Staff
Chris Stewart
Chris A. Stewart serves as president, general manager and funeral director in charge of Stewart Family Funeral Home. He earned a Bachelor's Degree in Management from Stephen F. Austin State University in 1983. While at SFA, he was a four year letterman and captain of the football team. In his senior year, he was presented with the Mart Crawford Award for Character, Discipline and Leadership. Chris graduated from the Dallas Institute of Funeral Service in 2000. Prior to joining his father in developing Stewart Family Funeral Home, he served as general manager of Cathedral in the Pines Cemetery. He has more than 14 years of helping others in the funeral service industry.
Chris is a member of the Stephen F. Austin State University Alumni Club and an active member of the Tyler Chamber of Commerce. He also serves as president of the East Texas Funeral Directors Association and as a board member of the Tyler Better Business Bureau. Chris and his wife Carole have been married for 14 years and have a daughter, Samantha, and a son, Peyton. Carole is an educator who continues to teach part time and serves along with Chris in the children's ministry at Green Acres Baptist Church in Tyler.
Johnnie Stewart
Johnnie Stewart serves as vice president and senior consultant for Stewart Family Funeral Home. He has been helping families in the Tyler area for more than 50 years and previously was part owner and manager of Lloyd James Funeral Home in Tyler. Under his guidance, Lloyd James became the largest and most prestigious funeral home in East Texas. The firm was purchased in 1992 by a large international funeral service consolidator. Johnnie remained as president and CEO until 1998.
He attended Tyler High School, Tyler Junior College and Landig College of Mortuary Service in Houston. Johnnie is past president of the Tyler Parks Board and past distinguished president of the Optimist Club of Tyler. He has also served numerous funeral home professional organizations. Johnnie is a member of Green Acres Baptist Church, Rotary Club of Tyler and Hollytree Country Club. He has been married to Martha Foshee Stewart for 54 years and they have four children and five grandchildren.
Don McElroy
Don McElroy serves Stewart Family Funeral Home as senior funeral director. Don started in the funeral home business in Alice, Texas as an ambulance driver for his family's funeral home while attending high school. He is a graduate of the Dallas Institute of Mortuary Science. After two years working for a Dallas funeral home, he was drafted and spent two years in Germany in the Army Mortuary Service.
In 1972, Don founded the American Mortuary Service to meet a growing need to provide embalming services to area funeral homes. He sold that business in 2000 and moved to the Philippines where he taught mortuary science. He moved back to the Dallas area in 2002 and shortly thereafter came to East Texas.
While working in the Dallas area, Don found himself providing mortuary services after several historic events. Those included the death of President John F. Kennedy, the private plane crash that killed singer Ricky Nelson, the 1985 crash of Delta Flight 191 at DFW Airport that killed 137 people, and the Branch Davidian fire in Waco.
Don and his wife, Rita, have been married for 24 years. They have one daughter and two grandsons.
Ryan Allen
Ryan D. Allen grew up around funeral service with his father and uncles serving as funeral directors. Ryan graduated from L.D. Bell High School in Hurst, Texas and went on to graduate from the Dallas Institute of Funeral Service in 1996, where he served as sergeant at arms of his class.
Ryan has been employed as a funeral director and embalmer in Henderson, Victoria, and Athens before moving to Tyler in July 2006. He has served families in East Texas for over 10 years. He has been active in the Kiwanis Club and the United Methodist Men's Organization. He currently serves as Vice President of the East Texas Funeral Directors Association and is on the Executive Board of the Texas Funeral Directors Association.
Ryan is a single dad whose son, Brody, attends Hubbard Middle School and enjoys playing soccer. They are members of Lanes Chapel United Methodist Church. Ryan enjoys spending time with his family, all outdoor sports and is an avid golfer.
Robert Dublin
Robert Dublin was born and raised in Jacksonville and began in the funeral industry in 1972. He graduated from the Dallas Institute of Mortuary Sciences in 1977. Robert served families in the Jacksonville area before moving to Carthage in 1999 where he managed a funeral home. He later moved to Whitesboro where he was FDIC and general manager for three area firms in that region.
Robert, his wife, Tina, and 11 year-old daughter, Makayla, moved home to East Texas in 2009 to be closer to their families. Robert now serves Stewart Family Funeral Home as a funeral director and embalmer.
The Dublin family lives in Bullard where they attend the Bullard Southern Baptist Church. During his time off, Robert enjoys cooking, boating, and spending time with his family.
Charles (Chuck) Hilliard
Charles (Chuck) Hilliard was born and raised in Canton, Texas and is a fourth-generation funeral director. Chuck attended Tyler Junior College and the University of Texas at Arlington. In 1974, he graduated with honors from the Dallas Institute of Mortuary Science, where he served as president of Pi Sigma Eta fraternity.
Chuck has experience as a funeral home owner and manager. He has also worked in retail and the auto industry.
Chuck and his wife, Sharon, have lived in Tyler since 1985 Sharon is employed by Trinity Mother Frances Hospital and they are members of Green Acres Baptist Church. They have two grown children and two grandsons. In his spare time, Chuck enjoys gardening and ranching.
