Board of Trustees and Staff

Our Board of Trustees

There are ten Trustees of the Educational Trust Board, each serving a three-year term. The Executive Director of Selected Independent Funeral Homes serves as the Administrative Trustee. The Board meets quarterly to conduct business.

Al Asta

Whitney & Murphy
Funeral Home
Phoenix, AZ

Carey Bliley

Bliley’s Funeral Homes
Richmond, VA
–

Tim Bridgers

Live Oak Bank
Wilmington, NC
–

Ashlee Etzweiler

Etzweiler Family
Funeral Service
York, PA

Dean Lambert

Homesteaders Life
Company
Des Moines, IA

Rob Paterkiewicz

Selected Independent
Funeral Homes
Deerfield, IL
robp@selectedtrust.org

Scott Pridemore

Hippensteel Funeral
Service & Crematory
Lafayette, IN

Paul St. Pierre

Selected Board Liason
Wilson St. Pierre
Funeral Service & Crematory
Greenwood, IN

Rachel Wartes

Gunderson Funeral and
Cremation Care
Madison, WI

John Wild

Iles Funeral Homes, Inc.
Des Moines, IA
–

Trust Staff

Bea Pedersen

Executive Director and
Administrative Trustee
Deerfield, IL
bea@selectedtrust.org

More Information

Leslie Kowalczyk

Programs Coordinator
Deerfield, IL
leslie@selectedtrust.org

More Information

Bea Pedersen

Executive Director

An accomplished nonprofit manager with more than 20 years of experience in fundraising, administration and development. Ms. Pedersen has worked in association administration developing educational programs for healthcare professionals, in social service leading donor-trips to under-developed countries, managing large-scale special events and developing grass-roots fundraising programs for a variety of community-based groups.

Leslie Kowalczyk

Programs Coordinator

Leslie fulfills two vitally important roles for the Trust. First, as Registrar of the Trust’s distance-learning program, the Institute for Exceptional Funeral Service, she manages the online, skills enhancement educational program. She also handles all marketing and promotional responsibilities for the Trust and the Institute. She comes to the Trust with nearly ten years of administrative and customer service experience in the distance-learning arena. She has managed a system of 120 online courses in collaboration with more than 300 partnering organizations serving up to 1,000 student annually.