Officials of Thompson-Larson Funeral Home, a privately-owned, Minot-based business since 1935, have announced a restructuring of its administration that was effective Aug. 1.

Wes Burkart and Bruce Kramer, senior partners at Thompson-Larson, have been joined in ownership of the firm by longtime employees and funeral directors Ben Slind and Kelly Sorensen. Engen Eckmann, who had been with Thompson-Larson since 1972, has retired.

The roster of licensed funeral directors at Thompson-Larson includes Scott Schorr and Shandi Dircks.

Thompson-Larson came into being in 1935, when Theodore Thompson, Minot farmer and businessman, built the two-story brick building at 21-3rd Ave. SW for his wife, Julia Larson, who was North Dakota’s first licensed woman embalmer. The business was purchased in 1945 by Edward and Catherine Fisher who remained at the firm until their retirement in 1970. Their son, Thomas Fisher, then assumed ownership of Thompson-Larson and was at the helm until his death in 1996.

Burkart joined Thompson-Larson as a licensed funeral director in 1983. A North Dakota native, he was raised in Carrington, graduating from high school there in 1978. He attended the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks for two years. He then worked at the Erickson-Vik Funeral Home in Fertile, Minnesota, for a year before enrolling at the University of Minnesota School of Mortuary Science in Minneapolis. He graduated from there with a degree in mortuary science in 1983. While a student, he was employed with Bradshaw Funeral & Cremation Services in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Kramer was raised in Minot, graduated from Bishop Ryan Catholic School in 1980, and in 1984 from Minot State University where he earned a bachelor of arts degree in business administration. He since has been with Thompson-Larson. He is business manager of the company, holds an insurance license, is a pre-need advisor, and an assistant with funeral services.

A lifelong resident of Minot, Slind has been at Thompson-Larson since 2004. He graduated from Minot High School in 1995, and from MSU in 2000 with a bachelor of science degree in business management. In 2001, he graduated with honors with an applied associates degree in funeral service education from Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, Ore. He has been a licensed funeral director in Minot since 2001.

In 2008, Slind earned a North Dakota Insurance Producers License. He assists people in setting up a life insurance policy or funeral trust fund.

Sorensen is also a native of Minot. He was first employed at Thompson-Larson in 2000, and worked as an assistant at the firm while attending MSU. He went on to Mt. Hood Community College in 2004. Following his graduation from there, he returned to Thompson-Larson, and has been a licensed funeral director since 2005.

Schorr was born and raised in Minot, and is a 1990 graduate of Minot High School. In 1994, he began working at Thompson-Larson as an assistant on funerals. In 1997, he earned an applied associate’s degree in mortuary science at the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science in Cincinnati, Ohio. Following graduation, he returned to Thompson-Larson. In 2003, he earned a bachelor’s degree at MSU. He also holds a North Dakota insurance license.

Dircks was born and raised in Portland, Ore. She graduated in 2014 from Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham with an applied associate’s degree in funeral service education. She has been employed at Thompson-Larson since 2015.

The firm has a support staff of 15, including Jessica Hanson and Braden Bierman, both of whom are fulltime employees. In addition to Minot, Thompson-Larson has funeral homes at Kenmare and Velva.