Braunberger reflects on three decades in New Rockford helping families with grief

After serving nearly 33 years as a licensed funeral director with Evans Funeral Home, Kent Braunberger sold his ownership of half of the business earlier this year. He is continuing to work with the profession he loves as he is currently employed by West Funeral Home in West Fargo.

Kent and Carol Braunberger moved to New Rockford in 1985 upon the second request of the funeral home owner/director Lyle Evans. Evans had previously offered Kent a position to work in Carrington in 1984, but the timing was not quite right to move from Williston, where Kent had been working as a staff funeral director, serving the communities of Williston and Watford City. This time the young couple with their two small children, Adam and Heather, made the change. Their third child, Jordan, was one of the last babies to be delivered at City Hospital in 1987. In 1992 Kent purchased 50 percent of Evans Funeral Home, which serves Carrington, New Rockford, Sheyenne and the surrounding area.

The background of why Kent chose this challenging profession is interesting. As a high school senior at Finley, North Dakota, Kent loved science classes, but a science career did not appeal to him. He became aware of funeral service while attending a Career Fair. At the same time, he learned that Valley City State University offered pre-professional training in Mortuary Science. When his mother learned about his newly found interest, she suggested that he visit with their hometown funeral director.

"My mother's good advice enabled me to learn much from this gentleman," Kent said. The funeral director said how tremendous it was to help people in their time of need. He also said that this profession would allow Kent to work anywhere in the country, in a small town or large city. He honestly spoke of the challenges that the profession brought on, too, including the many faces of death. Kent remembered, "He told me, 'It hurts to bury friends, and it is not very long before everyone is your friend.'" This caused Kent to understand there would be personal pain experienced as a funeral director who helps others with their grief.

With those words, the funeral director let Kent job shadow him. Kent worked two funerals and observed other areas of mortuary science before quickly deciding that this would be his eventual career. He attended two years at VCSU before going on to mortuary school in Indianapolis, Indiana. This schooling was a 12-month intensive program, which was the equivalent to the traditional 2-year college program, excluding summer lasses. Kent served his apprenticeship and early employment at Korsmo Funeral Home in Moorhead, during which time he married Carol Beckstrand. Kent considers his wife Carol to be a big part of his career and service. "Countless times I was called away in the middle of the night, and I worked many weekends and holidays. Carol was there to hold our family together as I helped other families in their time of need," Kent stated.

 While in New Rockford, Kent's philosophy has been, "if the community trusts me in their time of need, I need to serve the community back." To that end, Kent diligently served in the Kiwanis organization and on cemetery, hospital, school, and church boards. He leaves behind three legacies in New Rockford. Kent started the Community Garden with Ed Horning in the late '80s. He was instrumental in the project to have the names of people who donated to the park's development engraved in the beautiful granite monument in downtown Centennial Park. He also personally computerized the burial records of Prairie Home and St. John's Cemeteries and oversaw the building of the burial records kiosk for public use in the cemeteries.

 Kent Braunberger's faithful service to Evans Funeral Home and the needs of people in New Rockford and the nearby communities proved that this hometown funeral director was exactly right. Kent affirmed, "I have been blessed to know and serve the many great families and individuals in the area assisted by Evans Funeral Home."