Constructed in 1862 as a hops barn, this establishment was converted into a church in 1876. Then…read morere-sold in 1915 to a local farmer, the livestock barn existed on the site from 1915 to 1998 before it was purchased by members of the Pokagon United Methodist. Rev. George Bennard was visiting the area to take part in a series of revivals, and his famous hymn "The Old Rugged Cross" was first publicly performed in 1913. The hymn did not make Rev. Bernard rich. However, he sold the rights to the Rodeheaver Company of Winona Lake, Indiana, for $500, and the copyright was renewed years later for $5,000. The Old Rugged Cross Church is located on Vermont St. in Pokagon, about halfway between Dowagiac and Niles, where my partner's sister and I stopped off the beaten path before heading to Shipshewana.

My husband and I found out about this church by accident! We were simply searching for things to…read moredo in Niles, Michigan. We were determined to find something to do close to dark and finally found this on the Internet. The hymn, The Old Rugged Cross, was first performed in this church many years ago. The hymn is near and dear to our hearts because our grandparents used to enjoy singing this song and my husband has enjoyed playing it on the piano for our children. We decided to check it out! The outside of the church is stunning! We were not able to view the inside but if we ever make it back to this area of the country we will certainly stop to see it! You should do the same especially if you enjoy this old hymn!

I should have spent parts of this week and last week in South Bend, Indiana, and near (or in)…read moreNiles, Michigan.* In honor of not taking the normal Sunday (or Monday) drive with my dad (and often my mom) to southwestern Michigan, I'm snagging this FtR. The last time I was in Niles, Michigan, was last fall with my dad. He loved the random drive we took through autumn leaves and along winding rivers with surprising islands and over hills I didn't know Michigan had. When we drove by this adorable little Catholic cemetery, my dad made me make a U-turn. We marveled at the tiny, vaguely Russian-looking chapel in the middle. Of course, the chapel was locked, but that just added to the mystery. It's a really small cemetery, or a larger graveyard, whichever you prefer. It's so small, in fact, that while it does have paved roads so that cars can get close to graves, those roads are so narrow that if you park on the road itself, you'll be blocking traffic. I have no idea what they do for graveside services; do people park outside the cemetery and walk in? It's affiliated with but not physically connected to nearby (but somewhat difficult to find) St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church ( https://www.yelp.com/biz/st-mary-of-the-immaculate-conception-catholic-church-niles-2?osq=St+Mary+of+the+Immaculate+Conception ), which deserves a visit as well. Some cemeteries are spooky. This one is not. Or at least it's not spooky in the middle of the day. Whatever the case, I usually enjoy visiting cemeteries. They're so odd and beautiful and sad and hopeful and often historical. *Things happened, as they say, or--more accurately--the Women's Selection Committee once again awarded Ohio State a home bid to host even though they haven't made it into the Sweet 16 in two (and now three) straight years of hosting. My Fighting Irish should have hosted, like they usually do, but they made short work of the Buckeyes anyway.

Worked with Julie on prepaid arrangement, she was kind & very helpful. Have used SJFH for many…read morefamily members. Staff is wonderful. Very kind and understanding of the emotions people are feeling. Always clean and willing to make sure your wishes are met. Would highly recommend using SJFH on Mayflower & Sample Rds

My father purchased a prepaid plan back in 2004. He passed away suddenly in 2015…read more The staff was very cold. I went in several times to go over the details as my dad was a stage 4 cancer patient at the time, and was only given weeks to live. Every question I had was treated as an inconvenience. Only "certain" people could help you if you walked in. They disregarded several of my requests. They think they have the monopoly on the Catholics on the West and South sides of South Bend. More, on prepaid arrangements, you are a thorn in their side. I took a year to think before I wrote this review. It wasn't done on raw emotion.

We need a headstone for my step-father who was buried in Michigan City but we live in Florida. We…read moreworked with funeral director Dale Knouse to design, order and install the headstone. In the process we found out two other family members had problems with their headstones sinking over time. Cutler arranged to have the headstone lifted and stabilized. The other was over one hundred years old and had cracked in half. Dale again assisted us to replace the headstone with a new one. Cutler took excellent care of us every step of the process. Updating us with photos and timelines. I can't tell you how relieved I was that my 82 year old mother did not have to travel back to Indiana during Covid to take care of this! Dale you're a lifesaver!

amazing facility and caring staff I recently was at a friends funeral and was very comfortable and…read moreI felt a calmness that is hard to explain, you can tell that the people at Cutler Funeral Home and Cremation Center are deeply concerned with not only family members but everyone in attendance, the reason I felt compelled to write this is simply because of my own experience when I lost my father a few months back and believe me totally different, I felt like they were checking boxes and not concerned at all. I wish I would have voiced my opinion to my family in a stronger conviction to have chosen Cutler Funeral Home

Yoder-Culp took care of my husband's grandmother and they did a fantastic job! Mackenzie worked her…read moremagic and made her look beautiful, even after years of sickness and a nasty fall before her passing. They went above and beyond to make a hard time more manageable. It's clear to see how much they value the families who use them and provide extremely professional and compassionate services. We would highly recommend them!

"I wanted to take a few days to speak on this. The funeral home we went through for my dad's…read morefuneral really traumatized my children. I tried to make light out of it in the moment because I didn't know if the kids knew exactly what was going on. For one they didn't dig the hole big enough. So instead of pausing and fixing it they decided to just keep trying to push the coffin in. Then we had to move Dad off of the top and the men in my family had to redigg it. I feel it was very disrespectful to even have to see." They said it was a technical difficulty and didn't offer our family anything to make it right. They also said it was a pine casket when it was actually just a cardboard box. Traumatized and disappointed.

Brown Funeral Home was so gracious to my family when my husband of 30 plus years passed away the…read morecompassion from the staff and Mr. Brown helped me through a tragic experience. I have never had any experience with a funeral home that would compare to this wonderful establishment " treating you just like family " They went beyond measure to make sure my husband was given the military service he deserved ( he was a Marine). They have become like family to me and with family you love forever. On behalf of my husband Anthony E. Garner, Sr. Forever in my heart Gwen G.

There is not enough words to express how I feel about Brown's they are absolutely the most caring…read moreand loving people. We have had to use them 2 times in just a year apart and in the difficult time they were very comforting. I would definitely recommend them to everyone. There is not one of them that didn't go above and beyond for us. If you want your loved one in the best place that will truly treat them as if it were there family then this is definitely the place you want them to be at.

Horrible services, told my family our loved ones was still leaking when asked to see them. Wanted…read moreus to cover their electricity bill. 1000$ for electricity is wild. I will never have a good thing to say about this funeral home

At 72, I realized I should make pre-arrangements for when I pass away…read more After checking various Funeral Homes online, I chose Billings. I have no Family close by, and I didn't want a funeral, etc., just to be cremated and to be sent to Ft. Custer to be buried with my late Husband. I dealt with Jeremy, who is a blessing. He (and still is) answered all my questions, no matter how odd they were. It's nice to be able to change things a bit, and know that Jeremy will do his best to help me. He has already made some excellent suggestions to make it easier for me.

Heidi was so pleasant, kind, helpful and wonderful. She took s her time to show me around and…read moreexplain everything to me. She showed compassion and helped my self esteem. thank you Heidi!