Business of the Week: Zion Memorial Chapel
It might seem a bit unusual for an Italian-American to establish the only funeral home in Westchester County exclusively dedicated to the Jewish community. However, it’s an idea that Vincent Graziano, owner of Zion Memorial Chapel of Westchester, came up with in 1995 to provide a more personalized service dedicated to the burial customs and traditions of the Jewish faith.
Since then, Zion Memorial, located on Boston Post Road in Mamaroneck, has become widely known throughout the county as the premiere choice for Jewish families grieving loved ones, including those from the Orthodox, Conservative and Reform movements.
The jovial Graziano, who also owns Coxe & Graziano, a family-owned funeral home located across the parking lot from Zion Memorial, has an extensive knowledge of the customs and traditions that are carried out by the Jewish faith. He is particularly sensitive to the needs of the Jewish community, who, by tradition, prefer simplicity in funerals and mourning.
For 20 years, Graziano ran Shomrei Hadas Chapel in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn. The funeral home, which caters specifically to the Orthodox community, hired Graziano to act as its funeral director.
Armed with the practical knowledge of Jewish burial traditions, together with an intimate knowledge of the funeral industry in general, Graziano felt confident he could make a go of the new business, a venture that many said he was unwise to consider at the time. It’s not surprising that Graziano, the grandson of an Italian-born grandfather who set up a small funeral home on Manhattan’s Lower East Side during the early 1900s, was being dissuaded from following his dream.
The Texas-based Service Corporation International (SCI) has had a monopoly over the Jewish funeral home industry in New York for several years, owning four out of five funeral homes in Manhattan, and seven out of the 18 that are operational in Brooklyn. It currently runs Riverside Chapel, a funeral home in Mount Vernon.
Hoping that he could provide a more affordable alternative to the corporate-run funeral homes, Graziano turned a five-family house into a Jewish chapel, expanding it and making extensive renovations. What stands today is a warm, welcoming place where Jewish families can have all of their needs met. “No matter what faith people have, we all mourn our loved ones,” said Graziano. “At Zion Memorial Chapel, you will find that customer service is what matters.”
Working closely with several rabbis in the area, including Rabbi Lester Bronstein of Bet Am Shalom in White Plains and Rabbi Yossi Marlow of the Hebrew Institute, also in White Plains, Graziano ensures that all of the Jewish traditions are catered to.
At Zion Memorial, you’ll find a taharah room available for the ritual washing of the body, a requirement of the Jewish tradition, and a simple chapel that allows family members to congregate in one place for a prayer service and the chance to eulogize loved ones.
Perhaps what’s most important about Zion Chapel, however, is the attention that customers receive, said Graziano, who works closely with Funeral Director Russell Greenblatt. “You can go to a funeral home owned by a conglomerate and never see the same person again, but here you’ll meet Russell the first day you visit and you’ll see him again the day of the service,” explained Graziano.
The services at Zion Memorial include use of the facility for the funeral ceremony, removal and transportation of the deceased, preparation of the body, the speedy handling of necessary legal documents associated with death, the use of a memorial register book and acknowledgement cards, and notification to newspapers and/or fraternal organizations. Mourners also receive what is known as Yahrzeit calendars, which observe the death each year on the exact date of the deceased one’s passing, according to the Hebrew calendar. Upon request, Shiva benches, prayer books and Shiva candles are also available to those in mourning.
Online photo albums and video tributes are also available to customers, if they choose to avail of them, said Graziano, which allows family members to memorialize loved ones in a special way that Graziano said is “very much a celebration of life.” Families are also provided with a seven-day candle, which is lit after mourners return from the cemetery. On a more practical level, Graziano said the chapel is popular because it is centrally located and has ample parking for patrons.
As professionals in the funeral industry, both Graziano, a White Plains resident, and Greenblatt, a native of Yonkers, said it’s important they are sensitive to each family’s needs, especially those who are encountering death for the first time.
“You can take a nice person and make him or her a funeral director, but you can’t take a funeral director and make him or her a nice person,” said Graziano, referring to the unique qualities that such professionals must possess. “We genuinely, literally feel everyone’s pain.”
To find out more about Zion Memorial Chapel, visit the website at www.ZionMemorialChapel.com or call (914) 381-1809, or toll free at 1-888-381-1809. Zion Memorial is located at 785 East Boston Post Road in Mamaroneck.
Colette Connolly is a copywriter and p.r. expert. She owns Connolly Communications, which is based in Bronxville, New York. Colette specializes in providing content-rich, SEO-optimized press releases, articles, newsletters, brochures, and customer success stories.