About Us
The caring and experienced professionals at Reins - Sturdivant Funeral Home are here to support you through this difficult time. We offer a range of personalized services to suit your family’s wishes and requirements. You can count on us to help you plan a personal, lasting tribute to your loved one. And we’ll carefully guide you through the many decisions that must be made during this challenging time.
About Reins - Sturdivant Funeral Home
You are welcome to call us at any time of the day, any day of the week, for immediate assistance. Or, visit our funeral home in person at your convenience. We also provide a wealth of information here on our website.
Our History
The History of Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Home goes back almost 100 years and touches generations of families in Wilkes and surrounding counties. Although the business was incorporated as Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Home on August 4, 1930, the company traces its roots to James Calvin Reins establishing a monument business in Wilkesboro in 1894. Mr. Reins later moved the business to North Wilkesboro. He entered the “undertaking business” in 1917 and established Reins Funeral Home, the forerunner of Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Home.
Mr. W. K. Sturdivant, Sr. came to North Wilkesboro from Chase City, Virginia on April 22, 1926 to assist Mr. Reins with the funeral business. He acquired a financial interest in the business and the name was changed to Reins-Sturdivant. The company was incorporated August 4, 1930, when the remainder of the business was purchased from Mr. Reins by W. K. Sturdivant, Sr., A. A. Sturdivant, and C. A. Canter
The funeral home was located on Main Street in North Wilkesboro. An ambulance service was operated by the funeral home until 1967.
In 1960, stock in the corporation was sold to the management and officers of the funeral home. In 1961, the funeral home was moved from Main Street to a new location on Armory Road in North Wilkesboro. The new facilities provided a large chapel, visitation rooms, and improved parking.
In 1980, H. D. Caudill, Jr., Clyde D. Carpenter, Sr., and Joe Canter, purchased the remaining stock from the Sturdivant family and the Claude Canter family. Joe Canter served as vice president and treasurer until his retirement in 1984.
An expansion of 10,000 square feet completed in 1991 made space available to serve families with three large receiving rooms, two conference rooms to meet with families making funeral arrangements and working with pre arrangement plans. A large selection room for caskets and vaults make it possible for people to compare the prices and quality of both.
H. D. Caudill, Jr. was president, Clyde D. Carpenter, Sr., vice president and secretary, and Wayne E. Myers, vice president and treasurer. Mrs. H. D. (Ferne) Caudill was elected president following H. D. Caudill’s death April 9, 1994.
In October 1995, Scenic Memorial Gardens Cemetery was purchased by Reins-Sturdivant. Located on 32 acres in a natural setting overlooking the Brushy Mountains in the community of Moravian Falls, the view is unequaled in Wilkes County. Our beautifully maintained gardens are designed to accommodate a variety of family needs. The Garden of Peace and Garden of Devotion, which are the largest gardens in the cemetery, were developed for the use of ground level bronze memorials. The Garden of Valor is a special section to honor our military veterans and their families. Completed in November of 1997, a chapel mausoleum with 550 casket spaces and 156 cremation niches was completed. This is a beautiful structure with many architectural features of the funeral home.
Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Home now has a full service monument company. Computer-generated design allows our customers to personalize their monument. We also offer custom engraving on existing monuments.
The funeral home sponsors a “Grief Recovery Support Group” which meets monthly with a well-qualified licensed counselor providing the program and activities. This has been well received by the communities we serve. Reins-Sturdivant has a professional staff of twenty-seven employees. Many of these people serve our towns communities, churches, and civic organizations with strong leadership ability.
On July 31, 2001, Clyde D. Carpenter, Sr. retired from Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Home after 55 years of service. In December of 2001, officers were elected. Those officers are Ferne W. Caudill, President; Wayne E. Myers, Vice President/Treasurer, and Clyde D. Carpenter, Jr., Vice President/Secretary.
In December 2005, Ferne Caudill retired. Wayne Myers was named President and Treasurer and Clyde Carpenter, Jr. was named Vice President and Secretary.
© 2024 Reins - Sturdivant Funeral Home. All Rights Reserved. Funeral Home website by CFS & TA | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Accessibility