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Dear Editor:

My name is Georgia Brownlee Trepanier. My family moved to Bainbridge in 1962-63 where mv Father bought the Glass shop in town and named it Brownlee Glass Co. My Dad died in November 2001 and my Mom died in December 2013. Both are buried at Roselawn Memory Garden Cemetery on Hwy 84 in Bainbridge. When Dad died, the cemetery was in pretty good shape. The last 10 or so years the cemetery conditions have been going downhill. It is progressively getting worse. Something needs to change.

I went out to put flowers on my parents grave a couple of days ago. There was dirt and grass covering most of my Dad’s side of the tomb stone and plaque. I emptied out the vase which was full of water, put new flowers in the vase, cleaned up the stone and plaque best I could and went back the next day with a hoe, rake, broom, Windex and paper towels.

While out there I looked at some of the grave sites that were in disarray. Grass is growing up and across some of the stones. Ant beds are piled up against some including a tree that has been cut down and the stump is covered by an ant bed. The plants around the center of Jesus, which is in the center of the cemetery are mostly dead. There are a few long vines as well. The stone walk way, which runs in four directions from the center has grass growing in between the stones. There was a small pan of water by a grave that was filled with worms and an ant bed. I took 14 pictures of the things I saw and listed above.

I called two different funeral homes in town and got the name of the owner who is Don Glenn and his daughter Felicia Glenn. I spoke to Felicia this week and sent her the pictures that I took. She told me they had only had the cemetery for two years, and she was working on it. The only thing I see being done is the grass is being cut. There was no evidence of edging of the tomb stones. The dead shrubs have not been pulled up nor new plants added around the statue of Jesus. The cobblestone type walkways, going north, south, east and west of Jesus, are in shambles.

Please ride through Roselawn Memory Garden Cemetery on Hwy. 84, just past the college on the right hand side of the road. If you see anything that you think needs to be fixed or done, please notify the owner and or his daughter who is supposed to be taking care of it.

I can be reached on Facebook, as well, at Georgia Trepanier in Bainbridge.

Please help me make this a community effort to see that our loved ones have a nice place for eternal rest. 

Sincerely,

Georgia B. Trepanier