Oct. 31—HENDERSON — Eakes Funeral Home's locations in Oxford and Creedmoor are getting a new name after a sale that closed last Friday.
John Sossamon, owner of Henderson's Sossamon Funeral Home, bought the two properties in Granville County. As he and his family live in Oxford, an expansion to a nearby area "made sense," he said.
On top of that, he had been "wanting to expand," and the previous owners, siblings Charles Daniel and Liam Cox, were "wanting to sell," Sossamon said.
The purchase was something I've been wanting to do and the timing was just right," Sossamon said.
Both Eakes funeral homes have been renamed to Sossamon Funeral Home, with the signs switched out already. The location at 106 Clement Ave. in Oxford is getting a facelift in the form of a new paint job.
That's about the extent of the changes Sossamon is making to the two locations.
All four currently hired staff members — Jenny Reed, Hubert Cox and Huey and Debra Thomerson — will remain, Sossamon said. All pre-needs and pre-arrangements will be honored.
Going forward, he plans to "co-mingle" the Henderson and Oxford staff.
"I intend to stay local and provide the good services Eakes has provided," Sossamon said.