Brookfield, Wis. — The Funeral Service Foundation has awarded five scholarships for attendance at NFDA’s 2014 Professional Women’s Conference (PWC), which will be held April 25-27 in Atlanta, Georgia. The PWC scholarship program aligns with the Foundation’s mission to fund projects and programs that support all of funeral service in building meaningful relationships in the community.

The five 2014 PWC Scholarship recipients are Jorida Mihali-Allison, mortuary science resident trainee, R.J. Funeral Home, Wyandott, Mich.; Christine Bushby,  mortuary affairs specialist, 42nd Air Force Support Squadron, Maxwell Air Force Base,  Ala.; Isabel Espinosa, location manager, Ourso Funeral Home, Donaldsonville, La.; Terry Parrish, CFSP, registrar and director of admissions, Dallas Institute of Funeral Service, Dallas, Texas; and Kavita Pavamani, consultant, Covington Business Solutions, LLC, Parkville, Md.

Scholarships cover the recipients’ conference registration fees, and provide a $1,000 travel and accommodation stipend. During an awards luncheon, Foundation Executive Director Kathy Wisnefski will recognize the recipients, who were selected based upon their answers to questions about the influence women have in funeral service; why they chose a career in the profession; and reasons for wanting to participate in the continuing education program.

“Supporting the Professional Women’s Conference has been a Foundation priority for over a decade. Our donors recognize that professional development opportunities are a cornerstone to the funeral service profession’s success,” said Wisnefski. “This year’s deserving candidates will have the opportunity to network with women from across the profession, learn best practices from some of the profession’s finest, and apply that knowledge to enrich the communities they serve.”

The Professional Women’s Conference Scholarship Program is made possible through the generous support of American Funeral Financial, LLC, Messenger, Nomis Publications, and Wilbert Funeral Services, Inc.  Foundation Partners will sponsor the Foundation’s friend-and-fund-raising program, “Now You’re Cookin’!,” an event that supports both the PWC Scholarship Program and the Foundation’s Women’s Fund.

Learn more about this year’s winners.