Broadcaster Summer 2009

TABLE OF CONTENTS

HELP CELEBRATE NYSAC’s 81 YEARS OF HISTORY click here
2009 PUBLIC AFFAIRS SEMINAR click here
President’s Message click here
Veterans Remembrance Service Held at Kensico Cemetery click here
Award-Winning Veterans Program at Mount Calvary click here
GOVERNMENT & LEGAL AFFAIRS REPORT click here
Special Soldiers Tour Offered at Historic Saint Agnes Cemetery click here
New Feature to Highlight Veteran Section at Resurrection Cemetery click here
METROPOLITAN CEMETERY ASSOCIATION HOLDS ANNUAL SEMINAR AND EXPOSITION click here
A NEW DISCOVERY click here
INSURING HISTORIC PROPERTY – THE RIGHT WAY click here
Evergreens Book Wins Award click here
10 SIMPLE WAYS TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE click here
Matthews Announces “Free” Colors for Memorials click here
Scouts Honor Veterans at Cemetery of the Highlands click here
Saluting the Veteran Heroes of New York’s 71st Regiment National Guard click here

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HELP CELEBRATE NYSAC’s 81 YEARS OF HISTORY
The New York State Association of Cemeteries is pleased to invite you to our 81st Annual Fall Conference to be held September 13 – 16, 2009 at The Sagamore Resort in Bolton Landing, NY.

Our keynote speaker and industry experts will provide a program that you won’t want to miss. The Government and Legal Affairs Committee and the New York State Division of Cemeteries will present information that you need to know! Round table sessions have been scheduled to offer attendees an interactive forum in which to ask questions and voice concerns. Please review our exciting program.
Relax in the natural beauty of the Adirondack Mountains, renew acquaintances, and meet fellow cemeterians and suppliers from across the State and around the region. Take time to enjoy a sightseeing cruise on Lake George, an invigorating bike ride, or a spectacular round of golf with friends from our great Association.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions at 914-478-1855.

Why not return your registration today? I look forward to seeing you at The Sagamore!

Sincerely,
Theresa M Joyce, Conference Chair

P.S. – Sponsors are very important to the success of our conferences and to our ability to keep our registration fees reasonable. If your organization is able to contribute, our Association would be very grateful. Thank you.

Sightseeing and Shopping Excursion- Join us on Monday for a day in Saratoga! A guide will present a historic bus tour of Saratoga along with a stop at Yaddo Gardens. The gardens were given as a gift by Spencer Trask to his wife Katrina, an author and poet. This garden of delight and romance was created based on their trips abroad to Italy, as an expression of their life together. The gardens hold more than just flowers, and include the Yaddo Mansion, a tudor-like castle, Italian marble statues, pools, fountains and a rock garden. You will also enjoy lunch in downtown Saratoga and an afternoon of shopping on Main Street. Don’t forget your walking shoes!

Guest Speaker: Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE - Want to learn how to build your business in an exciting and fun way? Don’t miss Patricia Fripp’s original presentation, “Build Your Business One Story at a Time!” Patricia Fripp is an award-winning speaker, executive speech coach, sales presentation expert and author. She’ll teach cemetery professionals how to use the art of creative story telling to achieve a competitive advantage. Participants will learn how stories can be used to inspire, train, persuade and motivate. Some lucky audience members will be chosen for “mini coaching” sessions but everyone will learn the formulas for story success!

2009 PUBLIC AFFAIRS SEMINAR
By: Jay L. Ivler, Mount Lebanon Cemetery

Over one hundred cemeterians, regulators, suppliers and presenters attended NYSAC’s 32nd Annual Public Affairs Seminar held May 4 – May 5, 2009 in Albany. The seminar opened with a public meeting of the State Cemetery Board followed by a presentation of regulatory issues by Richard Fishman, Director, New York State Division of Cemeteries. An afternoon session titled “A Cemetery Survival Guide, Surviving a Division of Cemeteries Audit” was led by Assistant Director Chet Butkiewicz. First day program presenters also included a report by Frank Giglio, Chairman of the NYSAC Government & Legal Affairs Committee, David Fleming, lobbyist, and a report from Irwin W. Shipper, Chairman, ICCFA Government & Legal Affairs Committee.
Day two included the popular “Ask the Lawyer” sessions with the following group of attorney panelists: Timothy G. Griffin, Richard J. Cea, Raymond Plannell, Frederick W. Turner and Antonio Milillo. The engaging question and answer session with the lawyers and attendees is always interesting and informative.
Thanks to our cemetery sponsors, suppliers Ensure-A-Seal, Matthews International, Merendino Cemetery Care and Regan Agency, Inc., and to all our speakers and attendees for making this seminar a success.
Make plans to attend next year. This conference is a must to keep up to date with industry regulations, pending legislation, and good conversation with fellow cemeterians.

