Mike O'Connell's Blog
Blogs about life and death as observed by a funeral director.
My Health, My Decisions: A Discussion on Advance Directives with Mike O’Connell & Dr. Kirsten Severson
In this episode, Dr. Kirsten Severson along with Mike O’Connell and host Pete Waggoner explores the concept of advance directives and how they work. Dr.
How Preplanning Your Funeral Can Benefit You and Your Family
In this episode hosted by Pete Waggoner, Mike O’Connell and Amber Miller discuss the process of preplanning one’s funeral and its multiple benefits. They go
Coping with Secondary Loss & Caregiver Grief
In this episode, host Pete Waggoner goes in-depth with Kathleen Helgeson and Amber Miller about the topic of secondary loss and caregiver grief. They discuss
Funeral Do’s and Don’ts: Funeral Etiquette 101
In this ‘scintillating’ episode of the Good Grief podcast, Mike O’Connell and Amber Miller of O’Connell Funeral Homes join Pete Waggoner to discuss funeral etiquette.
How Cemeteries Make Resting in Peace Possible
In this episode of The Good Grief podcast, Mike O’Connell and Amber Miller get into cemeteries’ important role in providing a final resting place for
Healing Through Tattoos: How Getting Body Art Can Help With Grief
Losing a friend or a loved one is one of the hardest things a person can go through. The process of grieving can be long
A Day in the Life of a Funeral Director
What does it take to be a funeral director? There is no other job like a funeral director. In celebration of National Funeral Director and
O’Connell Family Funeral Homes merge St. Croix and Pierce County locations to better serve local communities
To better accommodate Western Wisconsin communities, specifically Pierce County, as well as to offer a complete range of grief services, the locally owned and operated
The Final Say – Writing Your Own Obituary
Today, it’s not unusual for obituaries to go viral. The reasons are often the tone (poignant to acerbic), length (War & Peace-type tomes to extreme
The Holidays Can Be A Grief Trigger – Ways To Cope
Grief is oblivious. It doesn’t acknowledge the date, time, year, or place. It is not mindful of your feelings or circumstances. Unfortunately, around holidays, grief’s
Your Digital Legacy: Passwords Need A Plan
It’s natural for people to instinctually shy away from afterlife planning. If they do give it a go, the focus tends to be wills, estate
How to help a grieving friend, as well as what is NOT helpful
Learn things you can apply immediately. In today’s episode, Kathy Helgeson, a certified funeral celebrant at O’Connell Family Funeral Homes, joins us to discuss how
