Brokaw and Lake View Cemetery Earn National Recognition for Changing the Conversation Around Death

Independent Cleveland agency wins advertising's most prestigious national creative honor

CLEVELAND, June 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Brokaw Inc., a full-service advertising agency headquartered in downtown Cleveland since 1992, has been named a National Gold ADDY Award winner by the American Advertising Federation (AAF). Brokaw is the only agency in Ohio to earn a Gold award this year. Presented at the National Awards Gala on May 29, 2026, at the Hilton Austin, the award recognizes the agency's "Post-Post Retirement Planning" campaign for Lake View Cemetery.

The American Advertising Awards is the industry's largest and most representative competition. Among more than 35,000 entries nationwide, only 38 Gold ADDY Awards were presented, and Brokaw's campaign was one of them.

To help Lake View Cemetery drive memorial pre-planning sales, Brokaw turned to an unlikely source of inspiration: traditional retirement planning. Noting that conventional financial planning simply didn't extend far (or deep) enough, the agency invented an entirely new service category: Post-Post Retirement Planning.

The campaign deployed an enthusiastic spokesperson across video, print, social and display advertising, encouraging audiences to think even further ahead in their long-range financial planning. Videos outlined the considerable advantages of locking in a post-post retirement plan, while social and print executions reinforced the practical financial benefits of planning ahead. Well ahead.

"When Brokaw first pitched the idea, we knew they had found something genuinely unique," said Lake View Cemetery President & CEO Kathy Goss. "They took a subject that most people avoid entirely and made it engaging, and the results proved it resonated."

"Authentic, category-disrupting work like this doesn't happen without a strong agency-client relationship and mutual trust," said Tim Brokaw, Co-CEO of Brokaw Inc. "We're incredibly proud the campaign we created together is bringing national recognition back to the city of Cleveland."

About Lake View Cemetery— Lake View Cemetery is one of Cleveland's most historic and storied institutions, serving families throughout Northeast Ohio since 1869. Located in Cleveland and bordering Little Italy, the cemetery is the final resting place of President James A. Garfield, industrialist John D. Rockefeller and numerous other notable Clevelanders.

About Brokaw—Founded in 1992, Brokaw is an independent marketing, advertising and social content production firm that specializes in helping brands rise above the blah blah, including GE Lighting, Sherwin-Williams, Barrio Tacos, Summa Health, FrogTape and The University of Akron. A former Ad Age Small Agency of the Year recipient and recently named #3 independent advertising agency in America by Agency Spotter, Brokaw Inc. is owned and operated by brothers Tim & Gregg Brokaw and headquartered on the corner of West 6th and Lakeside Avenue in downtown Cleveland's Warehouse District.

About American Advertising Awards— Conducted annually by the AAF, the American Advertising Awards is the advertising industry's largest and most representative competition, attracting more than 35,000 entries every year. Its mission is to recognize and reward the creative spirit of excellence in the art of advertising. The competition's local tier is the first of three tiers, with local winners advancing to district competition and district winners advancing to the national stage.

Media Contact: Margaret Thresher, Brokaw Inc. at C: (216) 212-1782

SOURCE Brokaw Inc.