President’s Message

As I am writing this message, our New York State Senate is in turmoil. A June 16th Public Hearing of the Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Committee titled “‘The Quick and the Dead’: Cemetery Reform in New York State” has been cancelled. NYSAC was prepared to take a lead role working with this committee to examine current laws affecting New York cemeteries, analyze the proposed reforms before the committee at the present time, and ascertain what additional legislation is needed.

Earlier this year, your association worked collaboratively with the Division of Cemeteries to finalize the draft Crematory Regulations and Model Cremation Authorization Form that was presented to the State Cemetery Board on May 4th where it was approved. This is the Cemetery Board meeting that is held just prior to the NYSAC Public Affairs Seminar in Albany each year. Those present heard Richard Fishman, Director of the Division of Cemeteries, say that the Not-For-Profit Corporation Law was antiquated in some respects and in need of review and updating. He then said that he would like this project to be his legacy over the next few years prior to his retirement. NYSAC welcomed his comments and is committed to working with him and the Division to make this a reality.

The Public Affairs Seminar, chaired by Jay Ivler, was a success and offered valuable information to all cemeterians – large or small; upstate or down state; not-for-profit or religious. The Annual Conference will be held September 13th – 16th at the Sagamore on Lake George. Terry Joyce is the conference chair and she promises a great program agenda that you won’t want to miss plus an opportunity to see our suppliers and what they have to offer to make our jobs more productive and cost efficient.

Your association provides value to its members in many ways. Please continue to participate in our programs and through support of the NYSAC Legal Fund.

John P. Toale, Jr.
President

Veterans Remembrance Service Held at Kensico Cemetery
A Veterans Remembrance Service honoring veterans of all branches of the United States military took place at Kensico Cemetery on Friday, May 22 with representatives from local government, veterans groups, employees, and clergy in attendance.

Held adjacent to the Veterans Memorial located by the Administration Building, the program included the raising of the flag; pledge of allegiance; the showing of a veteran’s remembrance video; scripture readings by local clergy; Memorial Day proclamations from the County Executive’s Office and the White Plains Mayor’s Office; special recognition of Civil War Medal of Honor Recipients Michael C. Murphy and Colonel Louis Palma DiCesnola, both buried at Kensico; historical commentary by George Waterbury, Mt. Pleasant Town Historian; and concluded with the placement of wreaths, a rifle salute, taps, and closing prayer.

The County Executive’s Proclamation read, in part: “Today, we have gathered to honor these two men as well as the brave Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines who have served our Country and who no longer answer when their names are called.”

Award-Winning Veterans Program at Mount Calvary
By: Jeffrey M. Reed/ VP Sales & Marketing

No veteran should be left behind! The Mount Calvary Cemetery Group in collaboration with our local county veteran service department initiated a program for the interment of an honorably discharged veteran’s cremated remains within the veterans section of our Pine Lawn Cemetery.

It was brought to our attention through local veteran groups and organizations that a number of their fellow soldiers had died, been cremated and had not been interred within a “Place of Honor.” With a cemetery staff filled with veterans, this was unacceptable to them and to us. So with the help of Erie County Veteran Services and the county’s Burial Division we created a program for honorably discharged veterans who were cremated and whose family could not afford a proper burial. Mount Calvary Cemetery Group offered to bury these veterans for free.

The county has lent the expertise of both the Veteran Services Department and the County Burial Division to act as a screening and processing agent for us and the veteran. The purpose of this joint initiative was to ensure no veteran was left behind regardless of their financial circumstances.

