A typical single guy in his early 30s, Cody Anderson sometimes attends social events and parties where he might meet a potential romantic interest. Soon comes the inevitable question: “What do you do?”

“I say that I am a ‘final event specialist.’ But then they always ask, what is that? And I explain that I own and operate a funeral home,” the Aiken native noted.

Anderson is proud of his profession and has worked hard to get where he is today. Last year, the Piedmont Tech alumnus purchased the George Funeral Home and Cremation Center in Aiken, where he has worked as a funeral director since 2014. He was inspired to enter the funeral services business after attending the 2008 funeral of his beloved great-grandmother, Ruby Lee Beck.

“My great-grandmother had a big part in my upbringing,” Anderson explained. “She was a very southern, genteel lady. … I was really inspired by the way the funeral home handled everything. They had so much compassion.” He could not know at the time that he would later work at that same funeral home — the Hatcher Funeral Home in Graniteville — as an intern and apprentice.

In 2009, Anderson enrolled in the Funeral Services program at PTC.

“I am very grateful for my educational experience at Piedmont Tech, because it really equipped me to take it from an apprenticeship to funeral directorship to manager role and eventually to owner of my own funeral home,” he said.

Anderson says the facilities at PTC — from the embalming lab to the crematory — are top-notch, and he uses the practical knowledge he gained on the job every day,

“I once had an equestrian who died, and that service was held in a riding arena. We also recently conducted our first ‘green’ funeral using a biodegradable shroud for burial,” he said.

“You have to have all the options that people may want.”