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 Manchester Funeral Home and Coffee County Funeral Chapel will merge in the coming weeks to create one funeral home.

Funeral Director Kenny Hargrove said the funeral home felt it was very important to keep the history of the name, so the merged facility will be known as Manchester Funeral Home.

The reason for the merger is the condition of the Manchester Funeral Home’s current building, which, approaching 100 years in age, is showing wear that is not easily reparable.

“We wanted the opportunity to continue serving our community with a newer and renovated facility, which Coffee County Funeral Chapel had to offer,” Hargrove said.  “We will continue to strive for the upmost level of service as the newly merged funeral home and we will honor all pre-arranged families under the new facility. We want our community to know that as we merge our services and facilities with Manchester Funeral Home, we stay true to our belief that honoring and celebrating our families and their loved ones is deeply sacred and personal.”

Manchester Funeral Home has a rich history within the community as it was once fondly known as Deadman’s Funeral Home. The Deadman family started serving the Manchester and Coffee County community in 1932 and it was a generational family business for many years.

“We have strived and will continue to strive to keep the family legacy and feel going as we move forward through this new journey,” said Hargrove.“Our decision to merge the two facilities did not happen lightly, but we are excited and looking forward to the opportunity. Our mission will continue to be serving our families and communities with the best possible love, care and support.”

Coffee County Funeral Chapel first opened its doors in 1993 and has served Manchester and Coffee County for nearly 32 years.

“This is where Coffee County Funeral Chapel has been located for the past 30 plus years,” Hargrove added. Both funeral homes have served our community for a combined total of 122 years, and we are looking forward to joining forces to continue caring for our families.”

In the coming months an open house to showcase the improvements that were made as part of the merger is planned. They will also host a memorial service in December to honor the families served during the last couple of years at the original Manchester Funeral Home facility and the formally-known Coffee County Funeral Chapel.

The new location of Manchester Funeral Home is 786 McMinnville Highway, across from the Raider Academy, adjacent to the interstate.