A Brooklyn funeral director is calling on the city to recognize people who have been tirelessly working to bury and honor the dead. 

Kiki Valentine-Rakowski tells News 12 the mayor’s office excluded people like her from a parade to honor essential workers. 

"To overlook the people on the ground pulling bodies out of trailers and all the horrific stories speaks to a larger issue of recognizing that we’re all going to die someday. Everyone is going to need a funeral director,” said Valentine-Rakowski. 

After speaking to the mayor’s office, she says that funeral workers like crematory staff, embalmers and gravediggers will be included. 

News 12’s Eric Steltzer details more on why she believes they should have been included in the first place and more on the Hometown Hero's Ticker Tape Parade that is planned for July 7 in Manhattan.