Yearly update

My family cemetery is tiny, with only 24 residents. Most are married couples, and the rest are young adults & children who passed away & a farm hand. I was not familiar with a lot of them. The first thing I did was try to locate the living descendants to explain the 2-year project & to see if anyone wanted to help. I also wanted to learn about each of them buried there. I spent A LOT of time on this and did not keep track of it. If I had to guess, maybe 100+hrs. I did find a distant cousin who lives up north. He has done extensive research on the Carvers. I also contacted two other distant cousins; one used to mow the cemetery when she visited her grandmother. She remembers the lilies when they would bloom. While researching, I stumbled across one of my GG grandmother's sisters. This led to Kathy Ann Reid, who introduced my family to Julie. We are distant cousins!

Lamar Street looking south from Pacific. (1902).jpg

jefferson dagnalssaloon deepellum 1906.jpg

I wanted to learn all about the Carvers that were buried in the cemetery. I knew nothing about them. I slowly built my Carver tree. Albert & Mary had five boys who grew up to be farmers. I was curious about how life was back in the day. I had already researched my mother’s side of the family & learned a lot. My mom's great-granddad, John Calhoun West, was the last Cherokee light horsemen in Oklahoma. He was the chief of police for the Cherokee. He and his brother Frank dealt w/Sam & Belle Starr and other gangsters. Frank and Sam both killed each other in a shoot-out. John’s cemetery only has five people & is hidden adjacent to his old homestead. So, knowing that information, I was curious about researching the Carvers and how they lived. I grew up learning the story of Moses Carver (Albert’s uncle) & George W. Carver, the scientist. I did not know much about Albert & Mary. Albert & Mary were my great-great-grandparents, and George & Josephine are my great-grandparents (all buried there). The death certificates told me about how they died. The census reports enlightened me with a lot of information. I found out who was living at the family farm, who was a farmer, etc. I shared what I found with my dad and asked him questions. He learned a bit from my research. We didn’t have any pictures of that side of the family. My dad has shared stories about the farm and my uncle Dick. The farm was located around the corner from the cemetery. My granny grew up on the farm that my uncle Dick ended up taking over after their dad passed. I have been trying to find old pictures. I also wanted to find maps of that area of those times. I was able to find a few. Some maps show other Carvers, Glover & Beeman (both with CLM), and prominent pioneers. I still want to find out what the area looked like before the City of Dallas rudely decided to put an intersection right there. Abraham Carver, Albert’s uncle, had land adjacent to Albert’s land. He also has a cemetery tucked away in a quiet neighborhood. The city made his cemetery a park with trash cans and picnic tables. We have a little resentment that Albert did not get the same.

My cemetery has a reputation for always looking bad. We have had seven hit-and-runs over the years. My parents repaired the first damage, which cost them a lot of money. They do not have the money to repair or replace the fence repeatedly. My parents have been paying to have the lot mowed for years. Several years ago, my parents contacted the City of Dallas to get them to help maintain the property, but they declined. The area is always filled with litter, and there are no trash cans. There have been numerous hit-and-runs over the years. The rod iron fence keeps getting mangled more and more. The best thing to do is to add boulders in the critical areas and move the wall back behind the boulders so the fence cannot be damaged. We want to protect the area from any future wrecks. Once we get the boulders in place, I can plant native plants around them. We would love to beautify the corner and let the community help us create a green space anyone can enjoy.

The latest hit-and-run was in August. I contacted the City Council in District 5 to inquire when the repair would be done on the newest wreck. Bart Poche’ wrote me & shared a concern about the damage. Julie & I met him and Amber Robles at the cemetery to discuss an action plan for the repair and options to add boulders in the area. They were also willing to share resources and help us navigate toward getting a trashcan, assist with the police cameras, and do a few other things. They both do much for the community and were interested in learning more about the new CLM 4-H program. Bart has already taken care of the guardrail and sent me pictures. They had a random boulder that they also added. I have some photos below of the new guardrail. I plan to purchase boulders for this area in the first week of January.

