Funeral service is the family business for Andrew Harrigan, a third-generation funeral director and embalmer. But when he graduated high school, he wasn’t sure of his career path.

When he heard that his dad and uncle, whom he admires and who are the cofounders of Harrigan Parkside Funeral Home in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, believed Andrew would make a great funeral director, he decided to try it.

“Around 25 years later, here I still am. What’s kept me in it are the people,” he says.

For Andrew, “the people” refers to everyone he encounters in his daily work — family; coworkers; and community members that he meets at the churches, the florists, and the courthouse — but especially the families he serves.

“I thrive being around people,” he says. “And I love being in a position where I can help them. That’s what gives me purpose.”

That’s why Andrew expanded his abilities in 2013 by becoming a licensed preneed agent. Being able to help clients plan and prefund funeral services allows him “to provide the best quality of service to families.”

Family is important to Andrew, and he loves working with his dad every day. Another family member you’ll often see him with, whether at work or around town, is his German shepherd, Freyja, who enjoys sampling cookies and barbecue.

Smoking meats is one of Andrew’s passions, and he’s combined it with his love of traveling. He ventures to restaurants near and far trying barbecue. His next vacation is to Spain — a trip he earned selling preneed plans — followed by a Greek islands cruise.

Some of Andrew’s travel destinations have been recommended during preplanning appointments with families. He spends time getting to know his clients — and not only for preplanning purposes. He notes things people say in appointments, especially when they’re funny.

“When people pass, being able to share these notes with their families creates the potential to make them smile, even in their darkest times,” he says. “When I can leave people better than when I found them, it’s rewarding.”

Andrew’s tips for success

• Be yourself. “Be open, be honest, be transparent,” Andrew says. “People will sense when you’re not genuine with them.” Andrew builds rapport by sharing his own interests and pictures of Freyja. “When people come into preplan, we can usually laugh and joke the whole way through.”
• Utilize Wellabe resources. Andrew enjoys his working relationship with his Wellabe reps and finds the company’s marketing support, such as seminars, to be “really helpful.” He also appreciates the ease of using Wellabe's MyEnroller tool, which also saves him time when making changes to applications.
• Think outside the box. Andrew recommends offering suggestions to keep costs within someone’s budget. He says this is possible with items like food and flowers. “Making sure they’re comfortable with the cost is key to getting them to fund the policy,” he says.
• Treat people right. Andrew has found that when he treats people like he would his loved ones, they’ll tell other people about the service they received. This translates to future business. “There’s no better advertising than word of mouth,” he says.