Dedicated team: Moama Cemetery volunteers, Kelvin Pitts, Martin Rendle, Heather Williams, Shirley Durrant, Anita Bartlett and Noel Scott, work tirelessly to ensure all gravestones are presented in the best light possible.
Photo by
Aidan Briggs
A group of dedicated volunteers work to ensure the Moama Cemetery gravestones are fully restored to their former glory.
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The group has been meeting for the past 15 years, once a month on the first Sunday of every month, where loved ones and visitors can reconnect with the past.
Shirley Durrant from Moama is one of the few volunteers who meet with like-minded individuals to ensure all burial sites are presented well, and gravestones can be easily read.
“The group has been meeting for the past 15 years. The original idea dates back to the mid-1970s where volunteers would catch up once a year to repair damage to old grave sites,” Ms Durrant said.
Dilapidated: One of the gravestones at Moama Cemetery awaiting a few repairs.
Photo by
Aidan Briggs
“The majority of the old Anglican has been repaired. A lot of them were very severely covered with dark moss. They are from the most senior section of the cemetery.
Even though volunteers have been volunteering to make repairs, a high-pressure washer has aided the cleaning process.
“The old gravestones covered with the dark moss do become very hard to read, but once you clean them with a high-pressure washer, they become much easier to understand,” Ms Durrant said.
“The old way was using sand-paper, which was labour intensive and took much longer to complete one headstone.
Disappointing: One of Moama Cemetery’s gravesites that will undergo repair over the next few weeks.
Photo by
Aidan Briggs
“The group and I work to maintain the cemetery so that people can remember people from long ago and also connect with a deceased family member who died decades ago,” Ms Durrant said.
“I look forward to being part of this group for a long time.”
Fortunately for the group, the council also offers support to allow the volunteers to join the small but dedicated team.
“As the group come here every month, we see the damage done by rabbits who cause a lot of destruction. We then inform the Murray River Council of what is happening, and they come along and repair the grounds,” Ms Durrant said.
“The group appreciates the ongoing assistance from the Murray River Council and how they provide us with the material support to help us present the cemetery in its best light.”
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