Staff

Elle Heiligenstein Owner, Funeral Director hoffenfuneralhome@gmail.com

Elle Heiligenstein entered funeral service in 2014 after a twenty-year career as a hair stylist and salon owner.  Drawn to the profession through informal grief counseling with her clients in the salon, she discovered a deep desire to assist people who were grieving the loss of a loved one.  Her first position in funeral service was at John L. Ziegenhein and Sons Funeral Home in St. Louis, Missouri.  Upon graduating from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, with her bachelor’s degree in mortuary science and funeral service, Elle continued to work for Ziegenhein Funeral Home and served her apprenticeship with Metro St. Louis Service Company.  After completing her apprenticeship, Elle joined the staff of Hutchens Funeral Homes as a full-time embalmer.

In October of 2018, Elle joined the staff of Creason Funeral Home as a full-time funeral director and embalmer.  Shortly after joining Creason Funeral Home, Jim and Karen Creason expressed a desire to sell the funeral home to her so that they could enjoy retirement.  In April of 2019, the sale of Creason Funeral Home to Elle and Frank Heiligenstein was completed and in 2020, the name was changed to Hoffen Funeral Home, "Hoffen" means hope in German.  Since purchasing the funeral home Elle and Frank have made several changes to the interior and exterior of the building in order to make it their own and raise it to a modern, comfortable standard.  Community service has always been a priority of Elle and Frank and they continue to serve humanitarian efforts in and around Millstadt both with time and financial gifts.  Some organizations that have benefitted from their service include:  Millstadt VFW Post 7980, Millstadt American Legion, Wounded Warriors Project, Wreaths Across America, The Millstadt Police Department, The Millstadt Fire Department, The Millstadt Chamber of Commerce, The Millstadt Food Pantry, St. James Catholic School, Trinity Lutheran Church, Zion Evangelical Church, Concordia UCC, The Society of St. Vincent de Paul, The Millstadt Senior Center, Belleville Humane Society, Millstadt Public Library, Partners For Pets, Helping Strays, Food Outreach, Millstadt Optimist Club, PFLAG, Sandra M. Bereitschaft Foundation for Meals on Wheels, Equality Illinois, St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital and several others.  

In addition to being a licensed funeral director and embalmer in both Illinois and Missouri, Elle Heiligenstein is a licensed life insurance producer, a certified funeral celebrant and a licensed cosmetologist.  Elle is a prolific needlepointer in her spare time and enjoys watching crime documentaries and game shows while stitching her latest needlepoint canvas and slowly turning her home into the National Needlepoint Museum.  

  Shortly after taking ownership of the funeral home, Elle and Frank were honored with the prestigious designation as a “Golden Rule Funeral Home” which means Hoffen Funeral Home was granted admission into The International Order of The Golden Rule, a group of independently owned funeral homes pledging the highest ethical standards and highest service in the industry.  This was followed by an invitation to join Selected Independent Funeral Homes, making Hoffen Funeral Home the only funeral home within 100 miles to be reconized by both national organizations.