Kuhler Funeral Home

Our History

The Kuhler Funeral Home began as the Aaseth Funeral  Home, which was established by Keith and Isobel Aaseth on January 1, 1947.  The business was first located in a large three-story wood frame house located  at 431 Third Street Southwest in Huron.  On February 1, 1954, they opened  their new funeral home, a colonial-style red brick structure at 1360 Dakota  Avenue South, which was then located at the southern edge of Huron.  Keith and Isobel operated an ambulance service in conjunction with the funeral home  until December 31, 1959, at which time they turned over the ambulance service to the Huron Fire  Department.  Between the two of them, Keith and Isobel held the office of  Beadle County Coroner for a total of fourteen years.

On January 1, 1978, George and Deborah Kuhler purchased the Aaseth Funeral Home,  adding their name to the business in 1979. On June 1, 1985, the Kuhlers purchased the Brooks Memorial Chapel of Huron.  Ralph and Anna Marie Brooks had originally  established the Brooks Memorial Chapel in Wolsey in 1961, and had remodeled the  former Grace Episcopal Church building for use as a funeral home in Huron. The  name of the funeral home was changed to the Kuhler Funeral Home in October 1986. The Kuhlers have continued the tradition of family owned  funeral service begun by Keith and Isobel Aaseth and Ralph and Anna Marie  Brooks.

Kuhler Bereavement Services was added in 1985, which  includes community education, continuing care services, and grief and loss  counseling. 

Kuhler Funeral Home has  been certified as a "Pursuit of Excellence" funeral home by the National Funeral Directors Association.  In 2006 they were  honored for their longevity  and consistency in participating in the Pursuit of Excellence program.  The  firm received a Hall of Excellence medal and have their firm's name and location on the official Hall of  Excellence plaque at the National Funeral Directors Association headquarters.  In addition,  the firm is the proud recipient of the Order of Golden Rule's Gold Public  Approval Award. 

Kuhler Funeral Home is  Huron's only independent and entirely locally owned funeral home.  The  funeral home is a member of the National Funeral Directors Association, the  South Dakota Funeral Directors Association, the International Order of the  Golden Rule, and the Funeral Ethics Association.

At an open house Keith and Isobel hosted at the funeral home in 1954, they handed out a booklet with this stated purpose:  “...to give a clearer understanding of our extensive capacity for assuming the responsibility for all funeral arrangements and performing the duties smoothly and faultlessly in a home-like atmosphere.” George and Deb have continued this tradition since 1978.

Over the years the appearance of the funeral home has changed to accommodate the needs of the business. The following are photos from the 1954 booklet and today’s look.

Although the entrance to the funeral home as been moved from the west to the south, the home-like atmosphere that the Aaseths created is still evident at the Kuhler Funeral Home.

The chapel at the Aaseth Funeral Home faced the east and was entered from the northwest corner of the building.  Today’s chapel faces the west, with the entrance from the southeast.  An additional viewing area/chapel overflow is now in the northwest corner of the building where the former entry way was located.

In 1954, this area was considered the family room, which was adjacent to the front of the chapel and had a private entrance.  Today, it is the funeral home’s office and arrangement area and the front of the chapel then is now the entrance to the funeral home.