For 60 years, people have gathered at Clifford E. DeBaptiste’s family business to celebrate the lives of others. This weekend, the West Chester community will gather to celebrate his life and business, as the 90-year-old will reach his 60th anniversary as founder and CEO of DeBaptiste Funeral Homes.

The Army veteran, former mayor and statewide advocate for his profession has “piled up just about every honor and recognition in the community at large for his service over the decades, not just in the black community,” the Daily Local News stated in a recent article.

Now in business with his daughter, Lillian, DeBaptiste takes his direction from God but still runs the business operation — and keeps up with modern technology.

“He is tougher than people think,” Lillian said in the DLN article. “People know my dad as a wonderful mover and shaker. If he is the mover, then someone is shaking.”

Read much more about DeBaptiste’s rich 60-year history in the Daily Local News here.

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Top image of Mr. DeBaptiste speaking in front of the Fredrick Douglas statue in front of West Chester University’s administration building, a statue he seeded with an initial $50,000 donation, is courtesy of West Chester University.