Since a few years after the Civil War, the custom of cemetery observances of Decoration Day, or Memorial Day, have become traditional across the United States. While Memorial Day has become somewhat a recreational day for some families, with picnics and outdoor cookouts, etc., many of us want to continue the tradition of remembering and honoring our departed loved ones, many of them veterans of our armed services who have served our country across the years, some of them having given their lives in wartime in service to us all.
On Sunday afternoon, May 26, at 2:30, Pea Ridge Cemetery will hold its annual Memorial Service and Meeting of the Cemetery Association. The Rev. Edwin Brewer, pastor of the Assembly of God Church of Pea Ridge, will be the speaker at the Memorial Service. Members of the community are invited to share in this time of remembrance, devotion and patriotic expression.
The memorial service and association meeting are annual events, regularly scheduled to be held on the Sunday immediately before Memorial Day.
For this Memorial Day weekend, members of the Wood-Hall VFW Post 8109 of Pea Ridge will place flags on the graves of all our known veterans of service in the U.S. armed forces. By its name, the local VFW Post memorializes hometown young men who lost their lives while engaged in the struggles of World War II. Nearly 200 veterans are interred in the Pea Ridge Cemetery.
As part of the Memorial Day weekend program, the Cemetery Association holds its annual business meeting. This will be a brief session, with a report on the business of the cemetery for the past year, a financial report and the election of officers and trustees to serve on the Executive Board. Members of families who have family members buried in the Pea Ridge Cemetery are considered to be members of the Cemetery Association.
The Executive Board of the Pea Ridge Cemetery Association is made up of six elected persons, each serving three-year terms.
Each year the terms of two board members expire, and those members need to be re-elected or replaced. When board members find it necessary to resign mid-year, a temporary replacement is appointed by the board to serve for the remainder of the year until election time at the annual meeting in May.
The terms and offices of those currently serving on the Cemetery Association’s Executive Board are: Jerry Nichols, president (2010-2013; Russell Walker, trustee (2010-2013); Janice Bray, trustee (2011-2014);
Nancy Nichols, secretary/treasurer (2011-2014);
Steve Jordan, vice president (2012-2015); and Greg Wilkerson, trustee (2012-2015).
Notably, Russell Walkeris completing his 67th year of service on the Cemetery Board. Mr. Walker began this service to the community soon after the close of World War II, in which he had served with a tank unit. He has been a member of the Cemetery Board since 1946, served as its president for many years, and over a long period has continued to volunteer his time in keeping up the cemetery, and in developing and platting the cemetery expansion south of Hill Lane. He has asked to retire at the completion of his current term. He does so with the great respect of his co-workers on the Cemetery Board. His community-spirited contributions of time, energy and leadership can hardly be sufficiently recognized.
Members of the Cemetery Board anticipate that during the week before Memorial Day, many families will bring flowers to decorate the graves of their loved ones. The mowing season has arrived in earnest, and plans are to mow and trim the cemetery grounds at mid-week.
Families are requested to help refresh and improve the cemetery grounds by removing old, deteriorated flower arrangements. In placing flowers and flower arrangements, it is important that they be placed close by or on the gravestones, since otherwise they can make mowing and trimming difficult, and they sometimes accidentally become entangled in the equipment. The public’s understanding is appreciated also in that other items such as lights, spinners and stands can become problematic, especially if placed in areas which need regular mowing and trimming. Please note that windy weather plays havoc with memorial flower arrangements.
Saddle-type arrangements and others are vulnerable to being blown away if not adequately secured, and cemetery maintenance personnel are often unable to determine where the straying arrangements came from.
Since the recent heavy rains, cemetery personnel are working to stabilize some newer graves which settle significantly, especially after rains. It is expected that these will be in good shape for the Memorial Day weekend. For the week before Memorial Day, the north cemetery gate, which normally is kept closed to prevent cemetery lanes from being used as through streets, will be open to the public.
This will allow access to the cemetery from Greene Street as well as by the Hill Lane entrance from Weston Street, and by the Dodge Street entrance from McCulloch Street.
To inquire about acquiring burial plots, locating graves, reporting problems or for information, call Jerry Nichols at 621-1621 or Steve Jordan at 330-0139.
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Editor’s note: Jerry Nichols, a native of Pea Ridge, is an award-winning columnist, a retired Methodist minister with a passion for history. He is vice president of the Pea Ridge Historical Society. He can be contacted by e-mail at [email protected], or call 621-1621.
Community, Pages 5 on 05/22/2013