Mount Calvary’s office staff assists the family in securing the veteran’s granite flat military marker. We also arrange to have our local Military Forces Honor Guard at the grave side service. If the deceased veteran does not have family our Funeral Celebrant will be present at the grave and conduct a short service.
Our first interment was the burial of a veteran who died six years ago without family and whose cremated remains were retained at the home of a life long friend. Upon hearing of this program through local media channels, she called Mount Calvary and we began the process of providing Henry with a proper military funeral. Under sunny skies and warm temperatures Henry was finally home in “A Place of Honor.”

This program was developed to help those who had fallen on hard times and could not afford a proper burial. While a National Veteran’s Cemetery is just 120 miles away, it was important for Mount Calvary Cemetery Group to give back to the community and the veterans who have served our country and give their families and friends a convenient place to visit on a regular basis.

At the Mount Calvary Cemetery Group, no veteran will be left behind!

Editor’s note: Mount Calvary Cemetery in Cheektowaga, NY won the 2008 First place and overall Grand Prize in the KIP (Keeping It Personal) contest held by the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association with this generous program for veterans.

GOVERNMENT & LEGAL AFFAIRS REPORT

The NYSAC Government & Legal Affairs Committee has been working on the legislative agenda for this year. We are currently monitoring more than 90 bills. I want to thank David Fleming for all of his dedicated work on our behalf.

Listed below are the bills that were introduced this session-
A) A.4218 BRODSKY/S.2516 THOMPSON - Abandoned Cemetery Maintenance by Cemetery Corporations - The bill would permit a solvent cemetery corporation to assume responsibility for the maintenance of an abandoned cemetery and makes funds available from the state fund for such actions - Reported unanimously out of the Assembly’s Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Committee - We support this bill.

B) A.4217 BRODSKY/S.4364-A AUBERTINE - Provides that any municipality may appropriate and provide funding, goods and/or services to a public cemetery - Referred to Local Government - We support this bill.

C) A.7036 WEISENBURG/S.3561 C. JOHNSON - Requires cemetery corporations to provide customers with a bill of rights, similar to the FTC requirements for funeral directors - Referred to Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Committee - We strongly oppose this bill.

D) A.4392 Weinstein -This bill enacts a chapter amendment to Assembly bill A.6241-B, Chapter 644 of the laws of 2009 changing the enactment date from March 1, 2009 to September 1, 2009. Since A.6241-B provides a comprehensive change in the law regarding power of attorney requirements, additional time was needed to educate the legal community regarding this change. Therefore, the enactment date was changed to September 1, 2009.

REGULATION-
A) Cremation Regulations will be submitted to the Governor’s office shortly; will then be open for public comments for 60 days- NYSAC supports the regulation change

B) NYS Model Authorization Form; NYSAC has signed off on the form, still is not in final form
I hope all of our members and suppliers who have not yet contributed to the Legal Fund, can once again show their generosity this year. The Legal Fund helps to fund our legislative agenda and to give a voice in Albany. To those who have contributed, my sincere thanks.
I look forward to seeing you this fall at The Sagamore.

Frank F. Giglio, Chairman

Special Soldiers Tour Offered at Historic Saint Agnes Cemetery
By Molly Nicol

To commemorate Memorial Day and Flag Day, and to honor the many veterans who served our country in time of need, Historic St. Agnes Cemetery, in conjunction with the Albany Aqua Ducks, hosted a Trolley Tour of the military graves in this beautiful cemetery on Saturday, June 13, 2009.

Historic St. Agnes Cemetery in Menands, NY was incorporated in 1867 during the Rural Cemetery Movement of the mid-19th Century. One of the Albany Diocesan Cemeteries, St. Agnes Cemetery continues to serve the Albany Catholic community as a sacred place of burial. Today, the cemetery is comprised of 114 beautifully landscaped acres and contains over 85,000 burials. There are 363 Civil War veterans interred on the grounds and thousands of veterans from additional wars ranging from the Spanish American War through the Iraq War.

