Some Trustee's understand that someone with little or no experience in this
field of work can do more harm than good.Even a well funded project without
the proper planning can do irreversible damage to the historical integrity
of the burial ground.
Good intentions is not always good .
Training workshops for volunteers can help keep costs down and as much work
in-house as possible.Workshops ( or one extended workshop) can train
volunteers in skills necessary for such tasks as
mapping,documentation,surveying,photographing markers,site maintenance,stone
resetting,and stone cleaning.A training workshop gives individuals the
opportunity to gain experience in identifying problems they may encounter
and hands on experience in arriving at correct solutions.Sometimes the most
valuable lesson is a clear understanding of what is best left to experienced
professionals.
I think Trustees should be cautious about who wants to work on restoring the
cemeteries in his or her control.I know of one Trustee that was pushed into
doing something with one of his cemeteries
and spent $10,000. He ask me to look at it and I was shocked, tombstones
were moved about ,stuck in tight rows of their own fashion and yes sunk down
in concrete .The worse case I have seen.They did more damage than vandals
could do .
Let us give the Trustee a break here,some may just want to see things done
right.
Walt