Edward Gazvoda shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi Edward, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
Playing backgammon is a passion of mine. The game is easy to play but challenging to master. The US Backgammon Federation offers information for individuals interested in participating in live matches and online tournaments. Backgammon Galaxy is an excellent site for playing and learning the game of backgammon.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Fireless Cremation® has introduced four new final disposition options for the funeral and cremation industry. Not since the practice of embalming during the Civil War has such a significant change occurred in final disposition methods. Now, families can choose a Fireless Cremation, Fireless Organic Reduction, Fireless Burial, or Fireless Burial at Sea for their deceased loved ones, including pets. Our patented process leaves a loving legacy for the people, places, and pets they cherished.
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
As a junior in high school, my desire to wrestle led me to compromise with the State of Maryland. I attended two high schools—one private and one public—for half a day each for two years. Ideally, I would have participated in sports at the public school without taking any classes, since the private school did not offer wrestling. I had achieved a competitive level in wrestling, winning major tournaments and earning a spot on a U.S. junior national team that traveled to Poland, which was still a communist country, in 1976.
The powerful were the adults who had the authority to create rules and regulate access to publicly funded institutions. Rather than engage in a lengthy fight to be allowed to wrestle, I bent to their rules and enrolled in the public school, taking the classes required to meet graduation standards. For me, true power is finding a way to achieve one’s goals. I won the day I stepped onto the school’s wrestling mat.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
In 2009, I founded a company with the rights to market and sell low-temperature alkaline hydrolysis systems manufactured by Bio-Response Solutions. We sold the first human Aquamation® system in the U.S. to a funeral director, Jeff Edwards. Unfortunately, the system did not work properly. When you are responsible for the care of a human corpse, the law requires the process to be completed in the system used for the dissolution of the body. When the Aquamation system’s cycle had completed, additional work was often needed to deal with the remaining tissue and brain matter. Because the system did not work reliably, I chose to close the company.
To my surprise, I later discovered these systems were still being manufactured and sold. I decided to give it a try to see if the problems with Aquamation could be solved. It took a major effort by two professors of biochemistry and a former rocket systems engineer to create the Fireless Cremation systems’ designs and chemical process.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
Seventeen years ago, I read about a cremation method that produces no direct greenhouse gas or toxic emissions. Now my calling is to provide mortals, including myself, with ready access to ways to leave no funeral footprints. I plan to take my final breath having breathed life into four new Fireless Cremation options: www.firelesscremation.com.
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. How do you know when you’re out of your depth?
My success correlates with attracting people and companies that are not.
In backgammon, the AI engines that evaluate my moves make it clear I need to improve my game.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.firelesscremation.com
- Instagram: @firelesscremation
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/firelesscremation
- Twitter: FirelessC
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/firelesscremationsystem
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@firelesscremation7010
