Businesses can change names, products, owners, and generations over the course of 50 years. Looking back on the history of G. Burns, one thing has remained remarkably consistent through every chapter: the relationships behind the business.

In 2026, we are proud to celebrate 50 years of serving the funeral profession.

Our story reaches back to 1976 and the automotive career of Jack R. “Dick” Hardesty in northwest Ohio. From those early roots through Don and Nancy McClintock and eventually the Bales family, G. Burns has been shaped by people who cared deeply about their work, practical products designed to solve real problems, and friendships that extended far beyond individual orders.

Automotive Roots and a Connection to the Funeral Profession

Long before his work became connected with funeral vehicles, Jack Hardesty had already built an extensive career around automobiles.

Jack and his father operated Hardesty Chevrolet in Spencerville, Ohio, and Jack later operated Jack Hardesty Inc. in Lima, where his automotive interests included imported and sports cars and Toyota. Jack and his wife, Margaret, also built successful Ziebart rustproofing operations.

That experience eventually led Jack deeper into specialty vehicles through The Barron Corporation, including parts, accessories, vehicle modifications, and work connected to the funeral profession.

His place in professional-car history became particularly notable at the end of the 1970s. After Miller-Meteor ceased production, Barron acquired rights to the celebrated Miller-Meteor name. Jack helped carry the name forward into the 1980s, pursuing Cadillac Eldorado-based funeral coach prototypes with support from Lima coachbuilder Bud Bayliff before the Miller-Meteor name rights and related tooling were sold to Collins Industries in 1984.

Although that chapter was relatively brief, Jack's connection to funeral vehicles continued through Barron's parts and accessories business.

And that business would eventually pass not to strangers, but to friends.

Don and Nancy McClintock Build the G. Burns Legacy

In late 1993, Don and Nancy McClintock acquired the Barron funeral-vehicle parts and accessories operation from Jack and Margaret Hardesty.

Under their leadership, the business became G. Burns and entered a new era centered increasingly around the needs of funeral professionals.

For nearly three decades, Don and Nancy became the faces and voices of G. Burns to countless customers across North America.

Don especially enjoyed talking with funeral directors, learning about their businesses, and helping solve problems. Those relationships often lasted far beyond a single order. Even today, we regularly hear from longtime customers who ask about Don or share stories about how much they enjoyed working with Don and Nancy.

That means a great deal to us.

Those relationships became as much a part of G. Burns as the products themselves.

Practical Products That Are Still With Us Today

The McClintock years also brought products that remain at the heart of G. Burns more than three decades later.

In the mid-1990s, Don worked with longtime friend and supplier Mike Bales to develop the removable stainless-steel landau bars that would become one of our signature products. More than 3,100 G. Burns landau bars have since been sold to customers across North America and around the world.

Removable nameplates became another practical solution for funeral homes, providing a way to identify and personalize vehicles without permanent modifications.

Casket slide strips also became an important part of the G. Burns product line. For decades, these systems have provided a simple and economical solution for building and converting casket decks in hearses, first call vans, and memorial transport vehicles.

Landau bars, nameplates, and casket slide systems serve very different purposes, but they share something important: each was created around a practical need faced by funeral professionals.

That approach continues to guide us today.

A Business Passed Between Friends

The working relationship between Don McClintock and Mike Bales eventually grew into a close friendship between the McClintock and Bales families.

Years later, when Don battled cancer and began considering the future of the company he and Nancy had spent decades building, those relationships once again shaped the next chapter of G. Burns.

In 2019, Mike and Sheryl Bales stepped in to continue the business and help preserve the legacy their longtime friends had created.

Their son, Keith, joined them in updating and advancing the company's operations while maintaining the friendly, personal approach to customer service that had long defined G. Burns.

In 2024, Keith became the next generation to lead the family-owned business.

For us, that history matters.

G. Burns has changed hands several times over the course of 50 years, but those transitions have repeatedly happened through relationships between people who already knew the business, trusted one another, and cared about what had been built before them.

We are proud to continue that tradition.

Serving Funeral Professionals Today and Into the Future

Today, G. Burns continues to serve funeral homes with parts and accessories for hearses and other funeral vehicles.

Our offerings include equipment for casket loading and securement, removable landau bars, customized funeral vehicle nameplates, and other practical products designed around the vehicles funeral professionals rely on every day.

The products have evolved. Funeral vehicles have evolved. The people leading G. Burns have changed.

But the purpose behind the business remains remarkably consistent.

We want to provide practical solutions, knowledgeable help, and friendly service that help our customers keep their vehicles and equipment ready to serve the families and communities that depend on them.

Just as importantly, G. Burns remains a small, family-owned Ohio business where our customers can reach real people who know the products, understand the industry, and genuinely want to help.

Thank You for 50 Years

As we celebrate our 50th anniversary, this milestone belongs to far more people than those currently running G. Burns.

It belongs to Jack and Margaret Hardesty, whose automotive experience and entrepreneurial spirit started the journey.

It belongs to Don and Nancy McClintock, whose warmth, creativity, and friendships with customers shaped G. Burns for nearly three decades.

It belongs to Mike and Sheryl Bales, who stepped in when their friends needed them and helped carry the business into another generation.

Most of all, it belongs to the funeral professionals who have trusted G. Burns along the way.

Some of you have known this company for decades. Others may have only recently discovered us. Each of you has played a part in allowing a small Ohio business to continue doing what it has done for 50 years: helping funeral professionals care for the vehicles and equipment they rely on while serving families in their own communities.

Reaching 50 years fills us with tremendous pride, but even more than that, gratitude.

As we look toward the next chapter of G. Burns, our goal remains simple: continue listening, continue finding practical ways to help, and continue building the kind of relationships that have carried this company from one generation to the next.

To every customer, supplier, friend, and funeral professional who has been part of our journey, thank you for 50 years of trust in G. Burns.

With gratitude,

Keith and the G. Burns Family

Built on Friendship: Celebrating 50 Years of G. Burns