Our History
Turner-Eighner Funeral Homes in Somonauk and Plano, IL
Ron and Linda Turner built the Somonauk location in 1980. In 1990, the Plano location was built and houses our crematory. In 1999, Ron bought Hanley Funeral Homes in Earlville and Leland. Chuck and Amy Eighner bought the Somonauk, Plano, Earlville and Leland locations from Ron and Linda in 2001. In 2003, Keith Burkhart approached Chuck about purchasing Burkhart’s.
Hanley-Turner-Eighner Funeral Homes in Earlville and Leland, IL.
Mr. Hanley opened the funeral home on Ottawa street and bought out Torman & Son’s Funeral Home across the street.
Burkhart-Eighner Funeral Home in Sandwich, IL
In 1856 Jacob Burkhart started J. Burkhart & Son furniture and undertaking business on South Main Street. He briefly had a partner, David Nixon. After fire destroyed the first building, it was replaced by a two-story brick structure in 1895. In 1925, they closed the furniture business and moved the funeral home to Wolfe Street. Later, they moved the business to North Main Street and finally settling at the current location on Arnold Road. The Burkhart Family owned and operated Burkhart Funeral Home until 2004 when Keith Burkhart approached Chuck about purchasing the funeral home. At that time, Burkhart’s was bought by the Eighner family.
For over 150 years the Burkhart, Hanley and Turner families have faithfully served their communities, now the Eighner family is continuing that tradition.
*Information regarding Burkhart’s credited to Images of America Sandwich by Joan Bark Hardekopf with the Sandwich Historical Society. Page 67.
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Charles J. Eighner, Owner/Funeral Director
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 L. Eighner, Owner/Secretary
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 were able to enjoy 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. -
Samuel R. Schlesinger, Funeral Director/ Embalmer
Sam was born and raised in the Paw Paw area. He attended all 12 years at Paw Paw Schools graduating in 1971. Sam is a licensed barber, graduating from Lincoln Barber College in 1972. He attended Kishwaukee College in Malta, IL. Sam worked for Torman’s Furniture and Funeral Homes in Paw Paw and Earlville, from there got interested in the funeral service. He attended Worsham College of Mortuary College, graduating in 1977. He served his apprenticeship at Columbian Chapels in Oak Park, IL and later was the day manager for 1 ½ years. He married Judy and they moved to Earlville in 1980. He worked for Torman & Son’s Funeral Home and Furniture stores for 13 years. Sam joined Turner Funeral Homes in 1993, where he is a licensed Funeral Director and Certified Crematory operator.
Sam lives in Earlville with his wife, Judy. They have 3 children and 4 grandchildren. Sam is a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Earlville, the Earlville Lion’s Club and the Earlville Country Club and the Sandwich Moose Lodge #1016. -
Carol Kellen 1944-2021, Pre Need Counsler
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.
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Oralia Lopez, Funeral Director Apprentice
Oralia Lopez is a graduate of Worsham College of Mortuary Science class of 2021. 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 CANA certified as a crematory operator, is a member of the Pi Sigma Eta fraternity, and is a licensed certified pharmacy technician. 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. Oralia is bilingual, fluent in English and Spanish. On her downtime she enjoys taking long walks and spending time with family and friends.
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Derrick Wynn, Funeral Director/ Embalmer
Derrick Wynn, Director
Born in Chicago, IL, Derrick spent his formative years growing up within the city’s metropolitan area. He attended Downers Grove South High School, graduating in 2008, and later North Central College in Naperville, IL as part of the Class of 2012, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communications. Immediately after completing college, Derrick enrolled in Worsham College of Mortuary Science, graduating in 2013. Derrick has been a licensed funeral director/embalmer since 2015, joining Eighner Funeral Homes as a staff member in 2021. Derrick currently resides in Sandwich, IL. -
Christina L. Nash, Secretary
Christina is a 2001 graduate from Sandwich High School. Christina has raised her two sons and two daughters in Yorkville 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 brought her first home in 2020 and enjoys spending quality time with her family. She has a big heart and puts other people before herself.
