K och Funeral Home in 2013 will be celebrating 100 years of dedicated service to the Centre Region and surrounding communities.

Since Harry Newton Koch and his wife Margaret Campbell Koch opened the Koch Funeral Home in State College in 1913, the philosophy has been that of neighbor helping neighbor. Their son, Hubert Campbell Koch a 1930 graduate of The Pennsylvania State University, along with his sister, Esther Koch Shaw, extended the firm's tradition of service throughout the Centre Region.

The elder Kochs brought funeral service from the horse and buggy era of a small college town into the fast-paced world of a bustling university community. Harry Koch added a carriage to a stripped down Model T in 1917, custom made by a local Boalsburg blacksmith. In 1922 a horse drawn carriage was put on a Dodge chassis.

By the 1930’s other changes brought by the motor vehicle were becoming apparent. No longer did people live in big family houses that could accommodate many visitors for a funeral and not everyone had a church or family plot close by. Families had dispersed, people moved and in 1935 Harry Koch, in partnership with his son Hubert answered the need by building a funeral home next to their home, which had served as the funeral home since 1913 on the corner of South Burrowes Street and West College Avenue in downtown State College.

On February 15, 1978 was the ground-breaking ceremony that moved Koch Funeral Home from downtown State College to their new facility that today continues the philosophy of neighbor helping neighbor. Our spacious brick colonial building which includes private parking, provides three visitation rooms that may serve as chapels and other facilities for the comfort of our guests. Our home is situated on two acres southeast of State College on U.S. 322 and is easily accessible to the entire Centre Region and surrounding communities. Year ending 2012 Koch will have 100 years of service in arranging funerals. Today, Glenn Fleming and the staff are proud of the tradition of service they provide. We endeavor to keep current with the needs and wishes of this growing community and its’ people. We accept the challenge to provide the best possible service to those who choose the Koch Funeral Home in their time of need.

Our home is a tribute to the past years of service to the community.

“The experience to serve you better, the compassion to understand your needs.”