payers over the telephone. In a recent Tax Court decision, the Court sustained the IRS' defi-ciency assessment for in- come tax and the 10% pen-alty tax on premature IRA distributions.

The taxpayers in the case, a married couple, withdrew funds from their individual retirement ac- counts to finance the purchase of their primary residence. Upon inquire, the taxpayers received telephone advice from an IRS employee that such withdrawals were non-taxable. In sustaining the deficiency assessment on premature IRA distribu-tion, the Tax Court said the IRS is not bound by advice given over the telephone by IRS personnel but that taxpayers must follow the tax code and case law.

The lesson in this case is to call your accountant or tax advisor when you are considering a transaction that is out of the ordinary.

J. Scott Calkins, Esq. is a partner in the law firm of Calkins and Campball in Harrisburg, PA. He serves as legal counsel for NCB VA.

NATIONAL CONCRETE BURIAL VAULTASSOCIATION, INC.

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION December 31, 1997

ASSETS

Current assets Cash and cash equivalents $13,309 Prepaid expenses 633

Total Current Assets 13.942 Noncurrent assets Equipment, net of accumulated depreciation 114

TOTALASSETS

$14,056

LIABILI I IES AND NET ASSETS

Current Liabilities Convention registration fees - 1998

1.030

Total Current Liabilities 1.030 Net assets Unrestricted net assets 13.026 TOTAL LIABILITIES AND NETASSETS

$14,056

STATEMENT OFACTIVITIES

Unrestricted Net Assets Support and Revenue:

Membership dues $56,070 Interest income 2,761 Liberty Mutual transfer 4,931 Convention 40,606 Performance standards 5,600

Total Revenue 109,968

Expenses: Board of directors expense 6,926 Convention 33,018 Plant Certification 5,600 Bulletins and directories 7,136 Travel and entertainment

3,021 Professional fees 48,855 Office expenses 6,832 Other expenses 431 Depreciation 76

Total Expenses 109.895

Increase In Unrestricted Net Assets 73

Net Assets at Beginning of Year 12.953

Net Assets at End of Year $13,026

r NCBVA proudly recognizes

the following companies which have a current standing in the Plant Certification Program

Arnold Wilbert Corp. Goldsboro, NC

Automatic Wilbert Vault Tacoma, WA

Babylon Vault Co., Inc. New Windsor, MD

Baxter Burial Vault Cincinnati, OH

Binghamton Burial Vault Binghamton, NY

Brown — Wilbert, Inc. Fargo, ND

Brown Wilbert Vault, Inc. St. Paul, MN

Chandler Wilbert Vault, Inc. LaCrosse, WI

Childs Eagle Vault Co. Anderson, SC

Clinton Wilbert Vaults, Inc. Clinton, IA

Cooper Wilbert Vault Co. Barrington, NJ

Doric Concrete Vaults, Inc. Newton, KS

Eagle Burial Vaults Perry, GA

Hardy Doric, Inc. Chelmsford, MA

Heilman — Wirtz, Inc. Cedar Hill, TX

Jefferson Concrete Corp. Watertown, NY

Masters Grave Service Athens, GA

Nebraska Wilbert Vault Norfolk, NE

Omaha Wilbert Vault, Inc. Omaha, NE

Ostwalt Vault Co. Concord, NC

Peoria Vault Co. Peoria, IL

Quality Burial Vault Co. Houston, TX

Rex Vault & Mausoleum Svc Newton, IL

Riefler Concrete Products Hamburg, NY

Ringtown Wilbert Vault Works

Ringtown, PA Roland — Wilbert Vault Co.

Marion, IA Saginaw Wilbert Vault Corp

Saginaw, MI Scranton Wilbert Vault

Jessup, PA Sioux City Wilbert Vault

Sioux City, IA Suhor Industries, Inc.

Oklahoma City, OK Superior Burial Vaults, Inc.

Salt Lake City, UT Wieser Precast

LaCrescent, MN Wilbert Burial Vault Co.