Tim Zumwalt
Tim L. Zumwalt joined Stewart Family Funeral Home in 2007 as a part-time employee and soon discovered how rewarding it is to serve the East Texas Community. He graduated with honors from the Dallas Institute of Mortuary Science, where he served as Chaplain of the fall class of 2010 and of Pi SIGMA ETA fraternity.
Tim was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His family moved to Missouri when Tim was a teenager, and he graduated from Penn Foster High School. Before joining Stewart Family Funeral Home, he worked in the flooring industry for 27 years.
Tim and his wife, Theresa D. Wren Zumwalt, have been married for 24 years and are the proud parents of two daughters, Rachel and Hannah. They are active members of Tyler Gospel Chapel where Tim participates in the Church band. He is also a member of the Lions Club of DIFS. Tim is honored to be able to serve the fine people of East Texas.
Michael Brosang
Michael C. Brosang serves as a licensed funeral director at Stewart Family Funeral Home. He attended the Marine Military Academy in Harlingen his junior and senior year of high school. While at MMA he was "The Cadet of the Month" his first year, captain of the golf team for both years, guide for the drill team, served as staff sergeant as Echo Company's guide his senior year, and was recognized by the United States Marine Corps as a Level LE II.
Michael began working at the age of 18 at Lloyd James Funeral Home with A.C. Smart, Johnnie Stewart and Leonard Rozell. He moved to Birmingham, Alabama where he graduated from Jefferson State University in 1994 and passed the National Board of Funeral Directors Certification in the same year. He was a licensed funeral director in Alabama and Georgia before coming back as a director for Johnnie Stewart at Lloyd James Funeral Home. Michael stepped out of the funeral business to support his wife jointly as owner and operator of the family business known as Brosang's Flowers. Still keeping close ties with Chris and Johnnie Stewart, the opportunity to serve again as a license funeral director developed in the spring of 2011.
Michael has been active with the Tyler Chamber of Commerce and volunteers his time with T.I.S.D. children's fund raisers and Watch Dog for Dads at Andy Woods School. Michael and his wife, Julie, have been married for 18 years and have four boys, Nelson, William, Matthew, and a foster son, Adrian Hampton, who died of a sudden illness at the age of 20 after six years with the Brosangs. Julie still remains the vice president of Brosang's Flowers and serves along with Michael in teaching and facilitating the Newlywed Class at Green Acres Baptist Church. He loves spending time with the boys hunting, playing tennis and playing golf.
Mark Evans
Mark Evans serves as assistant sales manager for advanced planning at Stewart Family Funeral Home. Mark is also involved in aftercare, keeping in touch and meeting the needs of our families after the service.
Mark was born in Flint. He attended Tyler Public Schools and graduated in 1971. He continued his education at Tyler Junior College and the University of Texas at Tyler where he majored in Economics and Finance. He graduated from Southern Methodist University, Southwestern Graduate School of Banking in 1987. Mark went on to have a successful business career in banking, and received the Outstanding Quality Service Award for Bank One Mortgage of Texas in 1996. He retired from banking after 23 years before joining us at Stewart.
Mark and his wife Mary were married in 1976 and have two daughters and five grandchildren. Mark and his family are founding members of St. Mary Magdalene Catholic Church in Flint. In addition to his church, he is active in serving the Knights of Columbus and numerous civic organizations including the Smith County Chapter of the American Red Cross, United Way of Greater Tyler, Texas Society to Prevent Blindness, March of Dimes, East Texas Symphony, and is the program committee chairman for the Flint Cemetery Foundation.
Mark is an avid bowhunter and golfer and cannot pass up attending a basketball game.
Patti Harvey
Patti Harvey has been with Stewart Family Funeral Home since 2007 and serves as administrator. Patti was raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico where she attended the University of New Mexico before moving to Dallas in 1967. She and her family have lived in East Texas since 1977.
Patti and her husband, Dr. Stan Harvey, have been married for 42 years. They have three daughters and six grandchildren and their greatest joy is time spent with their family. In her spare time, Patti enjoys photography and reading.
Patti and Stan are members of Grace Community Church where they serve in the prayer ministry.
Mary Ann Wills
Mary Ann Wills has been with Stewart Family Funeral Home since January 2009 and serves as administrative assistant. MaryAnn was raised in Dallas/ Ft.Worth area. She previously worked as an Operations Manager for Capital One Auto Finance before she and her family moved to Tyler in 2005.
MaryAnn and her husband, Eddie Wills, have been married for 9 years. They have two sons, J.D. Tinsley, 24 and Christian Wills, a second grader at Grace Community School, and one grandson, Jules, a preschooler at Grace Early Education Center. They love spending family time together and entertaining with friends and family. In her spare time, MaryAnn enjoys reading and gathering decorating ideas for her home.
MaryAnn and Eddie are members of First Christian Church where they previously served as deacons, children's ministry, worship committee, chancel choir and praise team.
Paula Allums
Paula Green Allums has been with Stewart Family Funeral Home since April 2011 and serve as administrative assistant. Paula was born and raised in Tyler and graduated from Robert E. Lee High School. She went to work after graduation with her Father in the insurance industry and remained in the insurance industry for thirty years.
Paula has one daughter, Chelsea, who also works and lives in Tyler. Paula enjoys spending time with her friends and family. She also enjoys fishing and watching the Cowboys and Rangers.