Local family funeral professional joins Coleman
Ashley Bowlan returns home to serve the Olive Branch community
Funeral Director and Embalmer Ashley Bowlan, right, recently joined his father Perry Lee on the staff of Coleman Funeral Home in DeSoto County.
The son of local Coleman Funeral Home staff member Perry Lee Bowlan has returned home to serve the Olive Branch community.
Ashley Bowlan, who grew up in Olive Branch, will join Coleman Funeral Home of Olive Branch as a funeral director. He has been licensed since 2011. He previously worked at H.M. Patterson and Son in Atlanta, until moving back to Olive Branch in late 2017.
As a funeral director, Bowlan guides families through planning funerals. He will help them make hard decisions and create ways to remember their loved ones.
Bowlan said he wants to help create special ways to memorialize families’ loved ones.
“Funerals are more than just a service; they are a way to help families grieve and remember their loved ones,” he said. “The better I know people in the community, the better I can help them in their time of need.
“I grew up in Olive Branch watching my parents serve the community. I wanted to come home and do the same.”
Bowlan’s father, Perry Lee, is a native of Olive Branch. His wife, Charlotte, has lived in the community since their marriage in 1971. Perry Lee worked as a volunteer firefighter and served as an alderman for 16 years. Charlotte served and worked at First Baptist Church of Olive Branch.
Ashley Bowlan left Olive Branch in 1997 and moved to Atlanta. After being there for 20 years, he decided it was time to come home.
“So much of Olive Branch has changed,” Bowlan said. “Goodman Road was once open fields and there was just one four-way stop. Even with all the changes, Olive Branch still feels like home.”
Bowlan came back to be close to family. His brother Jason also lives in Olive Branch and works at First Security Bank. He has two nephews, Matthew and Andrew.
Coleman Funeral Home was founded in Oxford in 2004. Its Olive Branch location is at 6815 Parkview Blvd., off Goodman Road by the YMCA. For more information, call (662) 893-3900.
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