By Thomas A. Parmalee
The first lesson Keenan Knopke ever learned about the cemetery business came from the back of a pickup truck.
“I rode around in the back … squashing down picked-up flowers,” he recalled. “After that, I was given a check for 50 cents, went to downtown Tampa to the bank to cash my check, and then bought a toy … and that was my introduction to the cemetery business.”
He was five years old.
Nearly seven decades later, Knopke’s perspective has been sharpened by a career that spans family ownership, entrepreneurial risk, corporate scale, and, for more than two decades, leading Curlew Hills Memory Gardens in Pinellas County, Florida, which includes a funeral home, cemetery, crematory and pet cemetery.
On top of all that, he’s served as president of the Florida Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association and as president of the Funeral and Cemetery Alliance of Florida. He is currently a member of the board of directors of the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association and is the former chairman of its Government, Legal Affairs and Tax Committee.
Knopke is also vice chairman of the board of the Funeral Cemetery and Consumer Services of Florida and is past chairman of the board of Funeral and Cemetery Services of Florida.
What emerges from his story is not just a biography, but a blueprint on how to serve families — one that cemetery professionals would do well to study closely.
A Business Built on Discipline
Knopke’s roots in the profession run deep, but not in the conventional sense.
“My dad, Raymond, had no background in deathcare,” he explained. “My family was in the junkyard business … but they kept noticing a large tract of land and funeral processions going by every day.”
In the late 1930s, his father’s observation sparked an idea. Instead of expanding in salvage, the family made a contrarian move, developing a cemetery in Tampa — Garden of Memories — so families could have a cemetery closer to downtown Tampa than Myrtle Hill Memorial Park.
Instead of monuments, the elder Knopke chose to offer families something simple but disruptive: flat markers.
When Knopke’s father left home to serve in World War II, his grandmother and mother, Virginia, continued to grow the business.
From the beginning, the enterprise was less about tradition and more about identifying an unmet consumer demand — an ethos that would later define Knopke’s own leadership philosophy.
He got off to a rocky start in the business, however.
When he started working for his dad as an adult, he showed up in professional attire, thinking he’d be an executive.
“I was sent home for being late and not being dressed appropriately,” he said. “I was to be a groundskeeper, not an executive.”
The year was 1968, and Knopke got his official start learning to dig graves.
From Aspiring Golfer to Reluctant Professional
Interestingly, Knopke did not initially envision a lifelong career in deathcare.
“All through high school, I worked hard to become a professional golfer,” he said. “I was really good at one point.”
That trajectory ended abruptly when his father delivered a dose of realism: He needed a job.
What followed was not a seamless transition but a recalibration. He returned to the family cemetery business, then pursued a formal education at Miami Dade College to become a licensed funeral director.
By 1974, he was licensed.
By 1980, he had teamed up with his brother, Skip, to build an onsite funeral home at Garden of Memories.
They changed the name of the business to Gardens of Memories Funeral Home and Cemetery. After combining the funeral home and cemetery into one business, Keenan’s father — who had worked in the cemetery business for 47 years and had also served 28 years in elected office, including as a state senator — decided he was ready to sell his interest and retire.
After an extended family discussion that included Keenan’s two uncles, who also owned stock in the business, the family chose to find an outside buyer.
“I knew Frank B. Stewart Jr. (the longtime CEO and then chairman at Stewart Enterprises) at the time … I knew he was forthcoming and honest,” Knopke said. “We cut a deal in February 1984 — Stewart Enterprises took over.”
Today, the cemetery remains in business and is owned by Service Corporation International. Sometimes, it is called Garden of Memories Myrtle Hill Memorial Park (Myrtle Hill is the same cemetery Knopke’s dad began competing with so many years ago), as that cemetery is adjacent to Garden of Memoris and is also owned by SCI. Collectively, the two cemeteries are called Garden of Memories at Myrtle Hill.
Lessons from the Corporate World
Knopke spent 19 years with Stewart Enterprises.
“That was probably the best time of my life for learning,” he said.
His brother, Skip, also worked for Stewart for years as a division president, he said.
At Stewart, the scale was exponential. He went from managing small teams to overseeing hundreds of employees and salespeople, including a workforce where language barriers forced him to adapt quickly.
“I had 900 employees who worked for me,” he said, noting that many of them spoke Spanish, which he does not know.
The lessons he learned revolved around systems, leadership and humility.
Assignments like Woodlawn Park Cemetery in Miami expanded his perspective further, particularly in areas he once avoided.
“I swore I would never have anything to do with monuments,” he said, reflecting on how his family achieved such success operating a cemetery with flat markers. “But I had to learn that business.”
All these years later, he’s not so sure the family made the right move in selling Garden of Memories.
“At the time, we did not want that responsibility … continuing to learn new things and how to deal with people and situations,” he said.
Somewhat ironically, however, taking on new duties, more responsibilities and always learning is what he had to do to succeed after selling the business.
For cemetery operators, the takeaway is clear: Diversification of knowledge is not optional. The modern cemetery executive must be fluent across property development, memorialization products, sales strategy and operational logistics.
