Val has served families with steady compassion since becoming a licensed funeral director and embalmer in 1963 — over six decades of dedication. Born in Latvia, his family fled Soviet rule to build a new life in Chicago, where Val later trained at Worsham College of Mortuary Science. After a successful career in manufacturing, he returned to funeral service, joining Symonds-Madison in 2008 because the calling never left him. Val and his wife Ariel have been married more than 60 years and share four children and twelve grandchildren.
