Pearl Eiben Burns, 98, of Marseilles, passed away Friday, October 25, 2024, at LaSalle County Nursing Home.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, November 2 at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church with Fr. Ryan Mattingly officiating. Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m. Friday at Seals-Campbell Funeral Home. Burial will be Riverview Cemetery in Marseilles.
Pearl was born on January 8, 1926, in Campbellsville, KY, to Walter and Lona (Perdue) Higgins. She was the second oldest of nine siblings. In 1944, she graduated from Marseilles High School. On June 29, 1946, she married Paul Eiben of Marseilles. They raised four children together.
Pearl was an accomplished seamstress and a wonderful homemaker, having sewn numerous dresses and coats for her three young daughters, and later for her grandchildren. She was employed at Dan-Jac in Marseilles as a seamstress until she moved to Florida in 1972, where she worked as a CNA giving private care. She loved ballroom dancing and made all of her fancy dancing dresses. It was at the ballroom where she met her future husband, Warren Burns. Pearl enjoyed playing games and was a fierce Scrabble competitor, and she also loved making complicated bets while cheering on her favorite greyhounds at Palm Beach Kennel Club where she was a member for many years.
She is survived by her three daughters, Becky (Jack) Tabor and Sue (Jim) Lowe of Marseilles, and Pauline Roper of St. Pete, FL; one son, Ron (Linda) Eiben of Clearwater, FL; nine grandchildren, Jim (Jody) Lowe, Dave (Monica) Lowe, Phil (Dave) Lowe-Bima, Natalie and Kerri Filjones, Karla (Tom) Stattery, John (Michelle) Tabor, Mary Beth (Mark) Williams, and Chad (Randi) Eiben; 13 great-grandchildren; two step great-grandsons; three great great-grandchildren; two sisters, Anna Swartz and Mid Craven; two brothers, Danny and Rodger Higgins; and a sister-in-law, Delores Eiben.
She was preceded in death by her husbands; three sisters, Esther Huss, Thelma Glenn, and Velma Eiben; one brother, Phil Higgins and a son-in-law, Michael Roper.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a memorial to LaSalle County Nursing Home or the Marseilles Nursing Service.
Seals-Campbell Funeral Home
1009 E. Bluff St., Marseilles, IL 61341 815-795-5151 www.sealscampbell.com