Curlew Hills: Independence with Intent
When Knopke arrived at Curlew Hills Memory Gardens in 2003, he stepped into a fundamentally different governance structure.
“This is owned by the Bilgore family … today I have 20 bosses — all shareholders,” he said.
The ownership group, originally from the citrus industry, entered cemetery service almost by accident.
“They wanted a bank charter … and were denied,” Knopke explained.
They were told, however, that they could have a cemetery license, which at first took them aback … and then perked their curiosity. The state reasoned that they knew how to manage land but knew nothing about the banking business.
“They spent a year and a half traveling … looking at good ideas and bad ideas,” Knopke said.
They family started the cemetery in 1979 with no debt – and to this day, they do not have any, Knopke said.
For Knopke, overseeing operations at a smaller company has given him more freedom, as well as the ability to act.
“If you ask me a question, I can make a decision really quick,” he said. “Corporates … they can’t make decisions on much of anything in the field.”
That responsiveness has become a competitive advantage, particularly in a market like Florida, where combination operations are common and competition is dense.
The Master-Planned Cemetery
Curlew Hills sits on approximately 30 acres — the minimum required to establish a cemetery in Florida.
“We are a master-planned cemetery,” Knopke said. “We know what is going to happen on our grounds.”
That planning manifests in flexibility: traditional burial, mausoleum entombment, columbarium placement and multiple scattering options, including three lakes. An area for pet burials takes up half an acre, he said.
The property hosts approximately 450 burials, entombments and scatterings annually, transforming it from a passive resting place into an active community asset.
There is a good deal of built-in business that comes from Curlew Hills Memory Gardens Funeral Home, which serves about 675 families per year.
Curlew Hills is not the only combination operation in the area: There are several others in Pinellas County in Florida, although there are many more funeral homes than cemeteries, he said.
Rethinking Cremation Economics
Few forces have reshaped cemetery operations more than cremation, and Knopke is blunt about the industry’s missteps.
“The first thing is: don’t assume every cremation family wants cheap,” he said.
This misconception, he argues, has cost operators both revenue and relevance.
“Those families have needs and desires… they just don’t know what is available,” he said.
At Curlew Hills, the response has been to expand the value proposition rather than shrink it.
He shared that one family spent $200,000 on a private cremation estate — designed for both human and pet remains.
“They drove 150 miles to find us … because no one else would build what they wanted,” he said.
Another family commissioned a private walk-in mausoleum for cremated remains, designed to hold 30 to 40 urns.
“These are the kinds of things that keep me going,” Knopke said. “Let’s do something different.”
The lesson is that cremation does not eliminate the need for a place; it expands the range of possibilities.
Vertical Integration Done Right
Curlew Hills operates as a fully integrated campus: cemetery, funeral home, crematory and even a pet cemetery.
Notably, about 40% of the funeral home’s cremation cases involve some form of cemetery service, he said.
“I’ve been told that is really good,” Knopke said — an understatement that reflects the effectiveness of alignment between services.
The on-site crematory further enhances control and accountability, while infrastructure investments demonstrate a commitment to resilience. For instance, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the business invested heavily in expanding its refrigeration capability.
“We are here for the market,” Knopke said. “We would rather work with our competitors, including SCI, in having extra cooler space if and when they ever need it – if there is a hurricane or something.”
This cooperative posture, rare in competitive markets, reinforces reputation while strengthening regional capacity.
Culture: Old-School Principles, Modern Application
Despite the scale and sophistication of operations, Knopke’s management philosophy is disarmingly simple.
“You treat people like you like to be treated,” he said.
But beneath that simplicity is a structured framework:
- Pay employees well and provide strong benefits.
- Avoid high-pressure sales tactics.
- Maintain facilities to a high standard.
- Deliver on promises.
“If you treat them nice, they will treat your customers nice,” he said of cemetery staff.
The results at Curlew Hills speak for themselves: low turnover, stable staffing and a reputation that drives organic growth.
“I haven’t had an opening for a funeral director in three or four years,” he said.
For cemeteries struggling with staffing, he said there are good people out there.
“I do think we in this profession have to get used to the tattoos and piercings, because that is what you see coming out of mortuary school,” he said. “I am sure when I came out of mortuary school, I had long hair and dressed kind of funny, and some may not have hired me back then.”
He suggested this: “Look at your customers .. What do they look like? And what do their grandkids look like?”
What’s much more important than looks is someone’s employment history, including how long they’ve stayed at each employer, he said.
“Someone who hops a lot may be great, but they think the best job is the next one and not the one they have right now,” he said.
The Cemetery as a Community Stage
Perhaps the most distinctive aspect of Curlew Hills is its role as a community venue.
“For us, we are putting on a show,” Knopke said.
That means professional speakers, school participation and high-quality production. Attendance at Memorial Day and Veterans Day events has grown from 50 people to 400 or more in the past several years, he said.
A community favorite has been Sonya Bryson-Kirksey, the Tampa Bay Lightning’s national anthem singer.
The centerpiece, however, is the cemetery’s 9/11 memorial.
After contributing to a local fire department’s effort, Knopke proposed something more ambitious: building a permanent memorial on cemetery grounds.
