Alan was first to arrive in the cemetery today (18 June 2023) following a week off by the team for a well earned rest. Alan took a photo of the poppies, he was surprised at how many there were in flower this was thanks to Astrid who had been watering them since we came in last.
Alan then went over to the Ashton grave 7-58 that is in a sorry state, the kerbs sunk and the headstone broken, one half lying face down that was kindly turned over by Fine Memorials leaving the kerbs to be sorted by the team.
Dave came in followed by a new volunteer who wished to join us, Chris A who is a carpenter so his skills will be much appreciated. Just behind him came Chris who we will now call Chris D. Alan gave Chris A a short H&S talk identifying the hazards to look for while working in the cemetery.
Both Chris’s took on the task of the Washer 10-45 grave, a large headstone laid down a short distance from the kerbs that it once stood in front of. It was agreed that the headstone should be rolled back to sit on the kerbs, not only to unite the kerbs and headstone but also to offer better protection for both. Their task was to level up the kerbs that had sunk and were broken in several places. A good two hours later the Washer kerbs were levelled and the broken kerbs cemented back together. Well done lads a great job.
Alan and Dave left the two Chris’s working on the Washer grave and went back over to the Ashton to start their task of levelling the kerbs. This work went well, the top kerbs made up of three parts were levelled and packed. Next they worked on the left hand side kerb that had sunk badly, it was slid to one side and new pads were cemented into position ready for the kerb to be replaced once the cement had set. Still a lot of work left here but a good start.
A very productive morning, it was great to have a new volunteer who quickly settled into the working team.
Although Alan told the team that providing the weather was fine they would continue their work on the Washer and Ashton graves, he had forgotten that we have the Somerset Conservationists coming in next Sunday to give us a hand in clearing and digging the ground at the North end of the cemetery ready for planting new shrubs in the Autumn, also trimming the low branches on the trees. The task of the Friends will be to support conservationists and remove the waste in dumpy bags over to the storage area for collection by Somerset Council in due course.