Hello and welcome!

I'm a retired senior living in Northeastern Illinois with a deep passion for cemeteries and genealogy. Regrettably, recent health challenges have restricted my mobility, preventing me from visiting cemeteries as frequently as I previously did. My journey began with a simple love for wandering among headstones, giving a "face" to the departed through creating memorials, and ensuring that no one is forgotten. You could say I've become a full-fledged taphophile!

My goal on Find a Grave is to assist others in their ancestral research and to connect the memorials I've created with their rightful families. I believe in collaboration over collection; therefore, I readily transfer memorials to relatives or those with a close connection.

I greatly appreciate any information or edits you can provide, especially if you are a family member. I hold accuracy to the highest standard. To maintain this, I require complete publication information—newspaper name, date, and page number—for all obituary submissions. All edits are carefully documented, with headstone dates transcribed exactly as they appear. For full transparency, the submitting member's Find a Grave ID and submission date are noted in the memorial's bio.

Photo Requests: I enjoy helping families by fulfilling photo requests. To make this process as efficient as possible, please obtain the detailed burial location (e.g., section, block, lot) from the cemetery before submitting your request. Knowing if a headstone exists is also extremely helpful.

Finally, I deeply respect the wishes of families who prefer not to have their loved ones' memorials listed on this site. If you find a memorial I've created for one of your family members that you would like me to remove, please contact me directly through this site or by email, and I will do so immediately.