About Us

Helen Ferrari was not quite four years old when her parents moved to Farmington on the heels of an oil boom, her father planned to uncap. It was also a fertile time for the land in general. “My first memory is of how green everything was with all the farms and apple orchards,” she says. Though it has been over 65 years, Helen's ties to Farmington, the Four Corners area, and her childhood community have taken on deeper meaning since she became principal owner of the Farmington

Funeral Home. After moving to Aztec her junior year of high school, Helen married Vince Ferrari, a local boy whose family trained and showed horses. She and her husband stumbled into the funeral home business by default in 2016 and have since built it into the successful and compassionate locally owned and operated establishment that it is today. “When we first started, I didn’t want to have anything to do with the services because I’m a crier and would want to cry with everyone

there. Having lost a daughter, I felt their loss,” she said. “But the first funeral we conducted changed my mind seeing the difference I could make in helping people get through the most difficult time in their lives.” Helen appreciates the trust the people of the four corners area have placed in her, and she is proud of the compassion demonstrated by each member of her team. “They know how to

take care of business and still show the respect and dignity the families who put their trust in us deserve.

Terry is a native of the State of Michigan, where he graduated with an Associates degree in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and went on to attend and graduate from Worsham College of Mortuary Science in Chicago, Illinois. He has been a Licensed Funeral Director and Embalmer since 1984, and is recognized as a Certified Funeral Service Practioner by the Academy of Professional Funeral Service Practice in Westerville, Ohio. Providing exceptional care, dignity and service to families, has been his professional passion with the families that have placed their trust in him. Terry is also a proud father of three sons, whom he enjoys spending time with along with riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle in his spare time.

Mysti Payne was born and raised in the Tri-City area. She has been a member of the Farmington Funeral Home team since 2016 and enjoys being a part of helping families in her community through difficult times. Mysti has been licensed as a Funeral Service Intern in Arranging and Directing since November of 2017. Mysti enjoys spending time at home with her two sons as well as hiking, camping, and fishing in the outdoor areas around Farmington.

Carmen Capucetti was born in beautiful Northern California, and at the age of 2 moved with her family to Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. Carmen brings her kindness, patience, and dedication to the team at Farmington Funeral Home. Carmen discovered her passion for helping families after she lost her mother 5 years ago. After settling in New Mexico, Carmen knew she wanted to dedicate her time to helping the families in our community. Later in life Carmen had 2 children of her own, Lucia and little Kainen. Carmen takes great pride in serving our community in the four corners but holds a special place in her heart for our Hispanic community. 

Carmen Capucetti nació en el hermoso norte de California, y a la edad de 2 años se mudó con su familia a Ensenada, Baja California, México. Carmen aporta su amabilidad, paciencia y dedicación al equipo de Farmington Funeral Home. Carmen descubrió su pasión por ayudar a las familias después de perder a su madre hace 5 años. Después de establecerse en Nuevo México, Carmen sabía que quería dedicar su tiempo a ayudar a las familias de nuestra comunidad. Más tarde en la vida, Carmen tuvo 2 hijos propios, Lucía y el pequeño Kainen. Carmen se enorgullece de servir a nuestra comunidad en las cuatro esquinas, pero ocupa un lugar especial en su corazón para nuestra comunidad hispana. 

A native of New Mexico, Sarah Mahaffey was born and raised in San Juan County until her family moved to Illinois in 1999 where her curiosity of the Mortuary field began at the early age of 13. Her family returned to the area in 2005 during Sarah’s senior year at Aztec High.  At 25, she began work at a local funeral home as an Office Manager working her way to Pre-arrangement, Monument and Burial Specialist on behalf of five funeral homes and a cemetery. After almost 10 years in the field, she is now proudly working as a Pre-Arrangement Counselor and Funeral Director for Farmington Funeral Home. Some of the accomplishments Sarah is proud of are the numerous markers, headstones, and monuments she has created for individuals and organizations throughout the area. Sarah has taken a special interest in commemorating our Veterans by creating three monuments for our Vietnam and World War Two Veterans on behalf of a national organization.  One of these monuments sits in our very own Vietnam Veterans Park here in Farmington, New Mexico, another in the Santa Fe National Cemetery and the third in a local cemetery.  In her off-time Sarah enjoys spending time in the mountains, painting, and spending time with her family.

