11:56 a.m. EDT, August 27, 2012

Melton added to Hager and Cundiff staff

Jason Melton, 36, has joined the staff of Nicholasville’s Hager and Cundiff Funeral Home as a funeral director and advance planning specialist.

Melton, who joined the staff in June, said advance planning of funeral services is becoming more commonplace.

“You see quite a few doing it because it lessens the burden on the family,” he said. “It’s something that we’re all going to face; nobody in this life gets through it who doesn’t face it.”
Melton said many funeral homes are adopting a follow-through approach.

“Once the burial happens, a lot of funeral homes believe the job is done, and it’s not that way anymore,” he said. “This service goes above and beyond.”

Prearranged services “can lock in today’s prices, preventing future increases that could affect your family’s finances. Guaranteed prices include funeral home services, caskets or urns, and vaults,” according to the funeral home’s website.

“You agree to a set price,” Melton said. “Either pay up front or make installment payments. Money is put into the insurance policy and collects interest. Once the burial takes place, any leftover money from interest is remitted to the surviving family members.”

For more information on Hager and Cundiff’s services, visit www.hagerandcundifffunerals.com or call 859-885-4125.

REB Architects opens in Jessamine

REB Architects, formerly known as Snapp and Associates, is now located at 103 Wind Haven Drive Suite 101 in Nicholasville, near the Fayette County line.

“We’re an architectural and engineering firm,” architect Bob Byrge said. “We used to be located in the Bellerive Shopping Center.”

Byrge purchased the firm from Dave Snapp, who retired in late 2011. REB offers a wide range of services.
“We do a lot of multifamily housing,” Byrge said. “We do rennovations, new construction — pretty much anything that needs to be done in multifamily housing, we do it.”

In addition to multifamily housing, REB also does work for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and governmental work.

According to a brochure, REB’s mission “is to provide architectural design services to various building arenas such as multifamily, senior housing, HUD housing, government, officer/commercial, community centers, churches, education and more.”

Byrge said REB designed several buildings in the Brannon Crossing shopping center. Some other projects of note include Western Kentucky University’s Diddle Arena Club Seating, the Logan County Courthouse, Russell School Community Center, and USDA Forest Service renovation.

For more information on REB, visit www.rebarch.com or call 859-523-1500.

Wildcat Ford earns national factory award

Wildcat Ford in Nicholasville is among an elite group of Ford and Lincoln dealerships to be recognized with the 2011 President’s Award by Ford Motor Company. The prestigious award honors dealerships that have excelled in automotive retailing by providing exceptional customer service and satisfaction.

“Earning this award is a reflection of our entire staff’s commitment to delivering the best customer experience possible,” said Jared Gaiennie,  Wildcat Ford managing partner. “We couldn’t be more proud to receive this recognition, especially since it comes from the people we value most — our customers. They’re the reason we were able to achieve this award.”

Dealers become eligible through survey responses from customers related to their sales and service satisfaction. This is the first President’s Award won by Wildcat Ford, but Gaiennie commented, “National championships are part of this area’s competitive tradition, and to repeat year after year is our goal at Wildcat Ford.”

“In order to achieve the President’s Award, dealers must exceed customer expectations every day in every department. The pursuit of excellence is not for the faint of heart — it requires passion, tenacity and, of course, hard work,” said Greg Wood, regional Ford representative. “This prestigious award salutes those top-performing Ford and Lincoln dealerships that embrace these philosophies, achieving among the highest levels of customer satisfaction — in both sales and service – in automotive retailing.”