About Franklin & Family Memorial Company

Franklin & Family Memorial Company is more than a memorial business. It is the result of our family’s experiences, our desire to serve others, and the enduring love we carry for our son, Frankie.

Before beginning this chapter of life, Zachary gained experience in the granite and stone industry through countertop fabrication and installation. That experience gave him an early appreciation for the strength, beauty, and permanence of natural stone and materials, along with the craftsmanship required to shape it with care.

He later founded and operated a highly successful staffing company, with hundreds of those placements made throughout the Memphis area. Although staffing may seem very different from the memorial industry, the heart behind the work was much the same.

Zachary often said that he loved recruiting because it gave him an opportunity to truly change someone’s life for the better. A new job opportunity means better pay, more stability, greater enjoyment in their work, or more time with their family. Employment decisions can be life-changing, and Zachary took great pride in helping people find a better way to provide for the ones they loved.

Then our family experienced a loss that changed everything.

After the tragic and unexpected passing of our son, Frankie, we found ourselves walking through a kind of grief that cannot be fully understood until it becomes part of your own story. The loss of a loved one is overwhelming. The loss of your child fundamentally changes the way you see your life, your purpose, and the world around you.

Through that loss, Zachary knew he needed to make a change. He wanted to devote his heart and his work to families experiencing the death of someone they deeply loved, especially those grieving the loss of their child.

We recognize that a memorial cannot change what has happened, and we would never pretend that it can. What it can do is provide a permanent memory for a name, a story, and a life to be remembered. It can give a family something lasting to visit, care for, and pass down to future generations. It can say clearly and permanently: this person was here, this person was loved, this person has a story, and this person will not be forgotten.

That is what led us to the memorial and monument profession. We now have the privilege of helping families during a time when patience, understanding, and genuine compassion are needed most, and understood by so few.

We have stood where many of our customers are standing. We understand how difficult decisions can feel while grieving. We understand that every small detail may carry immense emotional weight. We understand the desire to create something worthy of the person you love.

For those who feel that no one else could possibly understand, please know that we will always do our best to understand. We will to listen to your loved one’s story, explain your options clearly, and give you the time and space you need. We promise: You will never be treated like an order number or pressured into making a decision before you are ready.

This work also allows us to carry Frankie’s story with us every day. Speaking his name, honoring his life, and helping other families remember their loved ones gives meaning to the path we now walk. It reminds us that although someone may no longer be physically beside us, the love we have for them is forever.

We cannot remove the grief you are carrying. We can, however, meet you in it with compassion and help you honor the person who means so much to you.

At Franklin & Family Memorial Company, we create headstones, grave markers, memorials, and monuments for the loved ones our hearts will never forget. Every memorial is approached with dignity, honesty, craftsmanship, and care. Our goal is not simply to place a name and dates in stone. It is to help create a tribute that reflects a life, preserves a memory, and gives your family a lasting place of remembrance.

~From the Sonnier family to yours, it would be our honor to help tell your loved one’s story.