GRAVETTE — With the opening of the Epting Funeral Home in the former Farmers' Supply building at 209 Second Avenue S.W., near the intersection of Arkansas Highways 59 and 72, Gravette once again has a funeral home in town. The business offers funeral services for families everywhere in western Benton County and has a funeral chapel on site.
"We will offer services to the local area," said owner Ricky Epting. "It has been years since this area of the county has had a local funeral home. Callison-Lough and Pyeatte funeral homes closed down their establishments many years ago in Gravette." Epting said he looks forward to serving the needs of grieving families in Gravette and the area and invites everyone to come by and see the updated building.
Those needing assistance with funeral planning may contact the firm by calling 479-787-9747 or 479-273-3443. Phone calls are answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week, Epting said. The home office is in Bentonville and is always staffed and open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays as well as after hours and weekends. A licensed funeral director is available 24/7 by phone to answer any questions or set up appointments. Appointments may be made to meet at the other locations and a funeral director will be there, usually within an hour of the time the family desires, according to Epting.
Families may select the type of services they desire, order caskets, urns or other merchandise and plan for musical accompaniment at Gravette. The building has been completely remodeled and features a large tastefully decorated lobby area, a meeting room for planning sessions, and the small chapel. The chapel will accommodate groups of up to 36 people, and larger services can be held at churches, other locations or at the graveside. Photographs of area scenes, taken by one of the firm's funeral directors, Cito Vargas, decorate the walls in the lobby.
This is the fourth funeral home operated by the firm, Epting said. Epting Funeral Home opened for business in 2008 in Bentonville and then, in 2009, expanded into Bella Vista and Fayetteville. He and his wife decided recently it was time to branch out again. They are assisted in the business by Vargas and three other funeral directors, Andrew Fulton, James Longmate and Joe Lindley, an employee of the former Callison-Lough Funeral Home in Gravette.
Epting grew up in West Memphis and then moved with his parents to Rogers. He is a 1996 graduate of Rogers High School. His wife Iris is a Rogers native and a 2000 graduate of Rogers High School. She was an accounting major and graduated from Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia. The couple has two children, daughter Vivian, 3, and son Tatum, 1.
Epting has a degree in business management from Northwest Arkansas Community College. His parents are owners of Epting Plumbing Company in Rogers and his brother Scotty works there; but, after finishing his schooling, Ricky said, "That wasn't for me." When he said he wasn't sure what career path he wanted to take Bob Rollins, a family friend and the owner of Rollins Funeral Home in Rogers, suggested he try the funeral home business.
"Bob was a good man and a good mentor," Epting said, "and suggested I come work for him and try it out." He took to the business, wanting to choose a career where he could serve others, and he served a two-year apprenticeship at Rollins Funeral Home. He then obtained his license from the Arkansas State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors and opened his own business.
A ribbon cutting and an open house are planned at the Gravette location in the near future.
General News on 08/16/2017