June 9, 2025
Cemetery Trustees
meeting minutes
The Cemetery Trustees met on June 9, 2025 @ 9:00 a.m. at the Historical Society building. Ruth Hammen, Fred Shaw and Brenda Boswak attended the meeting.
OLD BUSINESS
May 17, 2025, Cub Scout Troop #60 from Concord, volunteered to assist with placing 164 American flags on veterans’ gravesites at Pineground Cemetery and Leavitt Cemetery. Eight scouts along with five parents reverently and eagerly participated in this annual event. Heather Taluba organized the volunteer effort by the scout troop. Thank you to all the volunteers that helped place flags in the cemeteries!
June 3, 2025, Brenda submitted a Cemetery Trustees Report to the Selectmen for the Department Heads Meeting. No Cemetery Trustees attended that meeting.
Garry Kalajian, Ararat Forge, has received his $2500 deposit for work on Knowlton-Edgerly Cemetery gates. Garry has discovered the Morrill Cemetery gate is sagging. He has recommended a solution that he is willing to provide, at no cost. We accepted his offer.
Joseph Beachy, Extol Tree Care, LLC is now paid in full for the tree removal project at Knowlton-Edgerly Cemetery.
Brenda has completed refinishing and painting and placing the cemetery signs in all cemeteries, except Sanborn-Smith Cemetery. She has begun painting the iron gates at Pineground Cemetery. Several more children’s gravestones have been cleaned in Pineground Cemetery.
NEW BUSINESS
We are excited to accomplish the complete, beautiful, quality restoration of Page Cemetery, thanks to the generous donation from Martha Dodge-Wilkerson!! Don Cotnoir, NH Monuments, has completed the restoration of the gravestones at Page Cemetery, on Bear Hill Road, and installed a new 10’x10’ granite post and black chain link fence around the gravestones. The boundary measurement information for the cemetery, taken from property deeds, is two (2) rods x two (2) rods, approximately 30’x 30’. Grass seed and cover will need to be added to prevent erosion. Brenda will prepare paperwork for submitting Don’s invoice to the Trustees of the Trust Funds, for the fencing project at Page Cemetery.
Brenda has received payment for reimbursement for cemetery supplies.
Brenda has created a trust fund for the Lot #16 in Knowlton-Edgerly Cemetery.
Paul Sanborn submitted a ‘Flag Display Application’ to the Cemetery Trustees on May 30, 2025. He joined our meeting today to discuss his request to place flags at Firemen’s gravesites for a period longer than the current cemetery policy allows. We approved the placement of fifty (50)+/- flags in the cemeteries June 12-July 12, 2025, on Firemen’s gravesites and requested a list of the names and cemeteries where the flags will be placed.
Information was discovered confirming Philander Hopkins in Pineground Cemetery as a military veteran. We will add his name to the veterans’ list and Ruthie will place a flag at his gravesite. We are researching to confirm if James Rand, listed on the same gravestone, is a military veteran, his name is on our veterans’ list.
Fred, along with Tim Mayville, has done extensive work compiling documents clarifying the boundaries of Fellows-Webster Cemetery, in preparation for installing fencing around the cemetery. The assumed location of this cemetery was incorrect. Deeds of abutters to the cemetery were researched as well as town tax maps and visual inspection. Fellows-Webster Cemetery boundary totals 11,000 square feet+/- as described and recorded in the quitclaim deed for Geana Baum, 50 Swiggey Brook Road, Chichester, NH, Map 9, Lot 17-A. Fred will pursue the process of notifying the town of Chichester that the cemetery is not recorded on the town tax map. The Cemetery Trustees are planning another visual inspection of the site to locate any other burial evidence besides the four (4) recorded graves. Fellows-Webster was declared abandoned in 2013 and the town of Chichester assumed ownership and care of this cemetery.
We also are in the process of verifying that Page Cemetery is/is not on the town tax map.
Don Cotnoir, NH Monuments will begin restoration of gravestones in Leavitt Cemetery and Pineground Cemetery.
We discussed having Don clean the F.B. Brown family gravestones, at Pineground Cemetery, using money from the F.B. Brown Trust Fund.
Ruthie has answered inquiries and questions regarding the purchase of ‘Right to Inter’ in Pineground Cemetery and Leavitt Cemetery, as well as addressing concerns from a family member that a monument in Pineground Cemetery appears to be partially slid off the base.
Ruthie purchased and planted geraniums at Leavitt Cemetery on the Leavitt lot, according to the instructions in the J. Myron Leavitt Trust and Eunice Leavitt Trust.
Family members have assumed responsibility for placing flowers on the Rebecca Hebert lot in Leavitt Cemetery, according to the instructions in the Rebecca Hebert Trust.
The McGuire gravestone has been placed at Leavitt Cemetery on the Parmenter lot, however, it is too close to the driveway. It appears it has already been run over and the flag holder for Stan Parmenter was destroyed as well. Fred will tackle the project of putting the white post back in place at that corner to prevent vehicles from driving over the corner of that lot. Ruthie will contact Perry Bros. to reposition the gravestone.
The ground has settled more than usual from a recent burial in the Burke lot in Leavitt Cemetery. Brenda will contact a family member to see if they can contact the company that provided the burial services to repair the burial area.
Martha Dodge-Wilkerson has made another extremely generous donation of $15,000 to the Cemetery Trustees. This donation will be added to the existing Martha Dodge-Wilkerson Trust with the original donation of $25,000. Ruthie has kept Martha updated with information and photos of the projects being accomplished with her donation.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Brenda Boswak, Cemetery Trustee, Secretary.