Old Soldiers Cemetery
Cleanup
The Madison County Boys and Girls Club with the help
of various civic and church groups helped to clean up the Old
Soldiers Cemetery on Four Mile Road in Richmond, KY.
Cleanup workers signed in as they arrived. The Boys
and Girls Club maintained a record of the participants to share
with the National Youth Service Day and the Disney Han: Worldwide
Outreach for The Walt Disney Company. Both of these organizations
provided support for this service day.
Some read about the history of the Old Soldiers Cemetery
and other had coffee in the morning.
Prior to leaving for the Old Soldiers Cemetery the
group had breakfast.
Happy faces during breakfast.
Connie Lawson, the mayor of Richmond, greeted those
participating in the cleanup project.
The mayor visited with the boys and girls before they
left for work.
Various group shots were made before work began.
Some of the Old Soldiers Cemetery was greatly overgrown.
Many gravestones were covered with brush and some knocked
over.
One grave plot was surrounded by a fence covered with
brush.
There were plenty of weeds and brush to cut.
Fortunately there were several young men who had the
muscle power to move large logs.
Tarps helped move brush and limbs to the truck provided
by the City of Richmond for the cleanup project.
Uncovering some gravestones was a major task
Dwight McMullin, a member of the Kiwanis Club
of Richmond brought his trimmers and waded into the brush.
C.D. Reese (standing) the Governor of the Kentucky-Tennessee
District of Kiwanis which has more than 7,000 member, and Dr.
Kim Naugel, president of the Kiwanis Club of Richmond, visit
with boys and girls club members after the cleanup.
Giving the pick a rest on the gravestone of Gertrude
Walker, an aunt of a WW II Tuskegee
Airman of World War II.
"Tuskegee Airmen" refers to all who were involved
in the so-called "Tuskegee Experiment," the Army Air
Corps program to train African Americans to fly and maintain combat
aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen included pilots, navigators, bombardiers,
maintenance and support staff, instructors, and all the personnel
who kept the planes in the air.
The military selected Tuskegee Institute to train pilots because
of its commitment to aeronautical training. Tuskegee had the facilities,
and engineering and technical instructors, as well as a climate
for year round flying. The first Civilian Pilot Training Program
students completed their instruction in May 1940. The Tuskegee
program was then expanded and became the center for African-American
aviation during World War II.
The Tuskegee Airmen overcame segregation and prejudice
to become one of the most highly respected fighter groups of World
War II. They proved conclusively that African Americans could
fly and maintain sophisticated combat aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen's
achievements, together with the men and women who supported them,
paved the way for full integration of the U.S. military.
To
see additional photos of the Old Soldiers Cemetery cleanup click
here
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