Ohio Funeral Directors Association honors Bartley for 50 years

Roger Bartley, a fifth-generation funeral director and lifelong Minerva resident, has been recognized for 50 years of service to his community and the funeral profession.

The Ohio Funeral Directors Association and OFDA District 16 recently honored Bartley for the milestone. He is the fourth member of his family to receive recognition for 50 years of service in the funeral industry. The award was presented by OFDA Board Immediate Past President Steven “Steve” J. Hartwig.

“It means a lot,” Bartley said. “I served on the Education Committee for 25 years and watched as my mother and father both received their 50-year awards from the association.”

Bartley is the owner of Bartley Funeral Home in Minerva and Deckman-Bartley Funeral Home in Malvern, continuing a family legacy that dates back more than 170 years.

The business traces its roots to the mid-1800s, when the original family operation began serving the Minerva area. Over the decades, the funeral home has remained family-owned, passing from one generation to the next.

When reflecting on his career, Bartley said what has kept him going for five decades is simple.

“The satisfaction of helping people in their darkest hour,” he said.

Bartley, a graduate of Minerva High School and Mount Union College, also holds a Master of Arts degree from Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia. In 2010, he received the National Funeral Directors Association Pursuit of Excellence Award.

Looking back on his career, Bartley said he is most proud of continuing his family’s long-standing tradition.

“Being able to carry on a tradition of caring that goes back five generations and 175 years,” he said.

That sense of service, he said, is what he hopes families remember.

“I would like to be remembered as someone who made them my priority,” Bartley said. “When time stopped for them when their loved one died, all of my attention turned to making sure their wishes were honored and their loved one was taken care of with the greatest of respect.”

In addition to his work in the funeral profession, Bartley has remained active in the community. He is a member of the Malvern Rotary, president of the Minerva Public Library Board of Trustees and chairman of the Minerva Community Charitable Fund. He is also involved in planning for the Minerva America 250th committee.

His service extends beyond the funeral home as well. In 1976, Bartley became the first paramedic in Minerva and helped organize the area’s advanced life support EMS system.

Bartley lives in Minerva with his wife, Sherry. The couple has three grown sons and nine grandchildren.

After 50 years in the profession, Bartley said the lessons he has learned are simple but meaningful.

“Make the most of today because we are not promised tomorrow,” he said.