05/25/2016

Jon W. Rettig, Sr. appointed to state board

Former OFDA President Jon W. Rettig, Sr. has been appointed to the Ohio Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors. 

Rettig, who has been a licensed funeral director and embalmer in Ohio since 1977, said "Funeral service is changing, but the laws and rules that govern our profession continue to merit our adherence and respect. Families that we serve deserve to be treated in the most ethical and honest manner possible. I take this appointment seriously and will do my best to fulfill this obligation.”

Rettig was born in Holgate, Ohio and is a 1973 graduate of Holgate High School. He then attended Lakeland College, Sheboygan, Wisconsin, majoring in business. He is a 1976 graduate of the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science, Cincinnati, Ohio and earned certification to enucleate donor eyes in 1979 from the University Of Pittsburgh School Of Medicine.

He is President of Family Care Services, Inc. which owns and operates the Woods-Rettig Funeral Home, Leetonia, OH, Warrick-Kummer-Rettig Funeral Home, Columbiana, OH, Van Dyke-Swaney-Rettig Funeral Home, East Palestine, OH, and Family Care Cremation Services, Columbiana, OH.  In 2014 he was certified as a Certified Crematory Operator.

He is a member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Leetonia, OH and Grace Lutheran Church, East Palestine, OH where he served on both church councils.  He is a member and Past President of the Ohio Funeral Directors Association and served on most committees of the association.  He is also a member of the National Funeral Directors Association and the Cremation Association of North America.

Locally he is a member and past president of the Columbiana Rotary Club and was active in the Rotary Youth Exchange Program for several years, having his family host nine exchange students over the years. For the past eight years, he has served as a board member of the Salem Regional Medical Center, Salem, OH where he serves on the finance committee, the quality improvement committee, and the Ad Hoc Information Technology Committee. He is also a charter member and past chairman of the Charitable Foundation of the Salem Regional Medical Center, Salem, OH.  He is a member of the Columbiana County Planning Commission, having served several terms and is also a member of the Unity Ruritan Club, East Palestine.

Rettig said that it was an honor to be able to serve OFDA members during his time as OFDA President.

He added that "it is a great honor to serve on the Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors and to have the ability to serve the residents and consumers of the state of Ohio.”

Jon is married to Ellen Mraz Rettig, a licensed funeral director and they make their home in Columbiana, OH.  They have four grown children and five grandchildren.