Funeral home focuses on value
McGuire Cremation and Funeral Service wants to make a difficult time in people's lives a little easier.
The new funeral home in downtown Modesto specializes in affordable funeral packages. Owners Shaun McGuire, Michael Lillywhite and Michael Oliver have combined several decades' worth of funeral service experience.
The partners received their funeral establishment license from the state June 30 and have been offering services at their 400 12th St., Suite 14, office since July 1.
Oliver, whose family has been in the funeral home business for years, is the funeral director.
McGuire said the funeral home strives to give people the best value for its services. It offers full funeral services including caskets and headstones. McGuire, who previously worked with Wal-Mart, said he has brought the superstore's low-cost philosophy to the funeral home business.
"We want to give people low prices and do high volume, rather than high prices and low volume," he said. "We are willing to try to work within anybody's budget. We want to make this time for people easier because it's not an easy time."
To wit, the company's most expensive "Gold" package runs $2,270, which includes a casket and headstone.
Learn more at 622-0735 or www.mcguirefuneralservice.com.
Elsewhere around the Business Beat:
Fans of Middle Eastern food and flair have a new place to call home.
The King Kabob Restaurant and Hookah Lounge, 2307 Oakdale Road, opened Aug. 21 in the site of the former La Familia Vasquez Mexican restaurant.
Co-owners Avelain Sarhad and Margaret Khananisho are longtime friends who immigrated to the United States from Iraq.
King Kabob specializes in Middle Eastern food including kabobs, falafel and other traditional dishes.
It has a lounge where guests can smoke hookahs, elaborate water pipes that can be smoked with flavored tobacco. King Kabob has close to 20 flavors available.
The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. seven days a week. For more information, call 622-0485. ...
Feed your soul at Salida's The Blue Room Café.
The soul food restaurant from owner Antoine Rogers opened last weekend at 4950 Curtis Ave.
Rogers serves a menu of barbecue, pork chops, chicken, steak, fish, collard greens, black-eyed peas, candied yams and more.
The first-time restaurant owner and chef said he learned to cook by helping his mother.
The Blue Room Café is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day for lunch, dinner, takeout and catering.
For more, call 450-1803. ...
And finally, Modesto insurance agencies Dion Modrall Insurance Agency Inc. and Omega Pacific Insurance Solutions have merged operations.
The independent agencies are members of the Pacific Interstate Insurance Brokers group. Combined, they will sell home and auto, commercial property and liability, workers compensation, employer benefits, life and other insurance services.
For additional information, call 338-5500.
Have an item for Business Beat? Contact Marijke Rowland at The Modesto Bee, P.O. Box 5256, Modesto 95352; 578-2284 or mrowland@modbee.com.
This story was originally published September 1, 2009 at 10:09 PM with the headline "Funeral home focuses on value."