Former funeral home owner finds creative outlet in glass

GEORGETOWN, Ill. -- Kent Leasure was nearly 60 years old and on the verge of retirement when something wonderful happened. He discovered his passion in life -- restoring stained-glass windows.

"I guess I always had the desire to be creative; I just never knew it," said Leasure, 69. "Glass is a creative outlet. It's just a lot of fun.

"Had I known about glass earlier, I'd probably be living in an art colony and have an old Volkswagen with a peace sign on the side and hair down to here," he said, pointing to the middle of his back.

At age 19, Leasure began a career in the funeral business that would span 41 years. When he retired in 1994, he owned the Houghton-Leasure Funeral Home in Georgetown and the Leasure Funeral Home in Ridge Farm.

'They're glad to see me'

While the business was successful, it was never quite fulfilling. By its nature, the work was technical, routine and unimaginative. And when Leasure went to people's homes, it was on somber occasions.

"Now they're glad to see me because I'm bringing glass to them," said Leasure. "It's just a total change of pace."

Leasure and his wife, E.J., run a hobby business, Creative Glass of Georgetown, out of their home. The countertop of their workshop is cluttered with the tools of their trade -- glass cutters, running pliers, soldering irons and old dental picks. The cabinet underneath is filled with sheets of glass -- some in brilliant shades of red and magenta, others with subdued hues of blue and green.

Leasure made his first foray into stained glass the year before he retired. But he only did so at the urging of his wife, who had always been fascinated by it and had begun taking classes in Champaign the year before.

"He always said he didn't have time for it," said E.J.

"But I was always messing with her stuff, so she said I had to go over and learn it," Leasure said, completing his wife's thought.

E.J. took a liking to the copper foil method of assembling stained glass, whereby the edges of the glass pieces are wrapped with a thin strip of copper foil and the copper is then soldered together.

"You can do more delicate work with the copper foil," she said, pointing to several dainty sun catchers she made and hung in the workshop window.

Like all beginning students, Kent Leasure learned the copper foil technique first. But he wasn't hooked until he took a second session and learned what is known as the lead came method.

"Lead came is where it's at," he said of the technique, whereby cut glass is fitted into the grooves of narrow and pliable strips of lead. The glass is held in the grooves with grout, and the lead, which becomes the backbone of the window, is then soldered together.

Now second nature

One of the first large projects the Leasures did called for restoring 29 rectangular windows for their church, the First Church of Christ in Georgetown "for practice." The day those windows went in, the pastor at the time asked them to do the sanctuary windows, as well.

Glass is now second nature for Kent Leasure.

"When I die, I hope people remember me for my glass, not for being a funeral director," he said. "I'm more proud of what I do with glass. It's satisfying to know that when I'm gone, my glass will be there.'