Van Der Weide’s Glass & Mirror: a family business serving Lansing families through changing times

LANSING, Ill. (June 27, 2024) – For about 80 years now, the Van Der Weide name has had a presence in downtown Lansing.

And Gail Steglich is keeping that tradition alive, although she said family would like to see the hard-working 85-year-old retire.

Even a broken leg that occurred a year and a half ago and sidelined her for three months could not stop Steglich from continuing to run Van Der Weide’s Glass & Mirror Co., which she purchased in 1975 with her late husband, Earl.

Founded in 1945 by Herman Van Der Weide

“The store has been in business since 1945,” Steglich said. That’s when Mr. (Herman) Van Der Weide opened up the store down the street.”

She said it was in the space at 3306 Ridge Rd. that is now home to Gayety’s Chocolates & Ice Cream.

“It was a paint store then,” Steglich said.

Steglich said Van Der Weide stayed on for a whole year until she and Earl learned the business.

“I did love mixing the paint,” Steglich said.

But about 20 years ago the couple moved the store just a little bit east down Ridge Road and into the small space where it remains today at 18158 Henry St.

The store no longer sells paint, but continues to offer a wide variety of other services.

Window glass, furniture glass, and screens

“We do all residential glass work and commercial,” Steglich said.

The store does not replace windows.

“We don’t put in new frames,” Steglich said. “We replace all of the glass in windows.” They can also make or repair screens.

The store can replace or repair glass on furniture tops, medicine cabinets, etc., but does not do auto glass.

Framing at Van Der Weide’s

Kelsey Thomas does custom picture framing for the store. She was brought on when a former longtime framer decided to move out of state.

Steglich said, “I went to TF South and asked the art teacher if there’s anyone there that they thought could do framing, and they sent me Kelsey.”

Thomas’s tenure with the store has lasted 19 years and counting. She can frame anything a customer might want framed.

“Mostly it’s pictures and wedding invitations,” Steglich said. “We do papal blessings.”

A customer recently had framed a jersey autographed by the late, legendary Chicago Bears linebacker Dick Butkus.

“It’s fun seeing all the different stuff that comes in, the different things you can manage to do with it,” Thomas said.

The old location had a framing section three times as large as the current store.

“Young people don’t have pictures framed anymore,” Steglich said.

Still a family business

Although Earl passed away 12 years ago, the store is still very much a family operation.

Alex Hallow, Steglich’s grandson, does the glasswork while Steglich runs the store, does the ordering and figures out the estimates with her trusty old-school calculator.

Steglich said the store on Henry St., located across a parking lot from the Fox Pointe concert venue, “has been a hundred things” and that people still bring in shoes for repair from when the store provided a different service.

“One guy came in with a pair of boots,” Steglich said. “He says, ‘well, maybe I’ll have my boots framed, that would be a good idea.'”

Steglich said she believes its reputation is the thing that has kept the store in business so long and said they try to give personal attention to customers, many who know Gail by her first name.

“We give a good service,” Steglich said. “We do professional work on whatever we do.”

Van Der Weide’s can be reached at (708) 474-0049. Store hours are listed as:

• Sunday (closed)
• Monday (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
• Tuesday (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
• Wednesday (closed)
• Thursday (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
• Friday (10 a.m. to 2 p.m.)
• Saturday (10 a.m. to 2 p.m.)

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