James Buchholz, president of Buchholz Mortuaries, dies at 69
Apr 10, 2018Cletus Buchholz tried to steer his son James away from the family mortuary business, telling him to find “a nice desk job with a 40-hour week and a pretty secretary.”James “Jim” Buchholz tried to take his father’s advice. He told the Post-Dispatch in a 1986 interview: “I went to college and worked semesters in between at various things, but I could never find anything I enjoyed as much as this. So much of the other work I did was routine. This is challenging. Every family is different. You have to do something a little different to please each family. You have to be flexible.”Mr. Buchholz, eventually became president of Buchholz Mortuaries Inc., which was founded by his grandfather William and now has locations in Chesterfield, Florissant and Spanish Lake.Mr. Buchholz died Wednesday (Feb. 8, 2017) of a heart attack at a hospital in Las Vegas. He and his wife, Kathleen, had moved to Las Vegas in November to be closer to their three daughters and grandchildren. He was 69.Mr. Buchholz graduated from Rosary High School in 1965 and attended Southeast Missouri State University and the Dallas Institute of Mortuary Science.He had worked at the mortuary since 1969, first as an embalmer and then as funeral director. He became president in 1984.His brother, Tom, the business’s vice president, chuckled when he described Mr. Buchholz as “a bear,” further explaining that meant he was “a staunch advocate for the general consumer.”He said his brother was actively involved in fighting against corruption in the prepaid funeral home industry and fought against a sales tax on funeral burial containers in the state of Missouri.At the same time, Mr. Buchholz had a gentle approach with families who needed their services.“He was just trying to do the right thing for families and help them out in a difficult time, and always trying to work things out with the family so that they could have what they needed to have,” said Tom Buchholz, of Dardenne Prairie.“He had a warm heart for a lot of people.”Mr. Buchholz’s youngest daughter, Chris... (STLtoday.com)
