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Here is one of the stories in today's paper:
"Jack Feather of Bedford, Pa., got into the bereavement business in 2001.
Feather, a former welder, plumber, electrician and custom motorcycle enthusiast, helped develop a hearse that's pulled by a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.
"All of those skills I developed over the years had a fit with this stuff," he said.
Feather developed the hearse to honor a motorcycle enthusiast friend who died of brain cancer. It is designed to resemble the hearse that hauled the body of gunfighter Billy Clanton through Tombstone, Ariz., in 1881.
The original model wasn't complete until two weeks after Feather's friend died. But the reaction to the hearse convinced Feather to go into business.
He has sold about 25 units, mostly to funeral homes. They cost about $78,000 and are built with a Fiberglas body, etched glass windows and button-tuck, burgundy velvet interior.
The bike and hearse are engineered to handle smoothly at up to 80 mph and brake safely.
Feather and two employees build the hearses in a Pennsylvania building that was originally a repair shop for Packards.
He says the hearse is a respectful tribute, and about the only thing he's ever seen that prompts mourners to shoot photos at a funeral.
"Whatever you do, it has to be of the highest quality," he said. "
The other product profiled was called Eternal Space and it was a web-site creation wizard that lets users create a lasting online memorial to their loved ones. You get to build your own home page they call a Landing Page, and people can upload photos to the site. It's like hosting your own blog. Here is the description:
"The front page is a three-dimensional scene of the builder's choosing. The scenery choices include meadows, mountains, forest and desert.
The creator can then choose to add landscaping features such as trees, benches, an urn, tombstone or mausoleum.
Eternal Space President Jay Goss says the scenery, like any real-world cemetery, is designed to be restful, serene and emotive.
Beyond the landing page are spaces for photos and videos uploaded by mourners. There's also a virtual guest book and virtual journal for visitors to sign and the bereaved to record their thoughts. Mourners can also interact with each other through the site.
Usually a family member will act as a gatekeeper who can invite people to join or approve or prohibit uploads. A memorial can also be opened to the public.
"It is not terribly dissimilar to assembling your profile on Facebook," Goss said.
So far about 20 funeral homes and crematoriums in six states have bought into the service, Goss said. They can pay as much as $595 for initial access and choose to pass the cost on to the bill for a service or include it as part of a package.
Goss and Gharavi say since the service is new it will take a while for funeral service operators to determine how best to price the product.
In addition to a one-time buy-in or subscription, there is an option for mourners to buy virtual tribute gifts to adorn the site.
But even if they don't purchase anything, the online memorials are maintained in perpetuity by Eternal Space at no additional charge and there is no extra charge to upload new photos or videos."