Local historian Mark Bodnar guided the guests on a special “Soldiers Tour of St. Agnes Cemetery.” Weaving a tapestry of military interest, genealogical research and local history, the group visited the graves of some prominent, and some not-so-prominent, people from the Albany area who served in various wars. Soldiers of the Nicaraguan Campaign, the Civil War, the Spanish American War, World Wars I and II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the Iraq War are all represented on the tour. Stories featured acts of bravery including survival of the Battle of the Bulge, D-Day, POW camps, and the Bataan Death March. A special tribute was given for the two Medal of Honor recipients on the tour route.

A great time was had by all. This popular tour will become an annual event to be celebrated and enjoyed by residents and visitors to Albany.

New Feature to Highlight Veteran Section at Resurrection Cemetery
By: Anthony Carpinello, Resurrection Cemetery

Sometime this summer, Resurrection Cemetery, owned and operated by The Trustees of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in the city of New York, will be dedicating a section of the cemetery to the memory of those men and women who served honorably in the armed forces of the United States.

The Veteran Section in Resurrection Cemetery, situated in Staten Island, NY will have twenty-five hundred graves for sale to our Catholic veterans who will be memorialized by the government-issued grey granite 2’x1’ flush marker. In addition to the personal marker, families will have the opportunity to memorialize their veteran on the central monument that sits prominently over the Veteran Section. A one-of-a-kind design provided by Staten Island Monuments, the 19 foot long and 11 foot high monument provides Resurrection with space to engrave the names of approximately five hundred veterans. To further serve all of the community, the cemetery will permit any Catholic veteran’s name to be inscribed regardless of the place of burial. This will especially meet the needs of those Catholic veteran families whose veteran has been laid to rest in a distant national cemetery. These families will be able to come to a special dedicated place nearby where they can visit regularly to remember their loved one. The four closest national cemeteries are between thirty-four and ninety-nine miles away from Staten Island.

We explored the possibility of finding an acceptable alternative for our Catholic veterans, and researched the idea of developing a veteran section for those Catholic veterans wishing to be laid to rest in Staten Island. We wondered how we could also fulfill the needs of those veteran families whose loved ones were already laid to rest in a distant national cemetery. Our research led us to local government veteran offices and various group veterans who provided us with their ideas. We also researched the guidelines under which the national cemeteries operate. We looked to other Catholic cemeteries throughout the country to see how they fulfilled the need to honor their Catholic veterans.

Under the guidance of our Managing Director, George Borrero, we developed a plan of action incorporating those ideas learned from our research, especially those offered by the veteran groups. We considered the administrative, operational, engineering, and design elements of the project. In addition to the veteran section we realized the best way to honor all veterans was through a central memorial. We invited five monument dealers to present a monument design proposal. Simple, elegant, and respectful aesthetics were critical. We selected the proposal submitted by Staten Island Monuments. We are proud of this selection.

Obviously, implementation of such a project is a major undertaking and requires a team effort to ensure that all aspects of the project are properly covered. A number of individuals from Resurrection Cemetery, the corporate office in New York and the engineering consulting firm of Woodard & Curran of White Plains, NY participated in this endeavor. Many thanks go to Andrew Nagle, Louis Bertuzzi, CPA, and Joseph DiMarco of the corporate office; Nicholas Lordo and Howard Rhodes from Resurrection Cemetery; and Anthony Catalano, PE BCEE, Steve Lauria PE, and Alvaro Alfonzo-Larrain, EIT from Woodard & Curran.

After four and a half years in the making, we believe we accomplished our goal to honor our Catholic veterans in Staten Island by providing the Catholic veteran families a special and dedicated place where they can lay to rest their loved ones and a place where veteran families can visit to remember their beloved veteran.

Looking over the Veteran Section at Resurrection Cemetery sits the Veteran Monument dedicated to:
OUR VETERANS

THIS MONUMENT IS DEDICATED TO ALL THE
MEN AND WOMEN WHO SERVED IN THE
UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES WITH
DIGNITY, HONOR, AND DETERMINATION
TO PRESERVE THE FREEDOM OF A GRATEFUL NATION

GOD BLESS OUR VETERANS

METROPOLITAN CEMETERY ASSOCIATION HOLDS ANNUAL SEMINAR AND EXPOSITION
By Domenick Castiello, President, MCA

On June 4, 2009, the Metropolitan Cemetery Association’s Annual Meeting and Exposition took place at the Milleridge Inn, Jericho, NY. The co-chairs of the meeting were Peter Ryan, Joe DiTroia and Jay Ivler. The President of the MCA, Domenick Castiello, welcomed over 150 attendees. Two Directors were elected for 3 year terms: Peter Ryan, Catholic Cemeteries, Roman Catholic Diocese of Rockville Centre and Larry Barnett, Mt. Pleasant Cemetery.

