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Visits to the cemetery are very
personal times for you and your family.
We encourage you to use your
Catholic cemetery to pray, reflect, and meditate.
Your Catholic cemetery is a place
of peace and comfort, a place to talk to God and to
visit your loved one.
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Cemetery Hours:
Cemetery Grounds:
The cemetery gates usually open
by 8:00 am and close at dusk. You are welcome to
visit the cemetery during daylight hours seven days
per week. Please use general safety precautions,
such as locking your car and being aware of your
surroundings, while visiting.
Mausoleum:
The chapel mausoleums remain
locked at all times. Personal keys are available.
Your cemetery's office can provide additional
information.
Office Hours:
Calvary and Holyrood: Monday
through Saturday 8:00 am - 4:30 pm. Gethsemane:
Monday through Friday 8:00 am - 4:30 pm. Saturday by
appointment.
Circumstances sometimes
change this schedule and a call to the office is
recommended.
Flowers and Decorations:
Flowers are a fitting symbol of
life in all its beauty. They are an eloquent testimony
of love and respect. Permanent plants or decorations
cannot be permitted. Decorations deemed objectionable
can be removed at the discretion of the Cemetery
Management. Glass or breakable containers are never
permitted in the cemetery because they are a hazard to
both grounds keepers and other cemetery visitors.
While the cemetery makes every effort to protect
decorations placed at the cemetery, we cannot assume
responsibility for any which are lost or damaged.
Normal cemetery care requires us to remove all
decorations on a regular basis. During the months of
April through October, this is often done weekly.
Occasions, such as holidays and holy days, may require
special decoration removal schedules. Please contact
your cemetery office for details. The Cemetery
Management retains the right to remove anything which
it considers unsightly, dangerous, or impedes the
progress of normal cemetery operations.
Grounds:
Decorating with fresh cut flowers
is always welcomed. In-ground flower vases are
available from the cemetery office. Potted plants
are permitted in grave areas only. Artificial
flowers are permitted on graves during the
non-mowing months of November through March.
Crypts and Niches:
Potted plants in
mausoleums present a safety hazard and will be
removed. While artificial flowers are permitted on
mausoleum crypts and niches all year round, they are
removed when they appear unsightly or are
inappropriate to the season of the year. Bronze
vases are available for placement of flowers and
decorations on crypt and niche fronts. The
appearance of flowers or other decorations taped to
the crypt and niche fronts hardly adds to the beauty
of the area, no matter how thoughtful the
remembrance may be. In addition, the placement of
decorations or other remembrances on crypt and niche
fronts will eventually damage the polished finish
and are not permitted.
Cemetery Care and
Maintenance
People sometimes ask: "Why do
we pay for cemetery care and memorial care?" Your
Catholic Cemetery makes every effort possible to
maintain beautiful and picturesque cemetery grounds.
What does this entail?
Lawns
Every season of the year brings
unique lawn care maintenance issues. During the
Spring, Summer, and Fall, mowing the lawns is
continuous. Graves and memorials are leveled on an
ongoing basis. Special attention is paid to this
during the winter months due to settling caused by
the rain soaked lawns.
In addition, we fertilize,
edge, irrigate, control weeds and other pests on
over 90 developed acres. This is equivalent to
ongoing care of 900+ average home owner's lawns.
The climate of the Pacific
Northwest creates some special
challenges-specifically the annual appearance of
moss. To keep the cemeteries attractive and safe,
the moss is removed from buildings and walkways by
pressure washing on an annual basis. Moss prevention
and eradication in the burial areas of a cemetery is
particularly problematic. Most methods available to
address this problem can potentially damage
memorials permanently.
Irrigation
Now that we explained how we mow
an equivalent of 900+ lawns, we must also water all
of that same grass to maintain a green healthy
appearance. Some of our cemeteries use city supplied
water, others have their own wells. Imagine your
water bill multiplied 900 times!
During the winter months the
irrigation lines are drained and the systems are
turned off until the threat of freezing temperatures
is over. In the Spring and Summer the systems are in
constant use requiring ongoing maintenance.
Water is a precious resource.
We take our responsibility for it very seriously. As
stewards of God's precious gift, we actively
participate in conservation efforts. Sometimes this
means that we cannot water, and the lawns will turn
brown. You can be assured, however, that we do take
all prudent steps to uphold the health and quality
of our turf grass.
Flower beds
Essential to the lasting beauty
of the cemetery, flower beds require regular
weeding, replanting, trimming, beauty bark and
mulching.
Trees and Shrubs
Just as flower beds enhance the
cemetery's appearance, trees and shrubs also add to
overall beauty and serenity. Part of the year round
maintenance of the cemetery is the care of all the
varieties of trees and shrubbery. Each tree and
shrub requires annual pruning, trimming, and
spraying for pests. Truckloads of leaves are cleaned
off the lawns and roads weekly throughout Fall and
Winter.
Buildings, Roads, and
Walks
Throughout the cemetery are a
variety of buildings: offices, maintenance shops,
mausoleums, niche units. Each of these must be
inspected regularly. In addition, roofs need repair
or replacement and the buildings must be cleaned and
painted. They contain a variety of complex systems:
electrical, water, and sewer. The roads and walks
also require regular attention and preventative
maintenance. This includes resurfacing, repairing
trip hazards, and edging curbs. In addition storm
drains require ongoing upkeep.
Equipment
Each cemetery has a wide variety
of equipment that must be purchased, maintained,
fueled, and replaced at the end of its useful life.
Included in this list are tractors, trucks, lawn
mowers, trimmers, edgers, as well as the tools to
maintain all of these. Did you know that the average
riding lawn mower costs nearly $20,000 and has a
useful life of only 8 years?
Staff
Your Catholic cemeteries are
committed to providing equitable salary and benefits
to all of its employees. All employees and
departments are essential to providing our Catholic
families with the level of service that you
deserve.
Memorial Care
How does memorial care differ
from cemetery care? There is more to caring for a
memorial than placing it on the grave. Once placed,
we assume the additional responsibility of
individually trimming each memorial on regular
intervals throughout the year. Upright monuments
require trimming more frequently than flush
memorials. They also increase the mowing time of a
particular section by over 50%. We must also level
and straighten memorials. Your investment for
memorial care ensures this service year after year.
For example, memorials placed at Calvary Cemetery
more than 100 years ago are still being cared for in
this way.
The Future
Cemeteries, like people, have a
distinct life cycle. One day there will be no more
room for burials. However, all of the maintenance
described here, and the expenses that go with it, will
continue. Your contribution to the Care Fund ensures
that your family's burial sites and memorials will
continue to be maintained.
If you have questions,
please do not hesitate to contact
your cemetery's office. We appreciate hearing from
you. This enables us to review and improve our
service to you and all of the other families using
the Catholic cemetery.
Thank you for putting your
trust in us.
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