Their website says, “offering families comfort and peace-of-mind”, and they certainly deliver exactly that - and so much more. I have used the services of Shook’s Cedar Grove Funeral Home on two occasions when I entrusted both my sister and mother to their care. It has always been the tradition in our family to have open casket viewings. From the initial call with Joe Shook, I felt like family. Joe exudes class and professionalism. The facility is modern, classy and very tastefully decorated. And if you have any Italian in your blood, you can rest assured that Joe has a deep understanding of our culture, customs, and yes our peculiar idiosyncrasies too.
There’s lots to admire about the great service provided here, but one thing stands out to me the most. Several years ago, when I called Shook’s and notified him of my sister’s passing in the hospital, Joe Shook took the call. He assured me that they would go retrieve her “right away”. I did not ask for that or expect that, yet it was very important to me after he mentioned it. Joe would later tell me that he personally cared for her when she arrived at the funeral home that very night.
Sadly, a week ago, my mother (84) passed away. It happened on the night of the big blizzard of 2016. We had called at about midnight. Joe personally called us back within minutes. After offering his condolences, he told me that they would be going to get Mom “immediately”. Once again, I was impressed at the urgency of his demeanor. My expectation was that, with the storm, Mom would be spending a day or so in the hospital morgue, which was certainly not the visual I wanted. A day after the storm, when we met with Joe and his staff, they informed me that Mom was in the funeral home and being tended to by him that same stormy night, until the early morning hours as the snow was falling.
When I thanked Joe for getting Mom out of the hospital right away and running out in the middle of the night to care for her, I asked him why he does that. Why drop everything and run? Surely you could wait until the next day, right? He said, among other things, the sooner that the decedent is embalmed, the better the result will be for viewing purposes. I heard, QUALITY. But most of all, he reflected on the teachings of his father, also a funeral director, who he said was “militant” about immediately retrieving the dead. Joe added, “we do for our customers what we would do for our own loved ones”. “I certainly wouldn’t want my family member laying in a hospital morgue all night”.
Finally, results matter. Both my sister, who was very sick for quite some time, and my mother looked absolutely beautiful and very natural at their viewings, which undoubtedly speaks to their skills. In summary, you won’t be disappointed with Shook’s. I also want to commend Joe’s staff, particularly Santiago Cortes and Joe Wood, whose obvious talents and love for their craft make a very difficult time so much easier to bear.
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