About Us

The Hoffer Wilt Funeral Home was founded as the Jay A. Hoffer Funeral Home in Norvelt, PA in 1952, by Jay A. Hoffer. We are a family-owned funeral home serving Mount Pleasant and the surrounding Westmoreland County communities of Greensburg, Youngwood, Pleasant Unity, Acme, Donegal, Latrobe and more.

We offer a full range of funeral services, including traditional burial, cremation, and memorialization options, all designed to honor your loved one exactly the way your family wants. Whether you're planning ahead or need immediate assistance, our funeral home is here for you. Please don't hesitate to contact us with any questions.

Founder

Jay A. Hoffer, F.D.

1922 - 1992

Our funeral home originally began as a farmhouse on the Fisher Farm, built in 1905. In the 1930s, the property was acquired by the United States government and became part of the Westmoreland Homesteads, later renamed Norvelt, a New Deal-era community built under President Franklin Roosevelt's administration to help local families recover from the collapse of the coal mining industry.

The farmhouse itself served as the construction office for the homestead project, while the surrounding building also served the growing community as a town meeting hall and, briefly, as a post office.

The Hoffer family's roots in Norvelt reach back to this founding era. According to the National Park Service's Historic American Buildings Survey, Wallace Hoffer was among Norvelt's original homesteaders and served as the community's first barber, operating his shop out of the town's Trade Center. His son, Jay A. Hoffer, Sr., grew up in Norvelt as the town took shape around him.

After serving in World War II, Jay Sr. used his GI Bill benefits to attend mortuary school, becoming a licensed funeral director in 1951. In 1952, he opened a funeral home in his hometown of Norvelt, PA. After considering several locations, he purchased the old Fisher farmhouse, the same building that once served as Westmoreland Homesteads' construction office, from Carl Howell. It remains our location today.

By 1962, remodeling and addition projects were completed, adding what is now our main hallway, restrooms, and viewing room, along with a casket selection room, garage, and embalming room on the lower level.

Jay's daughter, Sandra L. Hoffer, earned her funeral director's license in 1983 and worked alongside her father until his death in 1992. Jay's son, Jay Jr., was a licensed funeral director with the business from 1971 until 2014. Over the decades, many other family members have worked in and around the business as well.

In December 2023, Ryan T. Wilt and his family purchased the business. A second-generation funeral director who grew up around the profession, Ryan's own path in funeral service began at 16 years old, working as a door greeter and evening attendant at a funeral home. He later returned to the profession full-time in 2009, attending mortuary school and earning his funeral director's license in 2013. When Ryan began discussing the acquisition with Sandra Hoffer, it simply felt right, and the opportunity to carry on the legacy came together from there.

Ryan and his family now proudly own and operate the business, continuing a tradition of family-owned funeral service in Norvelt for over 70 years.