Cemetery Cleanup Leaves Residents in Tears

Very sad. Disrespectful. Devastated.

Those are just some of the words Enfield residents are using to describe their feelings about a cleanup at the Hazardville Cemetery that left meaningful items placed at their deceased love one's graves thrown into a pile on the ground.

The cleanup and subsequent backlash from residents has set off a chain of communication, which Mayor Scott Kaupin has been documenting on his Facebook page. Here's a chronological telling of the events:

April 12: Mayor Kaupin Posts Photos of Cemetery

"After just about ten years of visiting my brother Jeff's grave at the Hazardville Cemetery, I have never witnessed something so sad. Grave sites stripped clean of every meaningful memory. Very sad."

April 12: Scene Leaves Woman Sick to Her Stomach

Debbie Vesce posted the following message on the mayor's Facebook page:

"My Mom is buried here also. we stopped by yesterday afternoon and was devastated to see her stone stripped . her angels and Swedish flag and ornaments and lights and stones gone...we went to the back to find everything sprawled all over on the ground next to the dumpster..Cried my eyes out....never saw so many statues and broken ones...piled on top of everything...Could not find any of my mom's ..except her plants thrown in the dumpster..Sick to my stomach..." 

April 13: An Explanation from the Cemetery

Mayor Scott Kaupin posted the following update on his Facebook page:

"I spoke to the Superintendent of the Enfield Cemetery Association this morning.

"The intent of the clearing of all items from the grave sites was to determine which grave sites are being maintained by the families and those that are not. According to the Superintendent, the last clearing occurred 6+ years ago. The cemetery has always respected the unique and special way people mourn and celebrate the life of their departed loved ones. That is part of the special beauty of the cemetery.

"The intent all along was to allow those families maintaining a grave site to be able to reclaim their items and place them back on the grave sites. Any items not reclaimed were then going to be placed in storage by the association for a reasonable period of time.

"The intent of the clearing was to allow better maintenance of the cemetery, especially around the grave sites that are no longer maintained by the family. The association does have a tough job no doubt.

"During our conversation it was agreed upon that communication needs to be improved leading up to a clearing, and what a family can do after the clearing to reclaim and replace. It was also agreed upon that a better system of placing aside items needs to be implemented, as well as some form of process that prevents others from taking what is not theirs. Sadly, some items have been taken by others.

"I and others from the town will be meeting with the Superintendent and others from the association to discuss what happened, why it happened, and how the town can assist in the future to make sure this clearing process works to the benefit of all.

"According to the Superintendent, please feel free to reclaim your items and place them back at your grave site. More updates to follow."

April 14: "I Call It Disrespectful'

In a post on Patch, maryellen scott writes:

"Has anyone seen what the Hazardville cemetery has done with all the statues? They call it cleaning I call it disrespectful."

April 15: Cemetery Says Notice Was Given

In an article by NBC Connecticut, Cemetery Superintendent Jeff Buckley said an ad ran in the Journal Inquirer for two weeks prior to the cleanup to notify the public.

Despite that, many residents only learned of the cleanup when they went to visit their loved ones graves.

April 15: Police Recover Items Stolen from the Cemetery

Mayor Kaupin shared the following message on his Facebook page:

"Message from Superintendent Jeff Buckley of the Enfield Cemetery Association (ECA):

"The Enfield Police Department has recovered approximately 25 items stolen from the Hazardville Cemetery on Sunday, April 13th. These items were stolen by an individual from South Windsor, and due to the assistance of residents who filmed the man taking the items and his vehicle, the Police were able to recover these items.

"Superintendent Buckley will be picking up these items from the Enfield Police today (April 15th) and will place them in storage with the ECA. People who are looking for missing items are encouraged to call Jeff at the ECA Office at 860-749-6636 to arrange a time and location to view the items to see if they are yours."

In a comment on that post, Kaupin added:

"The guy that came to pick stuff up was told repeatedly that these were not abandoned items. The Chief reviewed the situation and deemed it theft. They did not arrest the man since he gave up the items."

What Do You Think of the Situation?

Share your thoughts in the comments below.