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Our History

We trace our roots to the early 1890’s when D.W. Newcomer, a sash and door maker, was called upon to construct a coffin for a close friend.  This brief encounter led Mr. Newcomer to enter funeral service by opening D.W. Newcomer’s Undertaking and Livery Service in Kansas City, Missouri in 1893.  Followed by his son, David Newcomer, and grandson, Warren Newcomer, the Newcomer family continued to expand the business in the Kansas City area.

Ren Newcomer, a fourth-generation funeral director, graduated from the University of Kansas in 1975 and began work as a funeral director in Topeka, Kansas.  In 1978 Ren established Newcomer Funeral Service Group when he purchased Penwell-Gabel and Parker-Price Funeral Homes in Topeka.  These funeral homes became the foundation for growth in the decades to follow.

Today, Newcomer remains an independent, family-owned company with over 40 funeral homes and cemeteries in 10 states.  We are supported by principals passed down from previous generations – uncompromising personal service and a price that is fair.  These principals have guided our expansion and plans for future growth.

Newcomer Family

Leadership Team

Founder Ren Newcomer graduated from the University of Kansas. Following in the footsteps of his father, grandfather and great-grandfather before him, Ren became a funeral director and began his career at his father’s funeral home in Topeka. He purchased two funeral homes in 1978 and in the decades that followed, expanded Newcomer Funeral Service Group into ten states with over forty funeral homes. Ren shares that the keys to his success have always been surrounding himself with great people, continually reinvesting in associates, facilities, and technology, and putting the needs of families and associates above everything else. Ren is a Past President of the Kansas Funeral Directors Association, a board member of CoreFirst Bank & Trust and is a licensed funeral director in the states of Kansas and Ohio.

Ren Newcomer

Founder and Chairman of the Board

John Newcomer succeeded his father, Ren Newcomer, as President of Newcomer Funeral Service Group in 2021.  He joined the Company in 2012 as an Apprentice Funeral Director in Louisville, KY before serving as Manager of Newcomer’s operations in the Louisville area.  John moved to the Home Office in Topeka, KS in 2017.  He is a licensed funeral director in Kansas and Kentucky. Prior to joining his family’s business, John was a certified public accountant with KPMG’s Chicago office for four years.  He received his Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and his Masters in Accounting, both from the University of Kansas.

John Newcomer

President

Chief Operations Officer Perry Hasselbeck is a graduate of University of Cincinnati and attended Wharton School for Executive Education at the University of Pennsylvania. He began his career at Batesville Casket Company, eventually holding management positions in their national accounts division and cremation products division. Perry shares that when he reviewed his career and future opportunities, he saw that the growth of our company was in line with his goals, and joined Newcomer in 2003. He was, and still is, impressed with the entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to growth within our organization. Perry leads our Operations Department, and assists our division directors and funeral home managers with daily challenges and strategic initiatives.

Perry Hasselbeck

Executive Vice President,
Chief Operations Officer

Chief Human Resources Officer Cressa Chalmers graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Notre Dame of Maryland University, later completing her Master’s in Business Administration from Franklin University in Columbus, Ohio. She worked in Human Resources for public, private and government organizations before deciding to enter funeral service. While working as the Chief Administrative Officer for a family-owned firm, she completed her funeral director’s apprenticeship and eventually took on additional leadership roles including operations. Cressa became interested in Newcomer because of their culture and core values. She joined our company in 2015 as Director of Operations. In 2018, Cressa transitioned to our Home Office Leadership team, and leads our Human Resources team with a continual focus on keeping Newcomer a great place to work for all associates. She is a licensed funeral director in Ohio, and a member of the National Funeral Directors Association, Ohio Funeral Directors Association and many other Human Resource Organizations.

Cressa Chalmers

Senior Vice President
Operations

Chief Information Officer Robert Stanley is a graduate of Missouri State University. He began his career as a Software Developer for Conoco and later Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, before moving into leadership roles at Security Benefit/SE2 where he managed large teams as a Director of Technology Solutions. When he joined Newcomer in 2015, one of the immediate appeals was our organization’s genuine desire to serve families. The primary focus of Robert’s previous employers had always been profits and investors, and Newcomer’s culture and values have been a refreshing change. He also appreciated the new challenges of the CIO role, along with balance brought by the company's concern for their associates. Robert’s responsibilities include leading Newcomer’s IT team in providing the technology to meet the needs of our associates and the families that we serve, anticipating future needs, and securing all the information that families entrust to us.

Robert Stanley

Vice President
Chief Information Officer

Chief Financial Officer Chet Stone is a Certified Public Accountant who joined our company in 2019. A graduate of Washburn University in Topeka, KS, Chet has previously worked with SS&C CPA’s, First Life America Corporation, CAS Construction, Jetz, and Empire Candle Company, in auditor, controller, CEO and CFO roles. Chet manages the activity of our Accounting Department, along with our finance, insurance, and banking relationships. He shared that he enjoys the family environment of our workplace, which gives him the opportunity to work with a great group of people who are providing a valuable service to our communities every day.

Chet Stone

Vice President
Chief Financial Officer

Director of Compliance and Risk Management

Gregg Burden

Director of Compliance and Risk Management

Tyler Cummins, Director of Human Resources

Tyler Cummins

Director of
Human Resources

Director of Marketing Jeremy Lamb is a graduate of Friends University in Wichita, Kansas. He has a strong background in Marketing and Sales across a number of industries, including radio, auto and digital marketing. In 2018, he joined Newcomer to lead our Marketing Department, overseeing all marketing and communication efforts. Jeremy shares that he was interested in our company because it is a family-owned organization which continually invests in its employees.

Jeremy Lamb

Director of
Marketing

Roy Montgomery, Director of Sales

Roy Montgomery

Director of Sales

core values

Values

Throughout its history, our company has always been characterized by the pursuit of Excellence in everything we do, a relationship of Trust with the families we serve, Care for our associates and our communities, and the ongoing pursuit of Growth both as individuals and as a company.

These four values serve as points on a compass, guiding our daily actions and decisions, helping us to always do the right thing.

locations

map

Topeka, KS

Junction City, KS

Casper, WY

Denver, CO

Olathe, KS

Miami/Franklin Co, KS

St. Louis, MO

Orlando, FL

Green Bay, WI

Rochester, NY

Syracuse, NY

Albany, NY

Toledo, OH

Akron, OH

Cincinnati, OH

Columbus, OH

Dayton, OH

Indianapolis, IN

New Albany, IN

Louisville, KY

Erlanger, KY

Massillon, OH

Cheyenne, WY

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Newcomer Expands in Wyoming

June 20, 2023

Newcomer Funeral Service Group is pleased to announce that it has acquired Wiederspahn-Radomsky Chapel of the Chimes Funeral Home & Crematory and Cheyenne Memorial Gardens…

2022 Warren J. Newcomer Award Winners

May 18, 2023

Please join us in congratulating the winners of the 2022 Warren J. Newcomer Awards! The awards were established 23 years ago in honor of third-generation…

Welcoming New Funeral Directors for Training

May 10, 2023

Last month we had the opportunity to welcome a number of our newer funeral directors from across our company to our Home Office in Topeka,…