Atlanta, GA Winchester Building Supply

Winchester, VA Zeiser Wilbert Vault

Elmira, NY

For information on NCB VA's exclusive Plant Inspection and Certification Program please contact NCB VA headquarters:

1-800-538-1423

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L & W/LINDCO

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NEW: Acrylic water base coatings for vaults—black, white, and clear, plus colors: silver, gold copper—meet OSHA and EPA safety requirements. We still have the full line of asphalt paints and sealers.

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CONCRETE BURIAL VAULTS, SEWER PIPE, SEPTIC TANKS, ETC.

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Park Ridge, IL 60068 (847) 692-55235

February, 1998

NCBVA BULLETIN

5

6

NCBVA BULLETIN

February, 1998

NCBVA Welcomes New Members Mr. Richard E. Creter CRETER VAULT CORP. President 4417 U.S. Highway 202 Flemingtron, NJ 08822 Office: (908) 782-7771 Fax: (908) 782-4381

Mr. Don Danielson NOR-DON VAULT COMPANY, INC. President 6367 E. State Highway 00 Strafford, MO 65757 Office: (417) 865-1486 Fax: (417) 865-7227

Mr. Howard Esterly ESTERLY BURIAL VAULT CO. President 401 Elm Reading, PA 19611 Office: (215) 376-2791 Fax: (800) 331-0694

Mr. Robert Goodwin CHARLSTON TRIGARD Owner 115 Trigard Lane

Summerville, SC 29483 Office: (803) 821-0030 Fax: (803) 821-0080

Mr. Larry R. Hill PALM VAULT CO. President P.O. Box 1244 Ada, OK 74821 Office: (580) 332-7565 Fax: (580) 332-3625

Mr. Thomas P. Moss BAXTER VAULT COMPANY, INC. C.E.O. P.O. Box 508 / 13' & Lyons Rd. Baxter Springs, KS 66713 Office: (316) 856-3141 Fax: (316) 856-3788

Mr. Ray Miller NORTH AMERICAN RISK MGMT, INC. 133 Defense Hwy #204 Annapolis, MD 21401 Office: (410) 266-7670 Fax: (410) 266-7675

Mr. John Orris PERFECTION VAULT Vice President 403 North Ladue Rd. Woodson, IL 62695 Office: (217) 673-6111 Fax: (217) 673-6191

Mr. Richard Rhodes NORWALK VAULT CO. Owner 846 Benshoff Hill Rd. Johnstown, PA 15906 Office: (814) 535-3633

Ms. Catherine Siematkowski WITHERBEE & WHALEN Manager 3 Hodskin Street Canton, NY 13617 Office: (315) 386-8566 Fax: (315) 386-1868

Dr. Robert S. Tieman ARISTECH ACRYLICS LLC 7350 Empire Dr. Florence, KY 41042 Office: (606) 283-1501 Fax: (606) 283-1608

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EDGMONT METALLIC PIGMENT COMPANY, INC.

Post Office Box 405 Bryn Mawr, PA 19010

Plant 203 Garfield Avenue West Chester, PA 19380

February, 1998 NCBVA BULLETIN 7

Wilbert Names Award Winners, New Bronze Circle Inductees

Mr. Richard Ward MONTGOMERY VAULT Vice President! Owner P.O. Box 1486 14901 Dover Rd. Rockville, MD 20850 Office: (301) 340-2069 Fax: (301) 309-3894

Mr. Tim Welte WELTE VAULT COM PANY, INC. Owner 102 Highway 175 Danbury, IA 51019 Office: (712) 883-2256 Fax: (712) 883-2144

Mr. Gerald Will SHENANDOAH VALLEY VAULTS, INC. President Rt. 1, Box 152 A Hinton, VA 22831 Office: (540) 867-5816

Mr. Patrick J. Winkelman MCS OF FLORIDA Director of Sales & Marketing 356 Wekiva Park Drive Sanford, FL 32771 Office: (407) 323-0717 Fax: (407) 323-0717

Wilbert Funeral Services, Inc. held its annual National Marketing and Sales Semi-nar at the Monteleone Hotel, January 15-17, 1998. This year, Wilbert Funeral Services, Inc. inducted four new individuals to The Wilbert Bronze Circle, an elite level of recognition for the Wilbert family. Those individuals are as follows: Dan G. Yates, Sr., ofYates Wilbert Vault Co., Inc., Charlotte, NC; Vickie L. Zimmerman of Arnold Wilbert Corp., Goldsboro, NC; James D. Russell of Williams Wilbert Vault Works, Inc., Des Moines, IA and Richard "Rick" Hammond of Wilbert Vaults of Western New York, Div. of G-M Precast Concrete, Inc. of Cheektowaga, NY.

