Trey Ganem used to build custom cars but switched over to making custom caskets about 11 years ago. He started a business called SoulShine Industries in Edna, Texas, about two-and-a-half hours from Uvalde. In 2016, his son Billy Ganem joined him.
Sadly, this isn’t the first time Trey and Billy have stepped up to make caskets for victims of a mass shooting. They also pitched in five years ago for victims of the Sutherland Springs, Texas church shooting. No matter how many times they help grieving families, the job never gets easier, but Trey takes comfort in knowing that he’s easing a bit of the families’ burdens.
Trey told BuzzFeed that this work has been an emotional roller coaster.
Large quantities of child-sized caskets are rarely kept in stock, so Trey had to scramble to order some from a manufacturer in Georgia. The manufacturer understood the urgency, working for 20 hours straight to complete the order. A friend’s trucking company picked up the caskets and drove 26 hours round-trip to get them back to SoulShine.
Once they had arrived, Billy and Trey got to work personalizing each one. Trey met with each family to learn about the victims, a process he found both painful and cathartic. He says families really “light up” when they’re talking about their loved ones.
Trey and Billy ultimately hand-painted custom caskets for 19 victims, including 18 children and one adult teacher.