Our Valued Staff
Committed to assisting you in commemorating your cherished one, our team possesses extensive experience in serving families from diverse backgrounds. We are accessible round the clock, reachable through email or phone, ensuring continuous support whenever you need it. With patience, compassion, and unwavering professionalism, our team remains dedicated and readily available to attend to your needs.
Chuck grew up in the central Illinois town of Hoopeston, graduating from Hoopeston-East Lynn High School. Later he attended Danville Area Community College before furthering his education at Worsham College of Mortuary Science graduating in 1992.
He met his wife, Amy, at his first job out of college. Chuck worked for SCI, the largest funeral conglomerate in the world, for seven years. During that time, Chuck and Amy had 2 sons. Kyle was born in 1997 and Zachary was born in 2000.
In 2001, Chuck and Amy met Ron and Linda Turner, and expressed an interest in purchasing the Turner Funeral Homes & Crematory properties. All the paperwork was finalized on February 14, 2002. In 2003, Chuck and Amy purchased Burkhart Funeral Home from Keith and Nan Burkhart.
With both Chuck and Amy growing up in small towns, they knew this would be a good fit for them. Chuck enjoys being a member of Kiwanis, Rotary Club of Sandwich, and he is on the Fox Valley Older Adults board of directors. Chuck and Amy are looking forward to continuing to serve the Fox River Valley communities for the years to come. Thank you for your support!
Amy was born in Springfield, IL were she grew up until she moved to Virden, IL with her family. She attended and graduated from Virden High School. After graduating high school in 1991 and losing her dad in 1992, she decided to go to work full time at Memorial Hospital in Springfield, where her father had been cared for, for many years. Amy worked there until she met Chuck. The two of them got married in 1995. Once getting settled into her new married life, she started working at the Bank of Alton. Amy worked at the bank until the birth of their second son in 2000. In early 2001, Amy was blessed to be able to stay home and care for Kyle and Zachary.
Once she and Chuck purchased the funeral homes, she continued to care for the boys and worked at the funeral homes. Both Amy and Chuck enjoyed cheering on the boys at their sporting events. Amy was a member of the Somonauk Junior Woman's Club for fifteen years and is currently a member of the GFWC-IL 12th District Past Officer's Club. Both Amy and Chuck are members of St. John's Lutheran Church and the Sandwich Chamber of Commerce.
Schael grew up in Oswego, graduating from Oswego High School in 1998. She spent the next several years taking whatever courses sounded interesting at Waubonsee Community College, until finally deciding to pursue her dream and enrolled at Worsham College of Mortuary Science. After graduating in March of 2012, Schael started her apprenticeship with Chuck and stayed for the next eight-plus years. After a short two-and-a-half-year hiatus, she has returned to serve the communities she loves. Schael is a licensed funeral director/embalmer, Licensed Lifelines Insurance Producer, and Certified Crematory Operator.
Schael lives in Earlville with her husband, Vince, and two sons, Louie and Paul. Plus, their fur babies, Raven and Pancho.
Oralia Lopez is a 2021 graduate of Worsham College of Mortuary Science. Oralia is a Licensed Funeral Director/Embalmer and is a certified crematory operator. Oralia has worked in healthcare for over two decades and has recently decided to transition into funeral service. She has a passion for people and enjoys helping them through tough and difficult times. She was born and raised in Aurora, Illinois. She is married to her husband Edin and has two sons, Edin Jr. and Caleb. Their family resides in Plano. Oralia is bilingual, and fluent in English and Spanish. In her downtime she enjoys taking long walks and spending time with family and friends.
Christina is a 2001 graduate of Sandwich High School. Christina has raised her two sons and two daughters in Yorkville for the majority of their life. She has two cats and two dogs who get treated just like her children. Christina was a lead teacher in a daycare that her children attended growing up for fourteen years. After her children were old enough to stay home, she moved on to work at Cedarhurst Senior Living in Yorkville for two years as a Life Enrichment Director. She loves watching her kids play sports in her free time. She bought her first home in 2020 and enjoys spending quality time with her family. She has a big heart and puts other people before herself.
Carol grew up in Leland, IL, graduating from Leland High School in 1962. She is a member of St. John Lutheran Church in Mendota, IL. Carol assists families in preplanning for their own funeral service or for those of a loved one. She has been a licensed life insurance producer since 1992. Carol was married to the late Jack Kellen and has two children. Jacqueline is a 911 operator and Greg is a Lieutenant with the Mendota Police Dept. Carol has three grandchildren, Lauren, Noah, and Adam.