Previous wrecks…

Throughout the year, I noticed each cemetery had its challenges. Ours are the ongoing hit-and-runs and litter. The hit-and-runs are out of control. Pictures of the latest wreck are below.

Mapped out plans to transition parts of the cemetery. The graves are in the corner of where all the trees are located. I met with an CLM plant expert to get information on what are invasive and what to keep. We established a game plan to start planting in the fall vs. the hot summer. We continued to convert the headstone area from weeds to mulch. I also began a legend of where each headstone is placed.

Each cemetery was given a small metal CLM sign to put in the entrance stating that it was part of the program. Since my cemetery is at a busy intersection, I had 2 4 x 8 banner signs made(one has already been stolen). I also purchased more metal signs stating the “no mow” areas and “feeding the bees”, etc. We have a few volunteers who have mowed the area in the past, so I wanted to ensure I had ample signing not to mow. I was also able to make copies and laminate them. I also had another banner made to recap the statement on the Historical Marker. The marker is hard to find and rarely read. I will place that in better sight. My original goal by the end of summer was to have purchased boulders and have those placed. The rod iron fence in the critical areas (behind the boulders) will need to be replaced, and the fence line will need to be moved back 2-3’. We will be in limbo once the boulders are placed until we raise money to build the new part of the fence. I want to put some non-dig ranch-style fence sections behind the boulders temporarily. A temporary fence is needed to keep the excessive litter out and keep pedestrians outside the perimeter. I have those sections mostly built and ready to go.

I had been by the cemetery a few times and never paid attention to all the storefronts. I never knew what the Inspired Compassion Center was. Once I began working on the cemetery, I found out it was a food bank with many different resources for the community of that zip code. I introduced myself by email and explained what I would be involved with. A few months later, the cemetery was vandalized, and the headstone was crammed in the front door of the Compassion Center. They notified me, and I was able to meet them when I retrieved the headstone. I met Pastor Karen, her daughter Teadran, and her son Trevelan. I was genuinely amazed at what this family was doing. https://www.ivcompassion.org/.

One of the requirements of the CLM project is getting involved with the community. We were able to partner with the Compassion Center for the 4H program. Classes will be held at the center, and then the kids will experience the 2nd part of the class at the cemetery. My continued goal is to keep adding birdhouses, feeders, bug hotels, etc. I had built a cabinet-type structure to hold trash bags and extra bird food. It was stolen, and I will replace it and secure the next one better. This allows anyone to pick up trash or feed the birds.

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3 hours. + Researching prospects for grants and local businesses to help with fencing, mulch, tree trimming, and community volunteers. I researched zip code 75207 on FB to follow local community opportunities. Also, I reached out to each non-profit I found to introduce the CLM project. Searched on FB for any page about pollination & gardening.

4-5 hours of community mapping for future volunteer needs. Also, emailing all large businesses for involvement and/or donations.

35 hrs. for the survey. Training and input included.

· 50 hrs. maintaining trash removal, tree limbs, and other fallen branches. Also, placement of bird houses, feeders and tree faces. It is guaranteed there will always be trash to pick up. The city placed a trashcan at the entrance, and it was only there for 2 days! I have requested another trashcan and will be locking it to the fence. My truck’s cab is complete with “cemetery” buckets, and the bed always has a load of mulch, cart, and other tools. Each trip, I spend a few hours picking up mulch, usually loading it myself, rounding up the tools, and loading it into a truck. The bed is generally filled with branches and trash after each visit. I am unsure of bulk pickup at the cemetery, so I bring all the garbage and branches home. Viki drives the van with items that won’t fit into the truck. I bring a table and chairs when we do the flora and fauna surveys. We have met a gentleman, Adam, who has shown up occasionally to help with trash pickup and mowing.

