Morris V. Prout is an Australian Labradoodle, trained and certified to work as a Therapy Dog at his family's funeral home in Verona, NJ, where he also serves as Director of Community Engagement. Research has proven that interacting with animals reduces stress-related hormones, lowers blood pressure and anxiety, and can improve a person's frame of mind. Therapy dogs can often stabilize trauma and intense emotions, so Morris can also be found in the funeral home, visiting retirement homes, nursing homes, schools, libraries and more! (As per NJ law, we are required to inform you that Morris V. Prout is unlicensed and not qualified to make funeral arrangements, embalm or conduct funerals)
Robert J. Prout
Co-Owner, Senior Director
NJ License # 3371
Bob was licensed as a Funeral Director in 1978 and is the third generation & co-owner (along with Meg) of Prout Funeral Home.
In 2004/2005 he was instrumental in the conversion of the funeral home to Solar Electric and received the New Jersey Clean Energy Small Business Leader of the Year Award in 2007. In October of 2007, he received the Conservation Award from the Friends of Camp Glen Gray, County of Bergen for efforts in replanting after a forest fire and was inducted into their Hall of Fame in October 2009.
Professionally, Bob is a member of the Essex, Union & West Hudson Funeral Directors Association (Chair of the Cemetery Committee and Association Trustee), the New Jersey State Funeral Directors Association (Board of Trustees 1994-1999, Chair of Board 1998-1999, Chair of NJ Pre-paid Funeral Trust Fund & member of the Cemetery Committee 1995-2003) and the National Funeral Directors Association. He served on the concept committee and was a founding Board member of Thanexus Inc., a co-op offering training, payroll & pension services to independent funeral homes.
Under his guidance, the firm was the first in the State of New Jersey, and one of the first in the nation to be certified by the Green Burial Council and the first in the nation to receive the Green Funeral Practices Award from NFDA.
Bob has been a guest on radio talk shows, featured in articles and has presented Seminars nationally on Integrating Green Management Practices into the Funeral Business, Formaldehyde-free Embalming, and on Natural Burials / Green Funerals.
He has been a member of the Verona Shade Tree Commission since 1979 (serving as Chairman and Secretary), a long time member & Treasurer of BSA Troop 2, Verona and a member of Sustainable Verona. He served from 1980 to 2014 on the Board of Supervisors with the Hudson Essex & Passaic Soil Conservation District for the State of New Jersey (Vice Chair, Chair & Secretary-Treasurer) and served on the Board of Trustees of the COPE Center, a behavioral healthcare agency involved in counseling for drug/alcohol abuse, family crises and AIDS from 2003 to 2012.Bob is a Charter member and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Endowment Trust of Our Lady of the Lake Church.
He lives in Verona with his wife Meg, his son Steven and daughter Julia. In his spare time, you can find Bob skiing, working in the garden, or running out to Home Depot.
Meg Prout
Co-Owner, Certified Life Celebrant, Office Manager
Born and raised in Avon, NY, Meg graduated from St. Agnes High School in Rochester, NY before earning an A.A.S. in Horticulture from S.U.N.Y. at Morrisville, a B.S. in Horticulture and a M.A.T. in Education from Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. After graduation, Meg joined the faculty in the Horticulture Department at Michigan State University in East Lansing, MI as an instructor of Floral Design and Retail Shop Management & Marketing and as the coordinator of the two year Horticulture program. In 1984 she married Bob Prout and moved to Verona. She continued to use her expertise in horticulture and floral design by working in a flower shop in North Caldwell and went on to own and operate the John Espy Monument Company in Verona before selling the company in 1990 and taking on more responsibility at the funeral home. Over the years, Meg has been actively involved in the Verona community. She served as President of the Junior Women’s Club, Troop Leader for the Girl Scouts, Den Leader for the Cub Scouts and Merit Badge Counselor for the Boy Scouts. Today, she is a certified Life Celebrant and manages the business end of the firm. In her spare time, Meg enjoys sewing, baking and relaxing with the family.
(Meg is unlicensed and not qualified to make funeral arrangements, embalm or conduct funerals)
Julia R. Prout
Director, NJ Lic. No. 5228
Julia is a fourth generation licensed Funeral Director working with her family at the Prout Funeral Home, Inc. in Verona, NJ.
Prior to her career in funeral service, Julia earned a B.A. from The George Washington University in Washington, DC where she studied Geography with a concentration on sustainability and remote sensing. During her time as an undergraduate, Julia was awarded a grant from the university to study the effects of climate change on the tourism economy and local businesses in the Jungfrau region of the Swiss Alps. After presenting her findings, she worked as a consultant for a D.C.-based knitwear accessories brand, helping them develop more sustainable business practices.
In 2016, Julia returned to Verona and updated the funeral home's online presence to meet the changing needs of the modern consumer. Before long she was fully involved in the family business as a registered intern attending mortuary school at American Academy McAllister Institute in New York City. Julia became a licensed funeral director in 2018 and has since been featured in articles about the role of digital marketing in funeral service as well as the trend toward sustainable funeral practices. She has also presented webinars and lectures on green funerals/ natural burials alongside her father, Bob Prout, for professional and consumer groups alike.
Julia is a proud member of the Essex, Union & West Hudson Funeral Directors Association, the Verona Rescue Squad Auxiliary and the Verona Junior Woman's Club.
