New MBNA President Sean Longstreth, CM, AICA shares how growing up in a fifth-generation monument business shaped his passion for memorialization. In this conversation with host Mike Johns, he reflects on craftsmanship, the value of MBNA membership, and why personal outreach and collaboration are essential to strengthening the monument industry.

• (00:00:05) - Monument Matters
• (00:00:49) - President of Monument Builders of North America Sean Longstreth
• (00:04:04) - MBCN: The Real ROI of Membership
• (00:06:43) - The Best Way to Get a Member to Join MBNA
• (00:08:25) - What are the biggest opportunities for monument builders?
• (00:11:59) - MBNA President reflects on the association's future
• (00:16:55) - MVNA President's message
• (00:21:11) - Monument Matters

Despite rising cremation rates, many families still want a permanent place to remember their loved ones. In this episode of Monument Matters, Mike Johns and Cristine Bouwkamp explore burial trends, green burial, and why meaningful memorialization remains essential for grief, remembrance, and connection across generations.

• (00:00:05) - Monument Matters
• (00:02:03) - Cremation and Burial: What's the Connection?
• (00:05:11) - Do cemeteries care about cremation or green burial?
• (00:08:17) - Questions about Green Burial
• (00:09:33) - Cremation Rates and Monument Builders
• (00:12:02) - Questions about funeral and memorialization options
• (00:17:47) - Gen Z's Love of Home and Tradition
• (00:19:31) - What should monument builders think about memorialization in a cremation world
• (00:22:02) - Monument builders: More Community Involvement
• (00:25:10) - Why Does Permanent Memorialization Matter?
• (00:26:03) - Monument Matters: Cremation

Dr. Tanya Marsh joins Monument Matters to unpack what consumer research really reveals about cremation, burial and emerging options like green burial and human composting. The data challenges assumptions and highlights a key opportunity: education, flexibility and creative memorialization may matter more than industry narratives suggest.

• (00:00:05) - Monument Matters
• (00:01:35) - Why are Americans so fond of cremation?
• (00:02:59) - Cremation and the future
• (00:03:24) - Casket burial and cremation: First choice
• (00:06:59) - Cremation and Memorialization: The Difference
• (00:13:19) - Cremation Monument Building
• (00:17:34) - Cremation and burial: Do people prefer cremation?
• (00:19:42) - The Survey of Death and Property
• (00:22:55) - In addition to the preference research,
• (00:23:53) - Law School's Growing the Diversity of Students
• (00:25:01) - Monument Matters: Death and What Follows

In Season 2, Episode 2 of Monument Matters, Ross Oglesby of Keystone Memorials and Dan Weeres of Coldspring discuss how CNC technology is reshaping the monument industry. They share real-world experiences—from early machine failures to five-axis sculpture work—and explain how digital modeling improves accuracy, safety and customer expectations. While CNC machines excel at stock removal and precision moldings, both emphasize that skilled craftsmen remain essential for finishing and artistic detail. The conversation highlights how technology serves as an “apprentice,” removing heavy lifting while allowing sculptors to focus on proportion, refinement and artistry.

• (00:00:00) - Monument Matters
• (00:01:07) - CNC Tech with Ross Oglesby and Dan Weirs
• (00:01:46) - CNC Machine in Monument Work
• (00:03:36) - Tool Crashes
• (00:06:02) - Learning Curve of CNC Metal Cutting
• (00:10:30) - CNC Metal Work
• (00:14:21) - What Made The Machine So Cool?
• (00:15:30) - CNC bench making: Dan and Ross
• (00:16:33) - Who's the CNC Operator?
• (00:17:32) - CNC Metal Sculptors
• (00:21:04) - CNC Machine Changes the Work Environment
• (00:23:07) - The Machine for Sculptors
• (00:24:14) - Sandblaster: CNC vs. Sandblaster
• (00:27:10) - Hand Etching on Stone
• (00:29:18) - 3-D Mausoleum Modeling
• (00:31:37) - Monument Matters

Are memorialists artists or tradespeople—or both? In this Monument Matters episode, Danielle Lehman and Steve “Kaz” Kaczmarski explore how design fundamentals, mentorship, and evolving tools shape meaningful memorials. The conversation highlights craftsmanship, lifelong learning, and the responsibility of creating lasting public art.

