December 2011

Final Resting Places

As we come to the close of this year and remember back on events that touched us, I wanted to let our loyal patrons of the Fort know “the rest of a story.”  Our former president, my husband Roger Heuer, was acquainted with many of you through business at The Fort and he passed away May 7, 2011 of complications from his long battle with colon cancer. We held his visitation and funeral here in Lexington and a lovely family luncheon at our son’s home that afternoon.  No trip to the cemetery occurred on that day because we had decided we wanted a commemorative bench as our lasting memorial. We had to find a suitable place to have it set.  Our choices narrowed down to the Chenoa and Lexington area cemeteries. 

With Roger’s interest in the Genealogical and Historical Society, the fact that I had some relatives buried up in the historical Clarksville Cemetery, and its location very close to our home for over 35 years, that old cemetery seemed like the perfect spot.  However, the Clarksville Cemetery is virtually a closed cemetery, since there has not been a burial there in over a decade.  Recently the private status of the cemetery was transfered to being one that is overseen by Money Creek Township officials. 

A few phone calls and lengthy explanations were made.  A dear friend who used to serve on the township board even went to a meeting to explain our desire for the bench at the site and persuaded the board to allow this usage. Permission was granted, as long as we did not create a lot of publicity about it.  Pontiac Granite Company did a beautiful job with the engraving and placing of the bench and Roger's veteran marker in July.  Those who have seen our bench agree that it is a fitting memorial and set in such a beautiful and quiet place.  To others it is remote and hard to find, so I am sharing this photo so everyone, near and far, can share just a bit in the “rest of our story.”   Most of us do not believe that our final resting place is a hole in the ground or a plot in a cemetery -- and yet many of us are drawn to these locations. Maybe it's the ghost hunter in us, but hours can be spent treading through the sprawling sites, battling bugs and soft spots, stooping down to read the inscriptions and imagine the lives lived over the years.  Now at “our cemetery” there is a comfy place to rest awhile, too.

On a lighter note, one of our volunteers came across these final resting places that have some of the most unusual memorial messages we’ve seen. They are the headstones that make you pause and say, "Wait...what?!"  It's nice to see that a good sense of humor can carry over into the great beyond.

  Hope you enjoy these as much as we did!

Scrabble Lover!	World's Best Electrician!

"He loved that car!"	Dead Boy's Toy

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