The memorial includes the names of the 343 New York City Fire Department firefighters who made the ultimate sacrifice while responding to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.
Attendance now reaches 1,500 to 2,000 people annually, with dignitaries and notable performers participating. This year, since it will be the twenty-fifth anniversary of the attacks, the crowd may be even larger, Knopke said.
“We do stuff first class. Don’t skimp on it,” he said. “Give them a ballcap to take home with them.”
For cemeterians, the implication is profound: Community engagement is not peripheral — it is central to brand identity and long-term relevance.
Maintenance: A Critical Standard
Ask Knopke about the biggest challenges facing cemeteries, and his answer is immediate.
“Maintain the facilities in more than acceptable condition from day one,” he said.
Grass, markers, edging and cleanliness aren’t little details you can ignore. They signal a great deal to families.
“If it all looks bad, the service will be just as bad – and it all looks bad on you,” he said.
He is equally direct about the financial reality of running a cemetery.
“It takes money … that is where the sales department comes in,” he said.
Too many cemeteries, he argues, underinvest in maintenance, creating a downward spiral of perception and performance.
Technology: Measured Adoption
Knopke is neither a technophile nor a skeptic, but he’s pragmatic when it comes to investing his money in new resources and tools.
“Technology will do as much as you let it do,” he said. “But you better be sure you know what it is doing.”
At Curlew Hills, that translates into targeted adoption: barcode tracking of remains, mapping systems and selective use of AI for obituary writing.
The emphasis is on reliability and support.
“Some of the mapping programs out there are great – but they need to have been at it long enough,” he said, noting that he often finds himself at a convention telling a vendor that he’ll talk to them next year if they are still around.
“If it doesn’t have staying power… I’m not going to buy it,” he said, noting that it’s important for a company to still exist if you want support for a product or service.
For operators navigating a crowded vendor landscape, this disciplined approach may be more valuable than early adoption.
Leadership in a Fragmented Industry
Knopke’s influence extends far beyond Curlew Hills.
His leadership roles in state and national associations have given him a front-row seat to industry fragmentation and consolidation.
He played a key role in combining the Florida Cemetery and Cremation Association and the Florida Funeral Directors Associations, turning it into the Florida Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association, serving the combined organization as president during the merger.
In retrospect, he thinks it was absolutely the right move.
“The funeral directors association had lots of members, but it had a filet mignon appetite on hamburger revenue that was sinking quickly,” he said. “The cemetery association had lots of cash, but it was a much smaller organization … but it was nimble and viable.”
Numerous others helped bring the two groups together, with Rick Baldwin, a former president of the Florida Funeral Directors Association playing a key role, along with SCI’s Lee Longino and Mike Uselton.
“They needed to be together,” Knopke said. “They are better equipped to deal with staffing shortages and so forth.”
Today, he advocates for continued collaboration, backed by strategic investment in advocacy resources.
“You will get into a fight that is big and expensive,” he warned. “Be ready.”
He also has deep respect for the Independent Funeral Directors of Florida, which he belongs to as a member.
An Enduring Principle: Tell the Truth
For all the operational complexity of Curlew Hills, Knopke returns repeatedly to a single ethical anchor.
“Tell the truth,” he said.
Even in worst-case scenarios — such as burial errors, which he’s had personal experience with — his guidance is unequivocal.
“Bring them in and tell them … here is what happened,” he said.
The outcome may still involve legal or financial consequences, but long-term relationships and your reputation depend on transparency.
Asked which he prefers — working for a big corporation like Stewart Enterprises or a smaller business — Knopke said he’s not sure.
“The 19 years I spent with Stewart were probably the best years of my life for learning,” he said. “But at Curlew, for 23 years, I have been able to use that experience and knowledge in a different way — to help grow a small, independent business. There is not a lot of politics here.”
Still Not Done
At 75, Knopke shows little interest in slowing down.
“I love what I do,” he said. “I feel like I still have a lot to offer.”
Even with the increase in cremation and changing consumer preferences, he believes the cemetery business has a bright future. “If everything looks good and everyone operates well, you are going to make a lot of money, have a good reputation and life will be good,” he said.
Asked what has kept him in the profession for so long, he noted that years ago, after the family business was sold to Stewart Enterprises, he did not have another job, so he stayed in deathcare – especially since he had a wife and two children.
“Stewart gave me a wonderful opportunity being a guy who thought he knew it all and was quickly shown he did not know much,” he said. “Beyond the Garden of Memories, it was a whole different world out there,” he said.
The few times he’s gotten bored along the way, he said, another opportunity has come along to revitalize him, he said.
He continues to visit cemeteries on road trips, gathering ideas, refining strategies and staying engaged.
Each new concept, each customized memorial and each community event he oversees are extensions of a philosophy forged in the back of a pickup truck and tested across decades of change.
For cemetery professionals, the lessons are clear: Master the fundamentals, adapt to the market and invest in people and your grounds.
And above all — earn trust, every day.
Because in Knopke’s world, success is not measured solely in acres developed or services performed. It is measured by the reputation you have among your peers and in the community.
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