• (00:00:05) - Monument Matters
• (00:01:31) - Memorialist Artists
• (00:08:12) - Danielle on Working With Many Hats
• (00:11:06) - Memorial Design: The Fundamental Skills
• (00:16:21) - Granite Working: New Tools and Technology
• (00:18:23) - Technology in the Design Studio
• (00:21:40) - Mentorship in the Memorial Industry
• (00:29:03) - Remembering the Art of Memorialization
• (00:30:56) - 2026: What You Want to Do in the Year
• (00:31:54) - Bill Boone Does A Stone Twist
• (00:33:37) - Monument Matters: Tooling and Carving

In this episode of Monument Matters, we explore how MBNA members can take control of credit card processing costs without changing providers or disrupting daily operations. Host Mike Johns is joined by Merchant Advocate’s Howard Goldstein and MBNA member Ryan Worthington, who shares her firsthand experience using the service. The conversation breaks down why processing statements are so hard to understand, how hidden fees add up, and how a performance-based advocacy model can deliver real savings. It’s a practical, easy-to-follow discussion focused on protecting margins, reducing stress, and helping monument businesses keep more of what they earn.

• (00:00:05) - Monument Matters
• (00:01:35) - Merchant Advocates
• (00:03:12) - Merchant Advocate: Easy Process, No
• (00:10:38) - MB&A Member Assistance Program
• (00:17:05) - Orthodontists: We're On The Castle Walls
• (00:17:49) - Can You Change Payment Processor?
• (00:19:32) - Don't Overcharge Your Card Company!
• (00:23:32) - Does Your Firm Help With PCI Compliance?
• (00:27:36) - MBNA's Monument Builders' Connection
• (00:30:22) - Mind Matters: A Podcast About the Monument Industry

In this episode of Monument Matters, host Mike Johns, Jr., CM, AICA, is joined by Michael S. George and Sarah Scott of AMJ Insurance to discuss the real-world risks monument builders face—and how the right insurance coverage can protect both businesses and employees.

The episode introduces MBNA’s new affinity partnership with AMJ Insurance that provides members with exclusive access to tailored insurance. Drawing on AMJ’s decades of experience serving associations nationwide, the conversation explores common coverage blind spots, the importance of installation and property insurance, and how monument companies can determine the right mix of protection for their operations.

• (00:00:05) - Monument Matters
• (00:01:20) - What Are the Most Common Blind Spots in Monument Insurance?
• (00:03:38) - MBNA Family Insurance Member Benefit
• (00:07:44) - Should Monument Installation Coverage be Included?
• (00:10:50) - MBNA Employee Benefits and Association Insurance
• (00:12:42) - Insurance Underwriting: A Member Benefit
• (00:13:41) - What's the first piece of information that I need to send to
• (00:15:25) - Employers Comp Insurance Renewal Date
• (00:17:40) - Monument Matters: A Thank You Letter

In this episode of Monument Matters, host Mike Johns speaks with military researcher Bill Beigel, founder of World War II Research, Inc., about how monument builders can ensure accuracy and depth in veterans memorials. Beigel shares how professional research can uncover forgotten heroes, correct misspelled names, and add meaningful personal stories to each engraved name. The conversation explores partnerships between researchers and monument builders, the ethical importance of getting every detail right, and how emerging technologies like digital markers and NFC chips can extend memorial experiences while preserving the sacred nature of stone.

• (00:00:05) - Monument Matters
• (00:00:45) - Bill Beagle
• (00:02:45) - The Challenges of Building Veterans Memorials
• (00:09:03) - Finding the stories of World War II soldiers
• (00:12:35) - What Would a National Monument Cost?
• (00:13:41) - Using Digital Markers to Enhance Monument Experience
• (00:15:46) - When Technology Meets Necessity
• (00:20:05) - What's the Memorial of the Future?