During the time our family is grieving, Funeral Director, Traci Johnston, provided exceptional…read moresupport and guidance as we navigated the process. As a stellar professional, Traci asked questions and listened as we described our loved one. The attention to details for the visitation, service, and luncheon were a true reflection of our loved one. Traci, her team, and Iles Funeral Homes are highly recommended.

Death is by far not easy to ever deal with. I live in Las Vegas & my Mother lived in Des Moines,…read moreIa. On September 19th, 2021 unfortunately my Mother passed away in the comforts of her home. This company from the moment their people arrived at my Mothers house. They were so loving, gentle, respectful & caring to say the least. I sat on FaceTime and watched them care for my Mother in such the most loving way. Bethany Fast was appointed to my family for ALL her last wishes. I have to say this woman NEEDS A BIG RAISE. She is truly an Angel. Bethany took care of everything despite the many challenges she came up against with dealing with my family. Bethany went above and beyond for us on numerous occasions. She remained calm and loving through it all. Mind you she was pregnant and due at any moment. Yet she remained such a gentle soul. With the upmost customer service. This company is by far the place to have your loved ones final arrangements taken care of. I truly truly appreciate everyone there that played apart of everything going well. We will NEVER forget you Bethany Fast. Nor this company for giving us the very best care and service at such a time. Thank you!!

We lost my sister unexpectedly. We have never planned a funeral before. They was beyond helpful,…read moregenerous and kind during this process. My sister looked peaceful for her viewing. The staff was incredibly kind and considerate. They make you feel like you are home. I needed that in my time of need. Thank you so much. I would recommend them in your time of need. Also the pricing is way cheaper than others and you get that family feeling.

Donna is one of the most genuine people I have ever met. You can tell from the moment you come in…read morecontact with her, you and your family will be taken care of. I would recommend her to anyone in need of her services!

Rest Haven is the nicest cemetery in West Des Moines and Des Moines Iowa. I go through RestHaven…read morecemetery to look at the swans and I always see Clark Shockley. He is the nicest person always asking me if there's anything he can do or help me with. I really enjoy his company and the beautiful cemetery thank you so much Bernice Thomas.

I am in Arizona and was long distance arranging a burial (inurnment) and graveside service for my…read morefather. I would like to thank Mates, Scott and MaryAnn for their help in making this a seamless and peaceful process. They were all wonderful via phone and in person. Very caring and professional. I very highly recommend McLaren's. Much of my family rests there in their wonderful care.

It's not what you think! I was privileged to get a tour of…read morethis wonderful establishment. I did come to this funeral home at one time in the past. A family friend passed. His visitation here was amazing. He had a love for Maid-rite sandwiches and I remember they had Maid-rite cater in. The large building was packed full of people there to pay their respects. However, today, was a guided tour. Robin who is a funeral director met with us in the lobby. She gave us the history on this building many of you pass everyday going downtown. It used to be two homes and when it was converted into one they left the fountain and very nice décor right in the center to have as a great atmosphere as you come in. Also set up in that area was some memories of a service that was to take place later. There was a lot of time and effort put into putting this They had a serving bar with coffee and some delicious cookies. We started the tour by looking in the big visiting/viewing room. Room for lots of people/chairs. We made our way into another type of viewing room. This one was more of a parlor style. Couches and chairs for intimate meeting or group. The room was very pretty and comfy. After going over more about the funeral home and the history of Dunns we made our way upstairs. We stopped midway to be shown copies of paintings done by Grant Wood for the Dunn family. I thought this was really cool and will look for these the next time I am at the DSM Art Museum. We made our way upstairs to where they keep coffin, urns and vault selections. This was really cool that they had all these options in house and are apparently the only one in their branch that does. I was in awe of the options you can get with cremation. There can even be jewelry for the family after the person is taken care of. She spoke of lots of options for all people and religions. She talked about how lots more people now are taking care of their arrangments before that day comes so the family does not have to worry about things. Speaking of taken care of, from there we moved to the room where embalming and caring for your loved one happens. It was really interesting and everything was really clean. The last stop of the tour was downstairs of the building. They have a crematory on site. She explained that it is set up that family can be present or even start the process if their beliefs need it. With all the information she provided I think what stuck the most was how much they will accommodate and help the family through this process. I left the tour feeling that this location would really bend over backwards to help a family through this tough times. I would really recommend them. I hope I would not need to use them but if I did, I would choose them. Thank you for the great tour. I learned a lot.

Dunn's recently handled my mother's funeral. I was so impressed with every aspect. Randy handled…read moreeverything beautifully taking so much of the burden off me. Every part of the funeral was perfect. I can't say how much it means during a difficult time.