Service Awards were presented to:
JoAnne Aliberto, Ferncliff Cemetery, 25 years of service
Jane Cuccurullo, The Green-Wood Cemetery, 25 years of service
Addie Cote, Mount Ararat Cemetery, 25 years of service
John Toale, The Woodlawn Cemetery, 25 years of service
Toby Krasnow, Maimonides Cemetery, 40 years of service
Donald Williams, Woodlawn Cemetery, 40 years of service
Mario Gil, Cypress Hills Cemetery, 40 years of service
Robert Ilasi, Salem Fields and Beth-el Cemetery of Congregation Emanu-el,
40 years of service

Liz Layug, from Ferncliff Cemetery, was presented with a special award for all the hard work she does for the MCA on a yearly basis.

Frank Giglio, Chairman, NYSAC Government Legal Affairs Committee, and Richard Fishman, Director, Division of Cemeteries, brought everyone up-to-date on statewide matters.

Our featured speaker was Frank Morelli, Manager of Preservation and Restoration for the historic Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. Frank presented a fascinating slide show and explained some of the procedures he uses in his impressive restoration of varied monuments.

With generous gifts donated by suppliers and cemeterians, the raffles were very successful and through the generosity of our membership, we raised enough money to donate $1,750 to both the Make A Wish Foundation and St. Mary’s Health Care System for Children.

We are already in the stages of planning next year’s meeting.

Editor’s Note: The Broadcaster welcomes news from other regional associations as well.

A NEW DISCOVERY
By Jeff Richman

For several years now, we at Brooklyn’s Green-Wood Cemetery have known that many prominent architects are interred here. But, only recently have we made some great discoveries about architects who designed some of the most interesting tombs at Green-Wood. The most exciting of those is our recent “find” concerning the Bourne Tomb at Green-Wood. Inside that tomb lie the remains of Frederick Gilbert Bourne (1851-1919) and his family. Bourne, we discovered, was the president of Singer Sewing Machine from 1889 to 1905. A very wealthy man, he was widely known as Commodore Bourne, a title he held because of his position with the New York Yacht Club. Bourne owned the entire first floor of the legendary Dakota Building on Central Park West and 72nd Street in Manhattan, a large estate in Oakdale, Long Island, and Dark Island in the Thousand Islands of the St. Lawrence River. He hired architect Ernest Flagg to design his estate houses in Oakdale and on Dark Island. He also hired Flagg to design the Singer Building at Broadway and Liberty Street in Manhattan--one of the greatest skyscrapers ever built (built 1906-1908, demolished in 1968).

Because Frederick Bourne repeatedly selected Ernest Flagg to design buildings for him, it seemed logical to explore the possibility that Bourne might also have hired Flagg to design his tomb at Green-Wood. That suspicion was confirmed when Green-Wood’s surveyor found the blueprints to the Bourne Tomb in his files--with “Ernest Flagg, Architect” written on them.

INSURING HISTORIC PROPERTY – THE RIGHT WAY
By: Brennan P. Regan, Regan Agency, Inc.

Regan Agency, Inc. is pleased to announce that we have entered into a marketing agreement with National Trust Insurance Services, LLC (NTIS) of Baltimore, MD to offer broader coverage for cemeteries that have custom, unique, or historically significant buildings. NTIS is the nation’s leading provider of insurance solutions for historic property owners and preservation organizations, and is an affiliated entity of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

This relationship will allow us to offer the best possible coverage for historic buildings, as well as mausoleums, chapels, dwellings, and other structures owned by the cemetery.

Most insurance policies offer Replacement Cost (RC) coverage for real property. Replacement Cost is defined as the cost to replace with “like kind and quality,” as determined by the insurance company. A policy written with Replacement Cost coverage will replace or repair your building in a similar style as long as the materials are readily available and the labor costs meet their standard guidelines. While this type of coverage may be sufficient for most commercial buildings; it may not be enough to restore your historic building or mausoleum to its original style and to preserve the image of the cemetery as it was meant to be.

