Haeger Potteries will be sorely missed

I was saddened to learn that Haeger Potteries in East Dundee will be closing its doors in May after 145 years. My late father, Irving R. Symonds, Jr., began using Haeger pots when he bought his first funeral home in Chicago in 1969. Since then, my family's funeral homes have been using beautiful Haeger pots to display flowers in our chapels for decades.

When I purchased a funeral home in Elgin a few years ago, I was happy to discover the Haeger Potteries showroom was only a few miles away. Four white vases were my first official purchase for the new business. Families always ask me if the vase is included when they take their flowers home, and I have to be the one to break the bad news that the pots stay with the funeral home.

It is bittersweet to say that I hope our pots will continue to hold fresh flowers for many more decades to come. I do plan on stocking up with what's left of their supply. My only regret is I never got to experience a tour before the company stopped giving them.

The Haeger family deserves our thanks - first for rebuilding Chicago with their bricks, and second, for leaving an unforgettable legacy of American craftsmanship. Haeger Potteries' one-of-a-kind artistry will be truly missed, here and across the United States. Please don't go.

Daniel W. Symonds

Owner, Symonds-Madison Funeral Home

Elgin