Tyler Cassity grew up in Missouri (Springfield then St. Louis) until he moved to New York to attend Columbia University where he graduated with a degree in Literature. His first job out of college was with the literary and freedom of speech advocacy organization — PEN American Center.  In 1998, on a business trip to Los Angeles, Tyler visited the bankrupt and dilapidated Hollywood Memorial Par, fell in love, and made its restoration and rebirth as Hollywood Forever his life’s work. In 2005, he also purchased Fernwood Cemetery in Marin County to introduce and showcase the concept of green and sustainable burial in the Bay Area. Tyler has been with his husband, Matthew McCarthy, for a quarter of a century. Tyler’s most obsessive hobby is Yoga. He runs a morning program six days a week at Hollywood Forever and teaches on Tuesdays. Previously, Tyler has served on the board of Hollywood Heritage and also the Los Angeles LGBT Center where he served for eight years and was its treasurer for three years.