The coverage we can offer is Building Reproduction Cost, also known as Historic Replacement Cost (HRC). HRC is defined as “the cost to reproduce the damaged building or specific building features to the EXACT same design, decorative style, and dimensions as existed at the time of loss, including identical materials with respect to kind and quality.” This coverage allows you to reproduce the building or damaged portion of the building to the way that it was originally built, including the cost to bring in a special contractor, craftsmen, and/or materials.

The coverage also includes Guaranteed Replacement Cost (GRC) on the buildings. In the event of a loss, where the total insured value is deemed inadequate to replace the damaged portion of the building, there is no cap on the amount that can be paid. In the event of a total loss, you also have the option to elect a Cash Settlement in lieu of rebuilding or replicating. The Cash Settlement would be paid based upon the Agreed Amount of the building as stated in the policy. There is no requirement to rebuild or replace in the event a building is totally destroyed. Most insurance carriers provide this option, however only based on Actual Cash Value (ACV). AVC is the value at the time of the loss less depreciation. This can be problematic for historic property owners.

Ideal candidates for these coverages would be original buildings on the cemetery grounds such as administration, chapels, dwellings, and receiving vaults. However, it’s important to note that while a building may not be historic now, it will be at some point in the future. The new community mausoleum you just completed using imported marble and granite could be a landmark building someday. You want to be certain that buildings constructed today are still around 100 years from now in their original design and construction.

HRC is not only meant for buildings, we can also write this coverage for fencing and gates, statuary, signs, and any other property that might not otherwise be classified as Fine Arts.
Don’t wait until it’s too late to find out that you may not have the right insurance for your historic buildings!

Evergreens Book Wins Award
By: Spencer Smith

ForeWord Magazine, the magazine for independent presses, announced at Book Expo America 2009 that Green Oasis in Brooklyn: The Evergreens Cemetery 1849-2008 was awarded Honorable Mention in the Regional category. Of the more than one hundred finalists in this category, only four received awards.
The Book of the Year Award winners were selected by dozens of librarians and booksellers who are experts in the subject matter of the books they judged, and who make purchasing decisions daily for their collections or bookstores.

Green Oasis in Brooklyn: The Evergreens Cemetery 1849-2008 by John Rousmaniere, with photography by Ken Druse is an engrossing account of one of America’s most compelling but least known historic sites: classic rural cemetery located in Brooklyn, New York, now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
After describing the key role played by these rolling hills in the American Revolution, noted historian John Rousmaniere tells how death and disease shut down urban churchyards. The new cemetery was so remote that families vehemently protested the transfer of their ancestors’ remains. Designed by the most acclaimed architects of their time, Alexander Jackson Davis and Andrew Jackson Downing, the Evergreens became a popular park for people seeking open air, an egalitarian last resting place for all Americans, even those deemed pariahs at the time. Chinese-American laborers, actors, merchant seamen and African American soldiers in Civil War “colored” regiments lie near tycoons, Congressmen, and ship captains.

Here are intimate accounts of the lives and deaths of famous people. The song and dance star Bill “Bojangles” Robinson sleeps at the Evergreens, as do the infamous scold Anthony Comstock, the jazz saxophonist Lester Young, the nature painter Martin Jefferson Heade, numerous crooks and war heroes, and two suspects in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Told here also is the story of American mourning.
There are chapters on burial “from the home,” Chinese funeral rituals, the design of monuments, the rise and fall of Decoration Day, and calamities such as the 1918 flu epidemic. The theme running throughout these pages is of how much we, as individuals and as groups, care about making sure that nobody comes to anonymous end in a pauper’s grave.

10 SIMPLE WAYS TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE
by Andrea L. Vittum, White Haven Memorial Parks

This is part 9 in a 10 part series on simple ways cemeteries can make a difference in protecting our environment. Each one contains examples of projects you can complete on your way to achieving certification as a member of the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program. For further information on this program, contact Audubon International at 418-767-9051 or visit their web site at www.audubonintl.org.

