A GROUP of green-fingered volunteers have begun tackling the overgrown weeds at Westbury Cemetery.
The cemetery clean-up was organised by local campaigner Rupert Lescott who also runs a similar group in Edington.
Rupert said, “If we can do a bit at a time, then gradually we can keep the graves maintained. The more volunteers we have, obviously the easier it will be, so it would be great to hear from a few more people.
“For our first meeting, it was very good and we did get a lot done. It’s noticeably cleaner, but we will be going back again in a few weeks’ time.”
One volunteer said, “I have a lot of people here, both family and those I grew up with – I recognise a lot of names when I walk around the cemetery so when I saw the story in the paper, I wanted to get involved. A lot of these graves don’t have anyone to look after them, for whatever reason, and it’s not necessarily up to the council to do it.”
Another said, “I spend a lot of time here, so it’s nice to be involved and help.”
Kelly Aiden and Eddie Hughes from Dilton Marsh brought their sons Arthur and Alfie-Lee along with their granny to help.
“We have relatives here so we were more than happy to help,” said Kelly.
“It’s nice for the children to come and see that cemeteries aren’t scary places and that they’re peaceful. Also it teaches the children to be respectful and that it’s important to keep family members’ and friend’s graves tidy.”
There are 12 volunteers already on board, but Rupert is looking for a few more who can bring some of their own tools, gloves, and heavy duty bin bags.
If you would like to help, contact Rupert on rupertlescott@hotmail.com or 07841 183130.
