Passages International: Building a Greener Future for End-of-Life Care

Success Stories

Passages International: Building a Greener Future for End-of-Life Care

When Passages International got its start in 1999, co-founded by CEO Darren Crouch and his brother-in-law in the back of a funeral home in Taos, its mission was clear: bring more dignity, compassion, and sustainability to the funeral industry.

As a pioneer in sustainable funeral products and practices, Passages International designs and distributes biodegradable urns, caskets, and memorial products made from renewable, Fair Trade, and responsibly sourced materials. The company also partners with funeral homes around the world, helping them meet growing demand from families seeking environmentally conscious alternatives to traditional end-of-life options.

The idea for Passages came from a simple but powerful observation. Families were moving away from permanent bronze or marble urns, but the alternatives at the time were often limited to cardboard or black plastic “temporary containers.” Those options didn’t reflect the care families deserved, or the compassion funeral professionals bring to their work. Passages set out to change that by offering eco-friendly products that honor both people and the planet.

Recently, Passages connected with Job Training Albuquerque after representatives from the City’s Economic Development Department visited its Albuquerque facility. From there, the company began enrolling team members in training tailored to real operational needs: a manager is currently participating in leadership development, a new Administrative Coordinator is building Excel skills, and the Customer Service team is signed up for customer service training at CNM.

Even early in the process, the impact is already clear. The training is improving workflows and helping the team better align on processes and communication, reducing errors, increasing efficiency, and streamlining order handling. Passages is also seeing stronger collaboration across departments and more consistency in how tasks are completed, which ultimately improves the experience for customers and internal teams alike.

Looking ahead, Passages International is focused on scaling with stronger systems, clearer accountability, and continued leadership development. As the company grows, maintaining consistency in customer service, communication, and workflow execution will be essential, and building team confidence in decision-making and problem-solving will help the organization stay proactive rather than reactive.

That’s where Job Training Albuquerque can continue to be a key partner. Passages sees value in structured training around leadership, performance management, and operational efficiency, along with coaching, accountability checkpoints, and tools to measure progress over time. With the right support, Passages International is positioned to keep growing, and to keep leading the way in sustainable, dignified end-of-life care.