About Us

Jim is a member of an early, settling family on the Far Southside of Chicago in the neighborhood of Roseland. Jim and his wife Dorothy moved to Lake Forest in 1970 shortly after they were married. They raised their two children, Tony and Anne in Lake Forest and are still residents of Lake Forest.

Jim attended the Mortuary Science School at Southern Illinois University and completed his professional education at Worsham College of Mortuary Science (Chicago) in 1969. He began his professional career at Wenban Funeral Home working for the founder's grandson, George "Sonny" Wenban, Jr. Jim became manager of the funeral home and eventually took over the firm with his business partner in1976.

Over the years, Jim has given many informational talks to church, clergy, community, school, hospice and other professional groups regarding funeral customs, options, funeral history and ministering to surviving family members and friends. He also introduced the "Vial of Life Program" to the Lake Forest and Lake Bluff communities. This was an emergency medical information system to aid paramedics. In June of 2010 Jim received the Distinctive Service Award from the Illinois Funeral Directors Association in recognition of more than forty years of honorable service to the funeral profession.

Having been a part of the community for so many years and personally knowing so many people, Jim has always felt that his greatest reward has been hoping that families derive some comfort of meeting with someone familiar at one of the most devastating times of their lives.

A native of northwest Iowa, Chad came to Chicagoland in the Fall of 1993 to begin his career in funeral service. After completing his initial college coursework, he moved on to complete his professional training at Worsham College of Mortuary Science in Wheeling, Ill. Upon graduation in 1995 he completed his apprenticeship and soon found a permanent position at Wenban Funeral Home in February 1996. Chad is a Past President of the Northeastern Illinois Funeral Directors Association. In his off time you can find Chad spending time with his wife and their two daughters.

Eli was born and raised in Broadus, a small town in southeast Montana. He graduated from Dickinson State University in Dickinson, North Dakota with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. While in college, Eli stayed active with athletics, running cross country and track. He also was involved with student government, serving as Student Senate President and was the student member of the Dickinson State University Alumni Board. He was appointed and served on the Governor's Youth Council of North Dakota. He came to the Chicago area in the fall of 2010 to attend Worsham College of Mortuary Science. He was a Student Associate at Wenban Funeral Home while attending mortuary school. In 2012 he started his full time career with Wenban.