Behner Funeral Home will donate to civic groups selected in online poll

FAIRFIELD – Behner Funeral Home in Fairfield is involving the whole community in its effort to give back to deserving nonprofits and civic groups.

The funeral home’s owners Scott and Rachel Brown posted on their Facebook account Jan. 22 that they were seeking nominations of local organizations that could use “an extra monetary boost.” The funeral home was flooded with suggestions, with commenters mentioning 27 groups. The Browns painstakingly counted each time an organization was mentioned in the comments, and that gave them the top four groups.

On Jan. 31, the funeral home created a poll on its Facebook page where the public could vote for which organization should receive a donation in the company’s first “Give Back” campaign. The top two vote-getters will each receive $500, and as of Wednesday, Feb. 5, more than 1,000 votes had been cast. Voting was scheduled to end at 5 p.m. that day.

The four entities in the running are: Fairfield Youth Performing Arts; Noah’s Ark Animal Foundation; The African Violet Foundation; and Golden Magnolia Sanctuary.

Scott said that, if a civic group did not make the final cut this time, there’s no need to worry. Behner Funeral Home plans to do this again, at least for the next two months. He said they plan to start the next round of nominations in mid-February, and could award two more checks by the end of the month.

The Browns moved to Fairfield in 2023 when they purchased Behner Funeral Home, and wasted no time in taking on roles in several organizations. Rachel serves on the Fairfield Women’s Club Board, is an active member of Fairfield Kiwanis where she chartered and currently leads the Fairfield Middle School Builders Club, is an active Chamber Ambassador, and serves on the Fairfield Public Library Board. Scott is a member of the Fairfield Lions Club, Knights of Columbus, and serves at their church.

Scott said he did a similar “Give Back” campaign when he managed a funeral home in the Quad Cities, and believed it would be a successful model for giving back to Fairfield.

“Allowing community members to vote for worthy candidates and ultimately choose the organizations that they would like to see awarded gives community members a say in who we bless each month,” the Browns said in a statement. “We want our community to know we are honored to be here, and we are honored every time a family trusts us to serve.”

The Browns said they want to continue the company’s legacy of investing in the community that started with Fred Behner.

“At Behner Funeral Home, we value this community and the families we serve,” they said. “We want to illustrate our commitment to Fairfield by giving back.”

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Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com