Blair and Alex were professional, knowledgeable, and went above and beyond when my brother passed…read moreaway unexpectedly. They handled my brother with care and respect. They were a great resource for my family to lean on doing this terrible time. Blair, Alex, and their team helped make the process as seamless as possible.

I wanted information on replacing a monument with a new one and never got a response. I was in…read moreIowa and wanted to see what the cost would be since I my sister died and I wanted to place her remains in the Peoples Township Cemetery in Boone County. I thought it might not be a location the Winterset Memorials would service??

Sometimes you meet the absolute best when life is at its absolute worst…read more Before I get into specifics, I'd like to say that this company is top-notch. From their showroom reps to the their behind the scenes artists, craftspeople and installers. And I don't pay this compliment lightly. I am a very particular person with high expectations. These folks knocked it out of the park. Every single step of this project was met with the utmost patience, care and professionalism. I never felt I was imposing when I asked questions or made requests. And no request was too big. In fact, one of my design asks lead to a road block. They could have easily let the situation ride, and that would have been the end of that. But they didn't. Instead, they came up with a very creative solution. The end result? Spectacular. Creating a forever tribute was extremely difficult for me. I had already faced too many end of life realities; made too many decisions that no one should have to make. And I was ... weary. To make the situation even more daunting, I knew I had to get this right the first time. Mistakes in stone are permanent. I searched both the internet and local cemeteries for inspiration, but nothing stood out to me. I worried I was going to have to settle for ordinary. Discouraged, I visited the showroom of Des Moines - Winterset Memorials on University, a business I have passed by a million times; always with a glance, but never a need ... until now. With low expectations, I passed through their trademark front yard cemetery and entered their showroom. Within moments I was standing in front of what would become the gravestone I was searching for. I could not believe they had what I was unable to locate online or spot in the wild. I began to feel hopeful. With the floor manager's help, I made an appointment to meet with a rep, and returned a couple of days later to discuss the stone. That's when I met Tony, Des Moines - Winterset Memorials' sales representative extraordinaire. From moment one I knew I was in the right place and in excellent hands. Tony explained where and how the stone was quarried, shaped and polished, as well as the technique the artisans used to create the beautiful, three-dimensional detailing. From there Tony invited me into a comfortable meeting room where we discussed the memorial details: the words and imagery that would adorn the stone forever. This creative phase had its own unique challenges and ultimately took weeks to finalize, not because of Tony, but because of me. And the man has the patience of a saint. Not only did I have more words than a gravestone could possibly hold, I wanted to incorporate design images from my deceased grandparent's gravestone that was made 50+ years prior. And this is where Team Tony really excelled. While I worked on whittling down the pros to a more realistic count, Tony; unbeknownst to me, visited the family grave and literally traced the images from the 50 year old gravestone, which he turned over to the graphic designers to use as a template for the new stone. To say that I was touched that Tony did this is an understatement. The Big Reveal A couple of weeks later I received an email from Tony. The stone was complete. In fact, the stone was installed. After almost five years of plotting, planning and postponing, this project; this chapter, was coming to an end. I was a wreck. As I stood in front of my mother's grave, I was dumbfounded. The headstone was ... perfection. It was everything I had hoped it would be and more. I was so taken seeing my mother's headstone for the first time, I actually felt joy; an emotion I had not associated with this unbearable loss until that very moment. I smiled from ear to ear. And I marveled at the exquisite reproductions made from the old gravestone to the new, thanks to Tony and his tracing paper. I am proud of this accomplishment. I am beyond grateful to Team Tony and Des Moines - Winterset Memorials for their outstanding craftsmanship and their kind and thoughtful hearts.

Compassionate and very nice folks that helped me with my Son's passing needs. I would recommend…read morethem. Reasonable price as well

In a hard time Celebration of Life helped answer every question and made the process as easy as it…read morepossibly could be. The care they gave after our loved one passed was very comforting.

Being a fourth generation funeral director myself, I know what it takes to comfort a family…read more Debra's knows more! Lol Her concept of not building a Taj Mahal and have a fleet of cars is what Ankeny and the surrounding communities need.. This concept of using the community resources helps everyone out. Not only cost effective but she keeps the service standards high! Funeral Service is about helping and directing people at a time when a person needs a complete stranger to guide them. Debra will take good care of you and your loved one!

We had to drive from California to Iowa, and as we were driving through and I pulled up mortuaries…read more This one was the first to show up. I am so thankful that we stopped for a beautiful experience. Debbora is an angel sent from the gods to help people that are so lost. Even after all was said and done, and we were back in California, she was still willing to lend her help. I can not say thank you enough for your help and kindness.