VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR OUR ADOPT-A-CEMETERY INITIATIVE

2010 EARTH DAY CLEAN UP OF HISTORIC CEMETERY APRIL 25, 2010 Despite the rain, a hardy group of volunteers arrived bright and early at a historic cemetery located a short distance off Nooseneck Hill Road. The cemetery is the burial place for some members of the Matteson family, some of whom were among the earliest settlers of the town. Our enthusiastic volunteers soon had the cemetery cleared of saplings, fallen branches, and briars and will return soon to finish the job. We all left the cemetery feeling good about our accomplishments.

The trustees of the West Greenwich Land Trust (WGLT) are pleased and excited about initiating a new project – Adopt-A-Cemetery.

The town has approximately 150 recorded cemeteries. Many of these historic cemeteries are located in the woods and not easily found while others are visible from the roads. Most of these cemeteries are family burial lots with stones dating from the 1700's and 1800's. The inscriptions on the stones have been recorded in most cases; some of the inscriptions have been checked while others still need to be checked.

Many of the cemeteries have suffered from years of neglect and some have been vandalized and even destroyed. Our new Adopt-A-Cemetery Program is designed to preserve and protect this part of our cultural heritage for future generations.

We are looking for volunteers to "adopt" a cemetery. The volunteers will agree to care for a particular cemetery with the support and advice of the WGLT; the care may include clearing brush and weeds from the cemetery, mowing grass, cutting small trees and verifying the inscriptions on the stones.

If you're interested in volunteering for this worthwhile project, please contact Charlene Butler at 397-6517 or ckb39@cox.net.

Charlene and Bob Butler in historic cemetery, with permission of the property owners, in West Greenwich.