Ashlee was born and raised in Farmington, New Mexico. After graduating Farmington High School, she decided to continue her education at Trinidad State Junior College in Alamosa, CO. While attending Trinidad State she was able to run cross country and track and field collegiately. After graduating with her associate degree, she then decided to continue her education at Dallas Institute of Mortuary Science and be apart of the family business. Ashlee has now graduated from Dallas Institute of Mortuary science and is working toward being a licensed funeral director. She enjoys being a caregiver and taking care of all families in our community.

Born and raised in Gallup, New Mexico, Whitney moved to Farmington with her family in the early 2000s. It was there that she met her best friend and husband Matthew, marrying him in 2009. The couple has been blessed with three wonderful kids. 2 beautiful daughters Khloe and Koa and a handsome son Kalem. All 3 children are active in sports and band. She loves to spend her evenings at volleyball games, football games, track meets and band concerts. Her outlook shifted in 2019 after her brother's untimely passing. She said “Sitting across from Mr. Vince during that difficult arrangement meeting, his compassion and care comforted my grieving family. I'll never forget the relief I felt walking out of that meeting, knowing we were in good hands. From that moment on, I knew I wanted to provide that same solace to other families navigating unimaginable grief. I feel privileged to support our community through life's hardest chapters. This work has brought new meaning to my days and renewed purpose to my path.”  Whitney became licensed by the state in February 2024 and just recently enrolled in San Juan College to pursue her Mortuary Science Degree.

Chris was born in Albuquerque, and raised in Farmington, until his family moved to Alaska where he graduated High school. After graduation he moved back to Farmington. Chris has four kids. In his spare time he loves spending time with family and going fishing. Chris has been with Farmington Funeral Home for almost two years, where he is working on getting his embalming license. He loves being able to care for families and their loved ones in their time of need.

Celeste Kalcich was born and raised in San Juan County. Her exposure to funeral work began at the ripe age of three, when she lived with her family in a local funeral home. She used to play “funeral” with her sister and pull all the tissue out of the boxes in the chapel. She was part of a law enforcement family as the child of, the sister of, and the previous spouse of law enforcement officers. She eventually was able to serve in law enforcement herself from 2019 to 2023 as a Reserve Deputy at San Juan County Sheriff’s Office. Celeste is a homeschooling mother to two daughters and one son. She has been an avid weightlifter for several years. She trained mixed martial arts beginning in high school, through her three pregnancies, and eventually was able to compete in both kickboxing and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu tournaments as her babies got older. Celeste worked in the funeral/decedent care industry off and on beginning in 2008 through 2016. She has been back in funeral work with Farmington Funeral home since April 2023. Celeste enjoys spending time with her three children and her partner at home watching 90’s movies, lifting weights in her garage, jamming to 60’s music, and eating LOTS of protein! When she’s not at work, she’s cleaning non-stop or driving her kids to their various activities. Celeste has an immense amount of compassion for the decedents she cares for at Farmington Funeral Home.

Aiden was born and raised in Farmington, New Mexico. He graduated from Farmington High School in 2023. Aiden has been with Farmington Funeral Home for 1 year now, however, he intends to enlist in the US Air Force this summer to protect and serve our country. Aiden also plans to pursue a degree in Mortuary Science following his service in the military. Aiden enjoys trapshooting for Amateur Trapshooting Association, and he also enjoys working out. Aiden is a great hand who always has an immense amount of compassion and respect for the decedents at Farmington Funeral Home.

Stephen was born in El Paso, TX and has moved all around the world eventually putting down roots in Aztec, NM. He’s been married since 2009 and has 4 children. Over the years Stephen has worn many different hats from Truck Driver Safety Coordinator. By nature, Stephen is a helper and eventually found his calling by helping families prearrange their final wishes.