VOLUNTEERS SOUGHT TO CLEAN VETS’ GRAVES
Annual effort organized by Royal Oak Memorial Society
Volunteers are needed to clean military veterans grave sites, an annual effort organized by the Royal Oak Memorial Society.
Carol Hennessey, president of the group, said the COVID-19 pandemic caused the cancellation of last year’s cleanup at Oakview Cemetery.
The cemetery is on Rochester Road, just south of 12 Mile Road in Royal Oak.
Two Saturday cleanups are scheduled for May 8 and May 15.
Veterans’ graves will be cleaned from 10 a.m. to noon, and volunteers need to bring rakes, clippers, gloves, rags and water to Oakview Cemetery.
Tools to clean around headstones are also helpful, such as weed whackers, and brooms or rags to clean off the headstones after removing the grass.
Hennessey said the memorial society is seeking students, scout troops, church groups or anyone who would like to help with the effort.
“This is our 21st year of doing this,” she said. “When we first started we used to only get about six people showing up, but now we 50 or 60” on each Saturday.
Typically, those who volunteer are people who care about veterans, Hennessey added.
“A lot of people bring their children and it teaches them about veterans,” she said. “Often they have relatives who are buried at Oakview Cemetery.”
Volunteers will meet just inside the cemetery past the pond by the American flag before cleaning the grave sites, Hennessey said.
The Royal Oak Memorial Society also puts small U.S. flags on the graves of veterans again this year at 10 a.m. May 29, which is the last Saturday before Memorial Day.
The society supplies the flags. Usually the volunteers put up about 2,500 flags at the cemetery.
Anyone with questions is asked to call 248-543-8420.