March 30, 2021 |
The Rawlins Parks and Rec crew is urging people whose dearly departed are buried in the municipal cemetery to remove any personal or sentimental decorations from the grave sites ahead of the upcoming cleanup.
Although the green spaces staff regularly removes unsightly and wind strewn items from the 40-acre cemetery, a big cleanup is held each year prior to Memorial Day. Cali O’Hare has all the details.
Pictured above: Wind-strewn faux flowers at the Rawlins cemetery. Photo by Cali O’Hare/Bigfoot 99.
People with loved ones buried in the Rawlins municipal cemetery should remove all sentimental and commemorative decorations between now and May 1st. The only exception are items securely affixed to headstones. Everything else, such as wreathes and flowers, will be removed by the Parks and Rec Crew.
The department is preparing for Memorial Day, on May 31st this year, and the upcoming cleanup is a necessary part of that. Additionally, city code provides that freshly cut and artificial flowers, sprays, wreaths, and flags may only be attached to monuments or placed in vases or containers within the monument or their base and must be removed within 15 days.
Cemetery personnel will remove freshly cut and artificial flowers that have died, faded, broken, or become unsightly. No plants, trees, shrubs, or live flowers shall be planted upon any lot in the cemetery without prior approval of the sexton. Decorative rods, shepherds hooks, or iron stands, commercially purchased or privately built, will be allowed only if the rod is permanently attached within the monument foundation. Anything hung from a rod must be secured to prevent it from blowing off. The rod and any items secured to the rod must not obstruct any maintenance procedure. The use of tiles, lawn ornaments, brick, gravel, crushed rock, wood bark, or similar materials on any lot is strictly prohibited.
More information about cemetery regulations can be found here: http://www.rawlins-wyoming.com/135/Cemetery-Division
Related: Cemetery cleaning begins next week
