聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 聽 Shannon Leson of Leson鈥檚 Funeral Home in Canora has been elected as the chair of the Funeral and Cremation Services Council of Saskatchewan. (FCSCS)
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Born and raised in Canora, Leson has been licensed as a funeral director since 1993. In 2010, he and his wife Shawna became the official owners of Leson鈥檚 Funeral Home.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 In 2012 he was elected as a council member for FCSCS. Leson said he was humbled and honoured when the group elected him as chair.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淭he FCSCS is all about consumer protection. It is a regulatory body bound by the Funeral Services Act and bylaws, while ensuring consumer confidence when buying funeral and cremation services,鈥� said Leson.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽Leson said each funeral director in the province must be licensed. Continuing education is mandatory and a certain amount of credits have to be obtained each year to stay licensed.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Saskatchewan has created a reputation as one of the leaders in funeral service across Canada, and as the new chair of the FCSCS, Leson鈥檚 goal is to maintain and build upon that foundation. He said success in funeral service begins with personal values.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淚t鈥檚 very demanding work, and you need to be able to give of yourself. You must have care and compassion for people as part of who you are. We鈥檙e essentially always on-call, 24/7, because death occurs anywhere, at any time.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Leson said an important aspect of funeral service is staying current with the latest technology. Traditionally, the two main options for families to consider were burial and cremation. But in recent years Saskatchewan was the first province to legalize alkaline hydrolysis, which gives families a non flame-based option for disposition of the body.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 One of Leson鈥檚 goals during his four-year term as chair of the FCSCS is to work toward creating uniform funeral standards across Canada. One area where he believes there is much work to do is in dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among funeral directors. He said one of the first steps is to talk about the problem.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 鈥淧TSD is widely recognized among professions such as police and firefighters, but it鈥檚 also a major problem among funeral directors. People sometimes take us for granted in that way, but giving compassion is very draining and emotions run high with families who have suffered a loss. Our families know they can lean on us. And in a small town like Canora, we often know the person who passed away, so there can be personal grief involved.鈥�
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 As a funeral director with years of experience, Leson is a strong supporter of the funeral profession offering support services to funeral directors in dealing with PTSD.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Leson said it鈥檚 important for Canora business people like himself to be involved in the local community. He has served as a volunteer in the fire department in a number of capacities. He is a board member trustee for the Good Spirit School Division and a member of the Canora Golf and Country Club and the Canora Trakkers Snowmobile Club. Leson鈥檚 Funeral Home is a long-time sponsor of local activities such as school groups and sports teams.
聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 As an escape from the daily grind of bereavement care, he likes to spend time with his family, including traveling when possible. Leson and his wife Shawna have four children; Skylar, 22; Saryn, 14; Shayna, 11 and Shiloh, 7.聽聽
