Allyse Worland
- Allyse Worland is a first-generation funeral director licensed in Indiana and Kentucky.
- More young women are now enrolling in mortuary schools as the industry faces a labor shortage.
- Millennials and Gen Z women will shape the future of funeral services, Worland says.
This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with Allyse Worland, 30, a funeral director licensed in Indiana and Kentucky, who owns Have License Will Travel Continuing Education Provider and is a partner at Continuing Vision. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
I was nine years old when I experienced the first tragic loss in my family.
It was heartbreaking, and I wondered, “How can I make this situation better?”
I was at my local library back home and loved the Ancient Egypt section, which talked about embalmers. A book said, “Modern-day embalmers are sometimes referred to as morticians or funeral directors.”