#9: Compost
Composting is a simple way to improve the health of your soil AND to get rid of all the funeral flowers left behind at your cemetery. Audubon International can provide you with complete instructions on composting, but basically it is as simple as putting funeral flowers, leaves, grass clippings and other plant waste into a pile and turning the pile once a week. Once the plant waste has been reduced to beautiful, rich compost, add it to your landscaped areas and to newly seeded or sodded graves. Healthy, compost-enriched soils stimulate plant growth and help plants resist disease.

Benefits (to YOU and the environment!)
* Composting will help restore grass more quickly to recent graves.
* Composting will promote rapid growth and stronger blooming in flower beds.
* YOU will get rid of funeral flowers without paying for dumpsters or trash removal.
* Your healthier soil will foster the growth of a variety of soil creatures, including earth worms, beetles and ants, all of which provide a support system for life above ground.

Matthews Announces “Free” Colors for Memorials

Matthews Bronze is pleased to announce that they are adding four new colors as a free option to the standard bronze memorial products. The colors, Dark Verdi, Maroon, Blue and Black are, in addition to the Dark and Light Brown colors, currently offered at no charge. A sales kit page (M-466) is available.

“We believe that richness and durability of cast bronze, combined with vibrant colors, set these memorials apart and that adding color to our popular memorial lines will make these products a better value than ever before,” said Rob Newcombe, Matthews Bronze Division vice-president of sales and marketing. Newcombe added, “Of course, every Matthews’ memorial will still include the patented and time-tested Diamond Shield® Protective Coating.”

Contact your Customer Service Representative by calling 1-888-838-8890 to request M-466 Memorial Color Choices sales kit page.

Scouts Honor Veterans at Cemetery of the Highlands
By JoAnne Ryan

Cemetery of the Highlands recently played host to the Girls Scouts and Boy Scouts of Woodbury, New York. Along with members of American Legion Post 779, the scouts were on hand to place American flags on the graves of all Veterans in remembrance of Memorial Day.

“Remembering and honoring our forefathers who fought and sacrificed for us is just a small way of showing our appreciation to them,” one young Boy Scout was heard saying. “It’s such an honor for us to do this for them,” was expressed by the parent of a young Daisy Girl Scout.

Teaching young people and making them feel apart of this great country’s history is the sentiment behind this project. The hours spent in the cemetery will be counted towards the community service requirements for both Boy Scouts and Girls Scouts. This event has been taking place for approximately five years and keeps growing every year. As a token of appreciation for their effort and time, the cemetery provided hot dogs, chips and beverages. The weather cooperated this year and a good time was had by all.

Saluting the Veteran Heroes of New York’s 71st Regiment National Guard
By: Alex Steinberg, Mount Hope Cemetery

Under a cloudless sky on a cool, crisp morning, members of the Veterans Association of the 71st Regiment National Guard of the State of New York gathered May 19, 2009, to pay homage to their fallen brothers-in-arms from wars past. Some bedecked in uniform, others praying wordlessly, the Regiment’s surviving members and loved ones convened on the hallowed grounds of Mount Hope Cemetery Association in Hastings-on-Hudson, where stands a permanent memorial to their valorous service.

Veterans interred at the regimental burial grounds date back to the Spanish-American War. One hundred nine veterans of that conflict lie in repose beside an elegant monument erected in 1901 by the State of New York. Also laid to rest are many servicemen of the regiment who fought in World Wars I and II. Though the 71st Regiment was disbanded in 1993, the monument to their service still stands as glorious and picturesque as ever. Still, the structure has experienced some of the weathering and structural erosion one would expect from 108 years of enduring the elements. In particular, the monument’s ornate, Spanish-tiled roof has opened a minor leak.

As a result, surviving members and their families have begun canvassing legislators in Albany, seeking perpetual care for the monument the Legislature commissioned a century ago. (Maintenance of the lot on which it stands rests with Mount Hope Cemetery.)

For additional information or to lend your support to the Regiment’s efforts, please contact Clarence G. Anspake, Jr., president, or Louis R. Milgram, chairman, Veteran Association of the 71st Regiment National Guard of the State of New York, 63 Babylon Turnpike, Freeport, NY 11520.