The Gelder Foundation was established by the Pennsylvania Funeral Directors Association to build links between funeral directors and Homeland Security in mass fatality disasters.

The foundation was named in honor of the late Glenn S. Gelder, a funeral director who directed much of the recovery effort at the site of the crash of USAir Flight 427 near Pittsburgh on September 8th, 1994.

The goal is to create local response teams that are partnerships between government and funeral service to help communities survive the psychological trauma of a catastrophe.

Many funeral directors from across the state have already volunteered for training in community counseling and other methods of assistance being offered by the Gelder Foundation.