Welcome
Charles L. Harrison/ President/CEO and Adriana C. Harrison/ Vice President of Operations
MISSION STATEMENT
To Further Promote and Cultivate the Art and Science of Professional
Funeral Directing and Embalming with a Dedicated Commitment to
Excellence to the Clientele We Serve.
Harrison's Funeral Home, Inc. - Orange Mound Chapel, formerly known as Orange Mound Funeral Home and Charlie Jones Undertaking Co., was organized in the early 1920s. We have been serving the Mid-South and the greater Memphis area for more than 82 years. Because of the community having such a large number of entrepreneurs, it was necessary for Orange Mound to have its own undertaking business. Through the vision of Charlie Jones, it became a reality.
In 1935, Donald E. Thomas, the nephew of Charlie Jones, joined the undertaking company. A former principal, Mr. Thomas was a self-taught embalmer and through his knowledge, he continued the business along with his wife, Lillie Mae Thomas until his health failed. After he was no longer able to return to the business, he and his wife chose their nephews, Charles and Michael Harrison, to continue to build upon the foundation.
In 1984, Charles and Michael acquired the business and through their leadership were able to become some of the youngest black funeral home owners in Memphis. In 1989, the partnership was dissolved and Charles continued to nurture the business as Michael pursued other career opportunities.
This fine establishment has remained a black-owned, family business and is now taking giant steps in order to render professional and dignified services through the millennium.
Charles L. Harrison, the third-generation owner and CEO, has given funeral service a new dimension that has never been witnessed before. He has been a mortician for more than 30 years, and he feels he has never learned enough. He not only teaches mortuary science, but he is a drum major for continuing education. Charles holds many capacities in his National, State and Local Associations and community and civic organizations. He has traveled extensively and has continued to make sure that the institution of funeral servicing remains a profession of high standards.
Behind every good man is a good woman and, certainly, Harrison's Funeral Home, Inc. would not be complete without the Vice President of Operations, his wife, Adriana C. Harrison. She not only makes sure that the business runs smoothly on a day-to-day basis, but also has the responsibility and concern of the clients as well as the employees. Adriana, better known as the other lady in the second office, is not only skilled in many capacities, but she also gives funeral servicing the feminine touch that creates a flavor that is loved by the young and the old. She gives her husband the assurance of being by his side to balance the weight of his everyday struggle of being a black man in business with a determination to excel in a prejudiced society.
Charles and Adriana Harrison are a team along with their son, Jerry, who assists his father and mother with a beautiful spirit. They believe in serving with every fiber of their being and they know that the success of their business is not whom they are, but whom they belong to – GOD. They continue to keep the servant attitude and instill in their employees the power of prayer.
As they always say, “There's No Comparison to HARRISON” – a Promise as Good as Gold.