Wilbert Funeral Services, Inc. (WFSI), the leading single-source supplier of burial vaults, cremation-related products and memorialization jewelry, today announced an expanded partnership with Lester Lampert, Chicago?s nationally acclaimed jewelry designer. A key component of the relationship will be a new line of memorialization jewelry by Lampert and designer Monica Lilak that will be marketed to North American funeral homes by Wilbert and its licensee network.
Crafted in sterling silver and other precious metals, many pieces in the line of bracelets, pendants and other jewelry items receive their detail and beauty from the expertise of a master model artist. Lampert?s original models are carved by hand from a block of wax and cast via the lost-wax casting process. Several of the pieces have also been created to hold a small portion of cremated remains.
?Upon the great loss that is felt after the passing of a loved one, jewelry can capture a cherished moment that brings a smile to the face and warmth to the heart,” Lampert said. ?We are honored to enhance our long-standing relationship with Wilbert Funeral Services through this new collection of memorialization jewelry.”
The Lampert family will soon celebrate its 90th year of designing and showcasing jewelry. A fourth-generation, family-run operation, the company?s flagship store is located on Oak Street in downtown Chicago.
The Lampert name is synonymous with quality craftsmanship, exquisite jewelry designs and outstanding customer service. Over the years, Lampert has been approached to create original designs for a host of high-profile clients including Barbara Walters, the late Ann Landers, Mike Ditka, Billie Jean King, Mike Wallace, Diane Sawyer and the late Count Basie.
The company?s many honors include being inducted into the National Jeweler Retailer Hall of Fame in 2000; obtaining composer Andrew Lloyd Webber?s exclusive North American rights to create a jewelry collection for The Phantom of the Opera; and being commissioned by the City of Chicago to design the official gift for Pope John Paul II?s historic visit in 1979. The gift, an 18 karat?gold sculpted paperweight, is now on display in the Vatican Museum.
Lester Lampert was also recently chosen as the primary design house to create a collection of fine gemstone jewelry for a permanent exhibit in Chicago?s Field Museum. The exhibit is scheduled to open in the museum?s newly remodeled Grainger Hall of Gems in fall 2009.
“We are pleased to strengthen our relationship with someone as renowned as Lester Lampert,” said Wilbert Funeral Services, Inc. President Tony Colson. ?The Lester Lampert heirloom jewelry collection represents the lasting connection between a family member and a deceased loved one, which is a bond that continues well beyond our limited time together on earth. We look forward to introducing this magnificent line in late October at the National Funeral Director Association?s convention in Boston.?
Wilbert Funeral Services, Inc. is the leading single-source supplier of burial vaults and cremation-related products and memorialization jewelry to North American funeral homes. From its offices in Broadview, the company licenses the right to manufacture burial vaults under the Wilbert trademark to a network of more than 250 licensees, sub-licensees and distributors throughout the U.S. and Canada.
