DADE CITY – Milton Funeral Home has helped thousands of people at times of their greatest need during its first half century of service in the greater Tampa Bay area.
Sherman Milton founded Milton Funeral Home in mid-1974. He had been a partner in the Manker-Milton Funeral Home in Miami for 17 years before moving to Dade City and opening his own funeral home.
Milton Funeral Home was originally located at a site further north on Fifth Street than at its current location at 13950 Fifth St.
Three generations of Milton’s family are licensed funeral directors and embalmers.
Milton received his degree from Gupton-Jones College of Funeral Science in Atlanta, Ga., in 1954, when he was about 19 years old. He obtained his license shortly afterwards.
Milton operated Milton Funeral Home for approximately 30 years before turning over management of it to his daughter, Rosandrea Pulley McClendon, after she became a licensed funeral director and embalmer.
McClendon began helping her father at the funeral home in 1993 when she was 18 after having graduated from high school in New York and moving to Florida.
She received her Associate of Arts degree in Funeral Services from St. Petersburg College in 2002 and obtained her funeral director and embalmer’s licenses shortly afterwards.
She became fully in charge of Milton Funeral Home a few years before her father, Sherman Milton, passed away on June 2, 2013, at 73 years of age.
Her son, Darrell McClendon, who is 24, recently graduated from St. Petersburg College and received his funeral director and embalmer’s licenses on April 29, which is his mother’s birthday.
There’s a fourth licensed funeral director and embalmer, Cedricjuan Wilson, who, along with Mrs. McClendon, has been working at the funeral home for more than 30 years.
Several other of Milton Funeral Home’s staff members have also worked there for many years, Mrs. McClendon said.
Visitations, viewings and services can all be held at Milton Funeral Home, Mrs. McClendon said. However, services have also been held at churches and other locations throughout the state of Florida.
The largest funeral service Milton Funeral Home ever held was for Pasco Sheriff’s Office Capt. Charles “Bo” Harrison, who was killed in the line of duty on June 1, 2003.
Harrison, who was the sheriff’s office’s highest ranking Black employee at that time, was fatally shot at about 2 a.m. while performing surveillance near a nightclub on U.S. 301 in Lacoochee. He died only 15 days before he was set to retire after having worked for PSO for 31 years. Harrison, who was 56, had been a lieutenant at the time but was posthumously promoted to the rank of captain.
Five thousand programs had to be printed for Harrison’s funeral service that was held on June 7, 2003, in the gymnasium of Pasco High School in Dade City, Mrs. McClendon said.
The dedicated staff of Milton Funeral Home tries its best to professionally assist and comfort people during times of their greatest need following the transitioning of loved ones from this life to the next, according to Mrs. McClendon.
A lot of personalized services are held by Milton Funeral Home, Mrs. McClendon said. This can include providing blankets or special garments for the deceased who are being cared for. Video recording can be taken of services and provided to family members and others who desire to have an endearing memory of their loved one’s homegoing service.
The variety of funeral services provided by Milton Funeral Home includes traditional burials and cremation. Caskets may be chosen from an assortment featured in catalogs, Mrs. McClendon said.
The funeral home has five automobiles of various types that may be used as part of a funeral procession. These include two Cadillac hearses, two Cadillac limousines and a Chevrolet Suburban that serves as a lead car for a procession.
Milton Funeral Home tries to play an active role in the community by helping to support churches and other charitable organizations, according to Mrs. McClendon.
Want to learn more?
Additional information about Milton Funeral Home may be obtained by calling 352-567-6534, visiting www.miltonfh.com or emailing .
