East Lawn Funeral Home & Memorial Gardens

A local team and attention to detail

Many of our funeral directors have lived in the Bloomington-Normal area for a long time. They know the needs of their friends and neighbors, so you can expect compassionate care in a warm and friendly atmosphere. They proudly treat every family like their own.

All of the services at East Lawn Funeral Home are designed to truly reflect the lives of loved ones who have passed, while offering comfort to those who grieve. Our professionals will work with you to create a tribute that celebrates your loved one's life with thoughtful details that represent his or her passions, accomplishments and hobbies to create a lasting impression. Start with a story—we'll take it from there.

See how we celebrate life.

Bloomington cremation services

There are many options for cremation in the Bloomington-Normal area—and they're not all equal. We specialize in cremation services that honor loved ones in personalized ways, and families love our all-inclusive pricing. With expertise in scattering ashes and a friendly team who pays attention to every detail, we provide service that is second to none.

More and more people are choosing cremation over traditional burial, but most aren’t familiar with the many options:

• a cremation without a funeral or memorial service of any kind.
• a funeral with your loved one present, followed by cremation.
• a cremation followed by a scattering, cemetery memorialization or celebration of life—or all three.

If you're interested in cemetery placement, East Lawn Memorial Gardens is among the prettiest in the area. It has cremation niches, gardens and more.

And for those who wish for something more momentous, Neptune Memorial Reef is an underwater cremation garden off the coast of Florida. A Celestis Memorial Spaceflight takes ashes into space for a little while or forever.

Learn about our cremation services.

We Honor Veterans

The caring team at East Lawn understands the unique needs of America’s veterans and their families. As a Level Four Founding Community Partner with We Honor Veterans, our staff is knowledgeable in veterans burial benefits. With respect, integrity and dignity, we will walk you through creating a veteran's memorial service that truly honors the life and sacrifice of your loved one.

Watch our video to learn how we can help plan a veteran's burial.

Prepaid funerals and cremations

In addition to assisting with an immediate need, we specialize in working with families to make final arrangements in advance. We recognize that funeral arrangements and associated expenses can be overwhelming. When you plan ahead, you provide a sense of relief and comfort to your loved ones while ensuring your wishes are met. We offer in-person and virtual consultations, as well as a free Personal Planning Guide to help you get started.

Find out everything you need to know about planning ahead.

Grief support services

Our care for you and your family doesn't end after your loved one's service is over. East Lawn Funeral Home offers online grief resources accessible from anywhere. Families who choose us for their loved one's service also have access to our 24-hour Compassion Helpline^®.

For up to 13 months after planning a Dignity Memorial^® service, a family gets unlimited complimentary phone access to professionals trained in grief counseling any time day or night, for any reason. Any guest who attends a visitation, funeral service or burial gets the same access for up to three months.

East Lawn Memorial Gardens cemetery

Located at 1002 Airport Road in Bloomington, East Lawn Memorial Gardens is set on a parklike 43 acres. A peaceful final resting place, it offers a variety of traditional burial and cremation options and ample space for future generations to gather, reflect and remember.

Traditional burial and cremation options

The cemetery has many in-ground and aboveground options, including:

• Indoor crypts and glass-front niches in the Chapel of Memories Mausoleum
• Entombment in a stately garden mausoleum
• Ground burial in wonderfully landscaped gardens with flat bronze markers or upright granite monuments
• Gardens for urn burial
• A community ossuary
• Private commonwealth estates with shared granite benches
• Private family estates
• Private family mausoleums

We invite you to visit us and take a tour of the funeral home. If you need immediate assistance, reach out now. We're here for you day and night, no matter what time you call.

History

R.L. Beeler of Burlington, Iowa, established East Lawn Memorial Gardens. Beeler purchased a 30-acre tract of land from Fred Young in 1935. At the time, the property was 2 miles east of the Bloomington city limits, just west of the new municipal airport on Illinois Route 9. Beeler employed Henry Oldman as the cemetery manager, and they began to sell cemetery property out of an office at the Peoples Bank Building in Bloomington.

In 1951, the cemetery was sold to Harold and Freda Bathe. Over the years, the Bathes made many improvements. Eventually, the couple opened East Lawn Funeral Home on 1515 E. Empire St. In 1979, Harold sold the funeral home building and constructed a new facility on the grounds of East Lawn Memorial Gardens. At the time, this was an innovative idea and gave families the convenience of planning all of their funeral and cemetery arrangements in one beautiful location.

Today, East Lawn Memorial Gardens and East Lawn Funeral Home are members of the Dignity Memorial network of funeral, cremation and cemetery service providers. We welcome the opportunity to continue our tradition of service to Bloomington-Normal families.