On one of the first trips to the cemetery, I met Ken Winn. He is the King of volunteering!! He has also maintained the trash at the cemetery. He is so well known that he has been on several tv news programs. He is also a Dallas Policeman volunteer. He is known for keeping PG beautiful. He is an 80-year-old volunteer who is on a mission to help with the litter issue. He also retrieves abandoned shopping carts (some out of the creek), and he hauls them on his trailer and takes them to his shop and repairs them. Once they are ready, he returns them to the Compassion Center.

50 hrs. maintaining trash removal, tree limbs, and other fallen branches. Also, placement of bird houses, feeders and tree faces. It is guaranteed there will always be trash to pick up. The city placed a trashcan at the entrance, and it was only there for 2 days! I have requested another trashcan and will be locking it to the fence. My truck’s cab is complete with “cemetery” buckets, and the bed always has a load of mulch, cart, and other tools. Each trip, I spend a few hours picking up mulch, usually loading it myself, rounding up the tools, and loading it into a truck. The bed is generally filled with branches and trash after each visit. I am unsure of bulk pickup at the cemetery, so I bring all the garbage and branches home. Viki drives the van with items that won’t fit into the truck. I bring a table and chairs when we do the flora and fauna surveys. We have met a gentleman, Adam, who has shown up occasionally to help with trash pickup and mowing.

2 hrs. meeting with w/expert to get educated on invasive ideas for the prairie land and also when to plant natives and the type of plants in each area. Water is not located on the property, so planting was not encouraged until the fall.
50 hrs. volunteer hours transforming the headstone area to mulch.
4 hrs. removal of invasive plants.
12 hrs. of weed whacking and mowing path areas.
3 hrs. researching wrecks and vandalism. Trying to navigate city cameras. Reporting to police and City Council. Meeting w/City Council for an action plan on future protection for hit and runs.
60+ hours spent purchasing supplies for making a temporary fence, bird feeding kiosk (that has already been stolen), birdhouses, bird feeders, and a picnic table for seating. I also purchased and picked up bricks to make a bench for seating and a birdbath. Purchased a large spindle & created a picnic-type table. Painted 4x4 sign of Woodsey, the Owl.

4 hrs. researching boulders and visiting several rock quarries. Marked around the perimeter where each boulder needed placement.
3 hrs. repairing headstones damaged by hit-and-runs. I began cleaning headstones on the North side of the cemetery. We have one more to repair.
Learned how to map each headstone w/gps on Find a grave. Thank you Tom White for teaching me😊 He also found four names that were not in our cemetery. He reported the error and had them update it.
Mowed & mapped out areas for preparation of creating a wildflower area. The rain kept me from moving forward w/the area. We will need to start from scratch getting area ready for seeds.

· Upcoming plans:

·Sense of urgency for placement of boulders in critical areas of hit and runs. We successfully got District 5 w/the City Council to get the guardrail replaced. Add landscape fabric to fence line (where boulders will be placed).

Get the trees professionally trimmed.
Get bids on fence repair.

· Continue to create an area for seeding wildflowers and creating pathways to the headstone and open area of the cemetery.

Create pathways
add solar motion lights and solar camera.

· Continue to create a kid-friendly area with seating and educational opportunities. We have already placed bilingual signs to educate the community on the bullet points of Native plants and pollination.

· Create a bug hotel (out of bricks and other debris) that is under the bee houses.

· Remake a cabinet & secure it better (to house trash bags, gloves, and bird food) . We have several bird feeders that anyone can feed using the volunteer kiosk. I also need a larger container to hold more bird food.

· We need benches added. Since theft is an issue, we will secure the reclaimed picnic table. Another bench will be added out of wood and bricks (hopefully, theft-proof).

· Research watering options going forward.

· Map out each headstone and placement and create a legend. Create qr code for each headstone. https://lifesqr.com/

· Plant another tree in the cemetery field to create more shade. We need more shade (other than over the headstones) to create a separate shade area.