I'll bet he only put in for $250.00. You can get a copy of what he asked for
vs. what he received. In some cases money means that dreaded 4 letter word,
WORK. In other cases, it's just another fund to transfer unused monies from
at the end of the year for that new fire truck, office equipment, etc. A
trustee who wants to maintain a cemetery will find a way, or should. A
trustee who complains about lack of funding should not be a trustee! I'll
quit before I get carried away and start "trustee bashing" again.
Jon Andrews
From: "Tim and Sabrina" <brinatim(a)myexcel.com>
Reply-To: INPCRP-L(a)rootsweb.com
To: INPCRP-L(a)rootsweb.com
Subject: Re: [INPCRP] Abandoned Cemeteries
Date: Tue, 29 Oct 2002 13:47:57 -0500
I checked up on this township's budget for cemetery care. It was $250 a
year for three small abandoned pioneer cemeteries. That is not really
enough money to keep them mowed consistently. Even with that money each
year, he hasn't touched any of those cemeteries (to my knowledge) for
probably over a decade. From my understanding, the Township trustee is the
one who makes up the budget for how much money he will need to care for the
cemeteries that he is in charge of.
On a side note. I think that the law for cemetery care seems kind of
vague.
IC 23-14-69-3
Sec. 3. A township trustee shall care for and maintain each cemetery
to
which this chapter applies that is located in the township, keeping the
cemeteries in a respectable condition by:
(1) destroying detrimental plants (as defined in IC 15-3-4-1),
noxious weeds, and rank vegetation; and
(2) removing all unsightly accumulations and debris
A township trustee could interpret this law generously in his favor. He
could say that he could let the grass grow up three foot high as long as he
doesn't have any detrimental weeds. Now that's not what I think of when I
think of someone keeping up a cemetery. Help me out if I interpreted this
wrong.
http://indianatownshipassoc.org/duties/cemetery.htm
Another Question. About the grants you mentioned and receiving the deed
for
the land that the cemetery is on, is it possible to get that land from the
state after it has been abandoned? What kind of grants do you apply for?
----- Original Message -----
From: <NTFCANNON(a)aol.com>
To: <INPCRP-L(a)rootsweb.com>
Sent: Tuesday, October 29, 2002 8:51 AM
Subject: Re: [INPCRP] Abandoned Cemeteries
> Tim and Sabrina, I am experienced with Township Cemetery funding too.
There
> is not enough money to keep up with the cost. This is true even in large
> Townships with plenty of money coming in. Our Township Board has given
> generously but again, it is not enough. So I have an alternative. We all
have
> alternatives.
> What we did with a cemetery that the owners of are to old to keep up
with
is
> established a nonprofit made up of 3rd and 4th graders from the public
> schools and applied for and received state grants to care for the
graveyard.
> We still have not gotten the deed to the site but the club that holds
the
> deed is very supportive and the children go twice a year on field trips
> teaching respect where other efforts to do so have failed. Once a year
they
> have a "open house " where the public is invited and crews do various
> projects in the cemetery.
> So what we have learned is that "where there is a will there is a way."
> Townships are not the last straw in cemetery preservation and our
community
> is committed to this preservation effort. I pray I have given you some
fresh
> ideas. Good luck in your hometown.
>
>
> NTFCannon(a)Aol.Com (Tom Cannon)
>
>
> ==== INPCRP Mailing List ====
> "Show me your cemeteries, and I will tell you what kind of people you
have."
> Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790)
>
>
==== INPCRP Mailing List ====
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