Dillon Wines, Morris-Baker’s Assistant Operations Manager, knew he wanted to work in funeral service from a very young age. “I always made sure our family pets had a proper funeral and burial,” he says.
Originally from Newport, TN, he graduated from Cocke County High School and then got a mortuary science degree from John A. Gupton College. He has spent his entire career working in funeral service.
He was drawn was drawn to work at Morris-Baker Funeral Home because of it being the last both locally-owned and family-owned funeral home in Johnson City. “I like working with so many unique people who are all so passionate about taking care of families,” he says.
Dillon brings a positive attitude, attention to detail, and kindness to his work. His thoughtfulness and care is evident in how he spends time outside the office: Recently he has taken on the work of helping save monarch butterflies, which are being reviewed every year as a potential endangered species because of their decreasing population and the increasing threats to their survival.
Dillon grows his own native milkweed—an important host plant for these butterflies—and shares its seeds with others who want to grow it. Milkweed has chemical compounds that make monarch caterpillars poisonous to predators—thus giving the caterpillars a better chance of survival. Dillon says, “I am also raising monarch caterpillars by hand ensuring they are safe until they emerge, and then I re-release them.”
Dillon also loves spending time with his two dogs and getting out in nature.
We hope Dillon is with us for many years to come, and we are thrilled he is a part of our team and family.