Rodney Bourdeau, C.F.S.P

Rodney Bourdeau, C.F.S.P, owner and President of Cornell Memorial Home and Brookfield Funeral Home of Danbury and Brookfield, Connecticut, was a bit reluctant about investing in a web site. At first the idea seemed not only foreign to him, he just didn't see what the value would be for his business in this media form. After all, they had been in business a long time and people knew who they were. Why put up a web site? What would it do for them? This was unfamiliar territory, and it took a different perspective to help him see things on a deeper level.

To his daughter Tania's credit, and many conversations later, Rodney opened his mind to the idea of exploring this means of communicating his message. Once having met Kelly at Beyond Indigo he began to warm to the concept that a web site might enhance his deep commitment to personalized service. He realized that it was another method to show his compassion toward his families and give him another way to honor the families of his community.

The baby boom generation is one that is very techno-savvy, and because they are, Rodney needed to look at the way his families were seeking guidance and support. Surprisingly, he was hearing more and more about how they were finding this support on the Internet. He felt that maybe it was time to move forward.

It's been over a year now since his site has been up and running, and he couldn't be happier with the result.

According to Rodney, one of the most important tools that his web site offers is that of grief support. His site not only has the basics of who, what, when and where, but there are pages devoted to Memorials, Obituaries, Lighting a Candle in remembrance, grief support articles, and much more. Rodney says, "That even after a loved one has passed I hear from families that they go to the site to find comfort in the memorials that have been written by others. It's a long lasting impression. It's a way for us as funeral directors to continue in our service to others. Our philosophy is to serve as we would want to be served and in this small way our web site is an extension of that philosophy. It's what we are all about. It's another way to reach out and touch people long after the service is over." Rodney further states, "I am amazed at the outreach. We have people that leave messages for others that are grieving from all over the United States. The grief support tools bridge the gap for family and friends. I have heard from some of my families that they check the memorials daily, even months after a love one has passed. The solace they experience in reading the memorials is a tremendous gift to them."

Rodney goes on to say, "We chose to work with Beyond Indigo because Kelly provides personal attention. She actually came to us, visited with us, got to know us. She is much the same as we are, in that we strongly believe in personalized service, and so does she. It was a meeting of the minds. Her attentive, sensitive approach convinced us that she was the right person for us to work with in producing a web site that would not only be informative, but would in fact provide real, positive, meaningful support tools that people could use for as long as they needed. She was really able to capture the essence of who we are, what we are all about, and created a site that is tailored-made to fit our needs. That means the world to us."

Asked if he would recommend Kelly and the Beyond Indigo team to others that are considering the web site option, Rodney says, "In a heart beat, it's been well worth it. Beyond Indigo's professionalism, teamwork and attention to detail is of the highest caliber. They are great to work with and I know I can count on them. To those who have not taken the leap yet, I would ask, why not?"