This man has only met you once, and wrote you a thank you note to support what you do.
Good for him. Anyone that has worked with you Walt knows the same thing. Too many people
out there with mental issues. Bob
[image: Jonathan Parrish Rivers]
<
https://www.facebook.com/jprancestry>Jonathan
Parrish Rivers <
https://www.facebook.com/jprancestry> 2:44am Apr 3 Hi Walt, I
attended your Oct/Nov (?) 2012 cemetery restoration workshop in Rio Grande, Ohio, at that
family cemetery next to Bob Evans Farm, with my lady, Barbara. We had a really, really
good time, and we enjoyed having the opportunity to learn from you and to get some
hands-on experience of what it feels like to clean a headstone with ammonia and water and
a soft brush.
It was really a spectacular weekend for us all around, and I just wanted to re-connect
with you and thank you.
This afternoon I had the strange experience of having to defend you in one of these
cemetery groups I joined up -- Indiana Cemetery Preservation, I think. I suggested a
member contact you through your website when she was looking for some restoration help in
your state (I'm in Columbus, Ohio). I don't know any cemetery restoration people
personally who I could vouch for, but I gave her your name. The admin of the group,
Catherine Anderson, deleted my comment and deleted the comment thanking me from the person
I was trying to help. There was also another comment from a guy who just said that
you'd get the stones looking really clean. This lady then commented that you use
'destructive' and 'horrible' methods, blah blah blah.
Anyway, I know that cemetery restoration is an art and a craft. I know that there has to
be some destructive element to it if your scraping and adding chemicals and all that.
It's difficult to know what is destructive and what is non-destructive, and it takes
experience, knowledge, and dedication to do the right thing.
I believe that these social networking groups are excellent ways to reach people and to
teach them and show them what can work and what doesn't work.
Encouraging people to learn is very important. Catherine missed an opportunity to explain
why she believes your methods are 'destructive' and 'horrible'.
So, I just want you to know that I appreciate what you've done and what you do, and I
let Catherine Anderson know how I feel about what she said and did.
I've attached some of the photos I snapped at the workshop. Maybe you already have
enough photos, but maybe I happened to capture something that can help you in your work.
If you'd like to use any of these images for your website or other marketing, or
whatever, just let me know. You're welcome to it. I included the before and after
shots of the 'Mary'
headstone that Barbara and I cleaned. I hope the stone still looks as beautiful as it did
when we last saw it.
All the best,
Jonathan Parrish Rivers (and Barbara)