Joseph A. “Jody” Brandenburg is a Jacksonville leader who many people know through his community service, but who most people encounter at the end of a life.
He is the president of Hardage-Giddens Funeral Homes and Cemeteries, comprising 11 funeral establishments, six cemeteries and a cremation facility.
The organization employs about 165 people in Jacksonville.
Brandenburg, 73, has been a leader in the Jacksonville death-care industry for almost 30 years and joined the profession more than 50 years ago.
You’ve met with thousands of area families during their saddest hours. How do you train to professionally approach each situation?
We have a rigorous course of indoctrination and through our affiliation with the Dignity Memorial network, we have Dignity University. We’re so fortunate to have in-house opportunities to do our training.
As the leader, what do you personally teach your staff?
The first thing we look for is the ability to communicate. Communication is not just the ability to talk.
We’re working with families on their saddest days, and we have to have the ability to listen and then determine how we can best serve their needs.
You were born in South Florida. Did you grow up there?
Everybody knows Miami. Most people know Homestead. Some people know Florida City. If you go below Florida City, you’re almost into the Everglades. I grew up in the last house before Everglades National Park. I grew up in paradise.
My dad was a tomato farmer. As an 18-year-old, he came down there and built our house in 1926, and that house existed until (Hurricane) Andrew came through and swept it away in ’92.
We were raised in an agricultural environment, two older brothers — who by the way, both followed in the family footsteps in agriculture.
What did you want to be when you grew up?
A pharmacist. I had an older cousin who owned independent drug stores and I worked there a lot and was indoctrinated into pharmacy.
How did that plan change?
After the first year of college, I needed to find a summer job to put some funds together to go back to school the next year.
A friend was working for a funeral home in Miami and said, “We have a perfect opportunity to you. We even have dorms.”
Back then they had ambulance service, so you stayed around the clock at the location. I got a job washing the cars, mowing the lawn and just being a jack-of-all-trades around the funeral home, and really got an opportunity to see what it was all about.
Since then I’ve done nothing else, except while I was in college in Dallas. I worked for Ford Motor Co.
What did you do at Ford?
I was a “pull out driver” at a manufacturing plant.
We would jump in just as the cars were coming off the assembly line, run them through the drenching — the water process — and we would check through the vehicle to see if there was any leakage.
Then we would drive them to the railroad yard or the trucking yard so that they could be distributed all over the country.
I’m not going to say that some of the guys hot-rodded those cars that two-mile drive, but sometimes you saw some smoking tires. Of course, I wasn’t involved in that.
What drew you to your profession?
The attraction was to be able to help people when they really, really needed help.
It’s not like a physician or a first responder. It’s a different calling. It’s more of a ministry.
I would see how funeral directors and the staffs touched the lives of these people, and the people were better off for having dealt with their funeral director.
I saw that and I said, “That’s for me.”
How has the industry changed since you earned your degree 50 years ago?
I see the baby boomer generation driving a lot of the shift. They’ve redefined virtually every aspect of America since they were in kindergarten.
Now baby boomers are approaching the age where they may have planned a very traditional funeral service for a parent, but realized they want something very different for themselves.
They want a more personalized, creative and upbeat experience of a life celebration.
What are some examples?
They want their end-of-life celebration to reflect who they are and what they did. We have become very adept at everything from soup to nuts, literally.
We do all the ancillary planning, provide items that are dear and near to the person’s theme. We provide a different décor for every family that comes in.
Most of all, in today’s environment, families appreciate our ability to have a catered reception either before or after this life well-celebrated.
We do everything from providing to cleaning up so the family is not encumbered by that.
They can truly greet friends and grieve on their own without having to worry about the details.
What has been the biggest challenge in your career?
Some of the biggest challenges have been being nimble and being able to change with the times and with what the customer really wants.
You’ll see our people not necessarily dressed in white shirts and suits and ties, but more business casual, at least in the meetings with our families. And I think they appreciate that — not so uptight.
What’s been your biggest career satisfaction?
Having someone hug me and whisper in my ear, “That was wonderful. Thank you so much for what you’ve done.”
I got a call in a meeting and I saw on my phone it was a friend of mine, and I said, “I have to take this call.” Friends are first with me.
It was a prominent person who had attended a friend’s service at one of our locations.
He said, “By the way, I need to come in and make all of my preplanning arrangements with you.”
I have my phone with me 24/7 and people think, “Well gosh, if your phone rings at three o’clock in the morning, that just is bothersome. Why do you do that?”
One of the biggest compliments that can be paid to me is a family who calls me personally at three o’clock in the morning and tells me that they need me and we need to deploy ourselves to help them. That’s a great compliment.
Is it easy to recruit young people into the industry?
We’ve had our traditional ways of recruiting, but understanding the changes that we’re going through, we have partnered with the Rosen College of Hospitality Management (at the University of Central Florida) to help us recruit people coming out of their school.
It’s not just mortuary schools or funeral service schools that we’re recruiting from. That’s been really a successful partnership.
What would you be if you weren’t in this profession?
I would have probably become a pharmacist. Of course I’d like to be a race car driver.
We never know what twists and turns our lives are going to take. Back in the younger days, I liked a lot of things — an interest in automobiles, an interest in the outdoors, an interest in flying.
