Board members are making progress preserving a 127-year-old Hempfield cemetery, but they need help.
A work day at Union Cemetery planned for Saturday should offer visible progress, while many of the other changes made over the last several months have occurred behind the scenes.
“It's just general cleanup,” board member Matthew Schimizzi said. “If anybody wants to donate a couple hours of their time, it would be much appreciated.”
Twelve board members appointed in September by a judge have sought donations and organized voluminous records left behind after a December 2015 court-approved settlement called for First Commonwealth Bank to pay $25,000 and absolving it of managing the property's upkeep.
The group has adopted bylaws and enacted new rules and regulations, but money and volunteer time remains a critical need for the 23-acre burial grounds near Hannastown Golf Club. Saturday's first cleanup day will involve typical maintenance, such as cutting tree limbs and picking up twigs, to make the cemetery look presentable, board member Tom Harrold said.
“The last couple years have been minimal grass cutting,” he said. “We could use all the help we could get there.”
The cemetery was incorporated in 1890 and was managed by First National Bank in Greensburg and, later, First Commonwealth.
In October 2014, First Commonwealth asked a judge to assign care of the cemetery to another entity because there was only about $1,000 left in a trust used to maintain it since 2009. A judge ordered that the bank continue to pay for maintenance until the settlement — some of which has been used for a consultant and maintenance — was reached. Schimizzi, an attorney, had been appointed by the court to represent grave owners and their descendants.
Any debts owed to the cemetery have been forgiven by the board.
“They're uncollectible because they're so old,” Schimizzi said.
A database of those interred at the cemetery and others who own plots is being created from note cards that were used to keep track of interments and sales. Board member Mark Barnhart sent 105 letters seeking donations this month to help, in part, with grass cuttings.
“We have to figure out where we can get some capital,” he said. “We need to get some community involvement.”
Board members will be available at the cemetery Memorial Day weekend.
Renatta Signorini is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach her at 724-837-5374, rsignorini@tribweb.com or via Twitter @byrenatta.
