Milam County Historical Commission
Milam County, Texas
Milam County, Texas
Milam County Historical Commission
Milam County, Texas
Milam County, Texas
EDITORIAL
Old Cemetery
Volunteers have turned near disaster into showpiece for Rockdale
Mike Brown - Editor
Rockdale Reporter - June 19, 2014
The old saying goes that a volunteer is someone who does for free a job you could never pay them enough to do.
That comes to mind when you look at Rockdale’s Old City Cemetery, on the hill just south of the railroad tracks at the Main Street crossing. Six weeks ago it was a disgrace. Between 50 and 70 cedar trees, or tree-sized limbs, were down, obscuring markers, tipping over markers and in some cases breaking them.
Fences around plots, many of them 80 or 90 years old, were damaged. The scale of the mess made it impossible for city crews to maintain the entire cemetery.
Go look at it today. The trees and limbs are gone, markers have been set upright and given some precursory repairs. It’s been mowed and, more than that, its been loved.
What happened?
Volunteers under the direction and guidance of area resident Jack Brooks, that’s what happened.
Brooks was described as having a “passion” for cemetery restoration at the most recent city council session and that’s on the mark.
RHS students pitched in, under the direction of Denice Doss, as did the Rockdale Historical Society. City crews also assisted in a big way. How refreshing and, perhaps, instructive. Some people saw a problem and instead of turning it over to committees, task forces, focus groups, town halls, new sets of eyes, marketing experts, paradigms, commissions and stakeholders they rolled up their sleeves and fixed it.
Thanks to all of you.
M.B.
.
Old Cemetery
Volunteers have turned near disaster into showpiece for Rockdale
Mike Brown - Editor
Rockdale Reporter - June 19, 2014
The old saying goes that a volunteer is someone who does for free a job you could never pay them enough to do.
That comes to mind when you look at Rockdale’s Old City Cemetery, on the hill just south of the railroad tracks at the Main Street crossing. Six weeks ago it was a disgrace. Between 50 and 70 cedar trees, or tree-sized limbs, were down, obscuring markers, tipping over markers and in some cases breaking them.
Fences around plots, many of them 80 or 90 years old, were damaged. The scale of the mess made it impossible for city crews to maintain the entire cemetery.
Go look at it today. The trees and limbs are gone, markers have been set upright and given some precursory repairs. It’s been mowed and, more than that, its been loved.
What happened?
Volunteers under the direction and guidance of area resident Jack Brooks, that’s what happened.
Brooks was described as having a “passion” for cemetery restoration at the most recent city council session and that’s on the mark.
RHS students pitched in, under the direction of Denice Doss, as did the Rockdale Historical Society. City crews also assisted in a big way. How refreshing and, perhaps, instructive. Some people saw a problem and instead of turning it over to committees, task forces, focus groups, town halls, new sets of eyes, marketing experts, paradigms, commissions and stakeholders they rolled up their sleeves and fixed it.
Thanks to all of you.
M.B.
.
All Credit for this article
goes to Mike Brown
and the
Rockdale Reporter
goes to Mike Brown
and the
Rockdale Reporter