Published Monday, Feb. 1, 1999 
By Jennifer Hall"I used to run behind the funerals as a kid," he said. "Most funeral directors didn't even have funeral coaches; back then, they took the back and right front seat out of the cars and put the casket in through the trunk."
Also, back then, funerals and viewing hours were commonly held in private homes.
But by the time Shannon opened his business in June 1959, that practice was less common.
The Wilbert L. Shannon Funeral Home opened on Lee Avenue in Farrell, moved to Wallis Avenue in Farrell and is now at 33 Broadway Ave., Wheatland.
"I started from scratch," Shannon said. "It's tough because I needed to build a reputation. I had one as a person, but I needed to gain professional respect."
Shannon and his son, Wilbert Jr., are the only African-American funeral directors in Mercer County. The older Shannon's wife, Bernice, has also been instrumental in the business.
While the Shannons were not the first African-American funeral directors in the Mercer County, they still had roads to conquer.
"We made it on our own with the finances and you won't find someone more conservative with a buck," the elder Shannon said about the early days.
Shannon Sr. said the business handles funerals for all races, but, he acknowledged that most African-Americans prefer a black funeral director.
"It's mainly because of the community associations that a person picks a funeral director," Shannon said, comparing the racial preference to religious ones: Catholics usually choose a Catholic funeral director.
"In a community this size, people know who they want," he said. "They just don't pick a number out of the phone book."
Because of his place in the community, the elder Shannon said he realizes that he is a role model.
"I try to be as visible as possible," he said, so he tries to be active in the community and to project a positive image. "The young folks look up to you,'' he said.
Shannon Sr. is a past president of the Mercer County Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and he helped organize the Shenango Valley Urban League. He was the first African-American named to the state's licensing board for funeral directors and is president of the county's Funeral Directors Association.
Forty years after opening the doors to his business, the elder Shannon attributed his success to service.
His son rephrased it -- full service.
"We have a 96 percent repeat ratio," the elder Shannon said. "We are burying people whose grandchildren were babies when we buried their parents."
The younger Shannon, who also has worked as a Wheatland policeman and for Mercer County Community Transit, said the Shannons will make funeral arrangements from private homes if it's too difficult for family members to get to the funeral home. They will also provide chairs at the house, transportation and make sure the family has private time with the deceased.
"We'll make all of the arrangements and go to them as they need it," he said. "All they have to do is get dressed. We'll do the rest."
Funeral directors have a special gift, the younger Shannon said. "It takes a unique person to deal with the emotions that go into this line of work," he said. "If you can't stay strong, how is the family going to stay strong?"
His father agreed.
"This is a small community where everyone knows everyone else," he said. "At times, it's very difficult for us. There have been times that I've been close to breaking down."
The Shannons also find themselves notifying families of a death instead of "the cold knock at the door by police," the elder Shannon said.
He pointed out that many of the people using their services today are his son's age and they like dealing with him.
"I welcomed him into the business," Shannon Sr. said.
As the business continues to change, the Shannons take it all in stride.
For instance, prearranged funerals have changed the business, the elder Shannon said. When funeral arrangements are made in advance, they are paid for and the money is placed in an irrevocable trust or an insurance policy placed in the funeral director's name.
Also, many people now prefer to have viewing hours at their churches. For the funeral director, the procedure is similar to holding calling hours in the home.
"We take all of the equipment to them in that case," Shannon Sr. said.
In addition, more and more African-Americans are seeking cremation -- something that was unheard of 40 years ago.
"Black people were not cremated," Shannon said. "It's not prevalent now, but we see it more than ever."
The Shannons also offer a discount on services if the family buys the casket and vault from them.
"A lot of funeral homes don't do that," Shannon said. "It goes back to service. We are not going to change what has brought us this far."
At one time, holding a proper burial for a black family member was against the law. The laws were enacted to prohibit slaves from gathering in any way.
Slaves were buried unceremoniously in unmarked graves on land not used for farming. At the same time, it was the slaves who prepared their masters for elaborate burials.
As the slaves became restless, their masters tried to pacify them by allowing them to assemble for religious services and burials. The slaves celebrated because they believed the deceased would go on to a better life, that he was "going home."
During the Civil War, black soldiers were responsible for removing the dead from battlefields and often were responsible for embalming and burial.
Black churches formed burial societies which collected money to pay for burial expenses.
That evolved into the black funeral business. Many early funeral directors were women because they were traditional caregivers.
In the early 1900s when much of the black community lived in rural settings, funeral directors traveled miles in horse-drawn carriages to the deceased's home, providing ice, delivering the casket and arranging for the grave.
Many African-American funeral directors pass the business through the family.