Regional Sales awards for outstanding sales achievement in 1997 were presented to the following: Ragion #1 (Northeastern U.S. and Eastern Canada) Jacquelynne Harper of

Roland Vault, Ltd., Norfolk, VA; Region #2 (South and Southeast U.S.) C.R. "Dick" Stanton of Bolton Concrete Products, Inc. of Johnson City, TN; Region #3 (Western U.S. and Western Canada) Mark Shalz of Kansas City Wilbert Baults, Div. of Suhor Industries, Kansas City, MO; Region #4 (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois) Homer O'Field of Decatur Wilbert Burial Vault Co., Div. of Bickes, Inc., Decatur, IL; and Region #5 (Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky) Howard F. Crevia III of Saginaw Wilbert Vault Corp., Saginaw, ML

Harold E.S. Hal Wilkes of Christy Vault Company, Colma, CA was named the 1997 Rookie of the Year and Mark Shalz of Kan-sas City Wilbert Vaults, Div. of Suhor Indistries Inc., Kansas City, MO was named "The Most Valuable Player for 1997."

Lease-Purchase Plan

Now Available

The VAULT-MASTER has variable speed hydraulic drive, hydraulicly raised and lowered front steering axle, roll-back Crane-Way beam with adjustable support legs, and an 9,000 lb. hydraulic vault lifting hoist. Will handle straight or cross grave settings. The Crane-Way beam is a 5" I-Beam and is 14' long with heavy-duty, adjustable support legs. The beam is carried on large flat rollers with heavy duty bearings. There is a hand crank system to roll beam back and forth. The vault lifting winch is swivel-mounted to the beam trolley. This prevents trolley wheel binding due to sideways shifts of the load. Hand operated back winch at the rear of the Crane-Way beam allows safe loading of a vault from a truck or trailer bed onto the Vault Handling Trailer.

Rear hydraulic leveling jacks enable easy leveling of the whole machine on almost any terrain. They make off-loading a vault from a truck bed easier and safer. We have a long list of options and will do custom options. For more information contact.. Don Long Long Machine Co. 519 N. Main Ave. Maiden, NC 28650 (Ph) 704-428-2648 (Fax) 704-428-8606

Where Oh Where Is My NCBVA Mail?

A number of members have told us that they did not receive their last Bul-letin. The newsletter prior to this one was mailed on December 31and should have reached you about the first week of January. It was Vol. 12, No. 5 for the year 1997.

If you did not receive your copy and would like one, we have a limited sup-ply of extra copies at headquarters. Please call us at (800) 538-1423. We are taking additional steps with our mail handling to insure that you re-ceive all your NCBVA mail.

FIRST CLASS MAIL

U.S. POSTAGE PAID

PERMIT #20 APOPKA, FL

THE NAMNAL CONCRETE BURIAL. VAULT ASSOCIATION INC.

COpYIKIX7 IOW

National Concrete Burial Vault Association, Inc. 926 Great Pond Dr. #1003, Altamonte Springs, FL 32714-7244

Industry Calendar and Key Dates

March 13-15 National Precast Concrete Assn, Expo MCX '98, Columbus Convention Center,

Columbus, OH 15-18 Natl Precast Concrete Assn Annual Convention, Columbus Convention Center,

Columbus, OH 18-22 ICFA Annual Convention, Cobb Galleria Centre, Atlanta, GA

June 25-27 NCBVA Annual Convention, DoubleTree Hotel, St. Louis, MO

August

19-22 Cana, Westin, Seattle, WA

September 20-23 Wilbert Manufacturers' Assn., Loews Coronado Hotel, San Diego, CA

October

4-7 Doric 43rd Annual Meeting NFDA Convention Sir Francis Drake Hotel San Francisco Copley Plaza Boston, MA