Following in the family footsteps

AFTER undertaking a degree in commerce and a post-graduate certificate in professional legal studies, Laura Carter has embarked on qualifications in embalming which will enhance her role as a funeral director.

In conversations with new people, the 24-yearold said they are often surprised by her career choice as the manager of Shakespeare Funerals.

“Usually they say that it’s really interesting,” she said.

“And I have to agree. No two days are the same. You never know what’s going to happen.”

Although she never

24-year-old Laura Carter admits many people are surprised when she tells them she is a funeral director. PHOTO: WENDY MERRICK/FILE knows what each day will bring, Miss Carter is more than familiar with her surroundings.

She knows about all aspects of the business, from making funeral arrangements to client relations – even stonemasonry which she learned from a very young age.

“Mum and Dad bought Gilgandra Funerals when I was just 12 months old,” she told Dubbo Photo

“Before I went to school, I was concreting!”

Miss Carter’s parents Paul and Barbara also own W Larcombe and Son Funerals, H Logue and Sons, Russell Everingham Funerals and Gilgandra Funerals.

While she toyed with the idea of becoming a pilot or a chef, her instinct was to follow in her family’s footsteps.

“I always thought that one day I would take over; that one day I would come back here.

“I have grown up doing it, it’s second nature. It was always something that I wanted to do. And studying embalming is really interesting and will only widen what I can do.”

While Miss Carter admits that being a funeral director can be personally challenging, it is also very uplifting.

“It can be an emotionally difficult industry. But that’s what makes it the most rewarding, being able to help families through the most difficult time in their lives. And we do genuinely care about our clients.

“The littlest thing you do can mean the most,” she said.