Urn company offers scholarships to support funeral science students

Big bucks are offered to college students for athletic scholarships and for students studying in high-demand areas such as engineering, technology and science.

Now one area company has introduced a scholarship for two less common programs of study — funeral science and mortuary science.

Sarasota-based Bogati Urn Co. is offering scholarships for students studying in those areas, with financial awards ranging from $500 to $2,500 per school year. The company, founded in 2004, sells urns to funeral homes and crematories.

Bogati Urn Co. owner Andrea Bogard LeBlanc tells Coffee Talk the company started a program in 2016 called Bogati Gives Back to donate money to various charities. Bogati expanded the program to include a scholarship for students going into the field because it seemed like a natural fit, since funeral homes represent a large group of clients for the company. Says LeBlanc: “We want to give back to those who help us grow and prosper as a company.”

Since sending out information about the scholarship, Bogati has received emails from people nationwide, LeBlanc says. She'd like to see the funds go to five or six students every year. “The goal,” she says, “is to help as many as financially possible each year and make a difference in their studies.”

The company is taking applications now for the inaugural scholarship awards, which will be first offered to students for the fall term. LeBlanc says she would like students who receive a Bogati scholarship to evoke the company when they start working for a funeral home. “We hope they remember us as a supplier,” she says. “We hope they would come to us for products they need.”