What’s your interest in flying?
Growing up an agricultural area, there were always a lot of airplanes around — crop-dusters — and my two older brothers had airplanes and I was always flying with them.
I should have taken the opportunity to get my private pilot’s license, but out in the country, the last house before Everglades National Park, you didn’t need much of a license to fly back then.
You’re also active in the community. How has that helped you?
Being involved in the community is almost a requirement for not just me, but for virtually any citizen in Jacksonville.
You have a voice in determining what’s happening in the future, not only for your profession, but for the city and the surrounding areas.
Do you have any advice for people on how to cultivate a network?
This is going to sound corny, but love people. My friends and associates and acquaintances are so precious to me.
I am protective of my friends and our relationships and I continue to try to build upon that.
By the way, the core values of our company are respect, integrity, service, excellence and enduring relationships.
I think getting to know people, getting to genuinely care about them, falls into all aspects of our company focus.
People who know you say you always maintain a composed and caring attitude. How does a person do that?
I’ve seen people come in with us who have had to somewhat tame down their actions, and most of them do a great job with that because they have a mentor.
Mentors are so important. You can mold yourself and you can take on the characteristics of positive people. I’ve had great mentors.
Who have been your most important mentors?
Mr. Ronald T. Giddens, one of the founders of Hardage-Giddens, has been a wonderful mentor to me and continues to be, and the Hardages, particularly Bob Hardage, who unfortunately passed away not too long ago.
When I came to Jacksonville, those two really took me under their wing and they made me a much better person.
How would you describe your leadership style?
It’s participative. I try to take input from others and reach conclusions based upon gathering a lot of information.
I’m surrounded by exceptional people and leaders at our locations. You learn to depend upon them.
Talk about your family.
I’m married to the love of my life, soon to be 30 years, to Janne Brandenburg.
Many people may remember her dad, Ed Ferrell, Ferrell Jewelers. He died in 1966, when Jan was 18 years old.
I wish I had known him. He was a great gentleman.
Janne is heavily involved in the community. Some of her favorite efforts are Community Hospice, River Garden Senior Services and the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens.
We have four children. The oldest is an arborist, next is a fishing guide and charter boat captain in the Tampa Bay area, our daughter is vice president with Citigroup and lives here in Jacksonville, and the youngest is a daughter in St. Louis in real estate management.
What do you do for fun?
Janne and I used to travel a lot, certainly more than we do now, and we developed a love of the south of France.
I’m an outdoors person, so I like hunting and fishing, and just about every outdoor activity.
What is your advice for city leaders?
Jacksonville is at a pivotal point. Our leaders should focus on creating and attracting jobs, jobs, jobs.
I hear too often that parents have youngsters that graduate from college and they don’t come back to Jacksonville. They would like to have good jobs for them in Jacksonville.
Good jobs will solve a lot of problems.
It seems that we need to focus on the crime in Jacksonville, and it so distresses me that we have young people killing young people on the streets of Jacksonville.
And of course, we need to continue to focus on education.
What else would you like to share?
I’d like to share what a great city Jacksonville is. It’s a vibrant city where people genuinely want to help each other.
I love Jacksonville. I know Janne loves Jacksonville. We don’t want to be anyplace else.
@MathisKb
(904) 356-2466
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Name and age
Joseph A. “Jody” Brandenburg, 73
Position
Since 1990, president, Hardage-Giddens Funeral Homes & Cemeteries, comprising 11 funeral establishments, six cemeteries and a cremation facility. Hardage-Giddens is part of the Dignity Memorial network, which is a brand of Service Corporation International.
Hometown
Homestead
Education
Dallas Institute of Mortuary Science, Dallas, mortuary science degree, 1967.
Before that: Florida Registered Apprenticeship Program; Miami-Dade Community College (pre-pharmacy) and West Georgia College (pre-pharmacy)
Career path
Licensed funeral director and embalmer 1967-present; funeral home manager 1969-77; Service Corporation International in Houston, corporate vice president 1987-1990, becoming Southern Regional president 1990-2003.
Hobbies
Travel, outdoorsman
Family
Wife, Janne Brandenburg; children Dale Linder, Joel Brandenburg, Lorelei Raymond and Elizabeth Reed; and six grandchildren
Community
Chairman since 2008 and Rules Committee chair since 2005 of the State of Florida Board of Funeral, Cemetery and Consumer Services
Chairman, Florida Funeral Directors Association; Florida Cemetery Cremation and Funeral Association Lifetime Achievement Award, 2016
Best advice you’ve received
Think before you act. Your actions often affect many others who depend upon you to act judiciously.
Biggest career surprise
Over the years, our ability to recruit, hire and train women into funeral service. Many are now in leadership roles in an industry once viewed as “men only.” We are proud to continue to lead the death-care industry in offering opportunities to women.
Spark of wisdom to share with young people
Have a passion for what you do. No passion? You’re not going in the right direction.
Once you find your passion, seek out mentors who will help you develop your strengths and identify and address your weaknesses.
One decision you would take back
Getting rid of that 1958 Chevrolet Impala.
One decision you wish you would have made
Obtaining my private pilot’s license.