COLUMBIA TOWNSHIP, Ohio — Walking through the time machine that is the Columbia Township Cemetery is tranquil, but way in the back lie several grave stones eaten by Mother Nature, which is heartbreaking for one local history buff.
Scott Power said he was originally researching 1800s African American graves when he was suggested to check out the Columbia Township Cemetery.
"What I found was kind of shocking. There are lots of graves that are off the sides of the cemetery and kind of being taken over by nature and the trees and whatnot," Power told me.
Power said he visited the cemetery a few years prior and noticed the same issue of overgrowth. Some of the grave sites he saw covered by grass back then were covered again on Thursday, he added.
"I came before the town hall and through some negotiations, we were able to come to an idea of how to handle the situation. They did an awesome job and now, three years later, there's some things that need to be addressed," Power shared.
Power doesn't have a relative buried in this cemetery, but he found it important to notify the public and, essentially, the township of his concerns.
"If somebody doesn't bring it to their attention, then who will? I mean, they're not my ancestors, but in a way they are my ancestors and if there's no one here to watch over the grave site, do we just let it go? We should always honor those that came before us and gone," Power said.
When we visited the cemetery on Thursday, we counted as many as 10 grave stones that were either surrounded by weeds or covered by overhanging trees. One stone has become part of a tree far in the back.
I sat down with Columbia Township Trustee Mark Cunningham Thursday afternoon to discuss the cemetery clean-up.
"I'm not gonna disagree with him that we need to get some work done," Cunningham said. "It's not grass. It's the bushes and the weeds. That's what we need to take care of."
Cunningham said the township's three cemeteries are maintained by their four-person road crew and a contracted landscaping company they've been partnered with for the last few years.
Due to the limited staff and the need to complete other projects first, the cemetery clean-up will not be immediate, according to Cunningham.
"We also have to look out for the public safety of our residents. We're required by the state revised code to cut the roadside grass by the end of June so we've got that done. We're doing some ditching and we're also doing some road paving. We're upgrading our park," Cunningham said.
The township also has a few events popping up soon, such as a car show where $15,000 will be donated to the local food bank.
Once the township is able to catch its breath, Cunningham said, crews will trim the weeds, trees, and grass in the Columbia Township Cemetery.
"We have to be careful because some of those trees are on the abutting property. We'll reach out to them," Cunningham added.
The plan is to have the cemetery cleaned up by the end of summer.
"I'm ecstatic at it. That's the whole point. I just wanted it to be kept up so that people could come and enjoy it," Power said.
Beautifying the cemetery will not take a toll on the township's general fund, as the cemetery is self-sufficient in terms of finances, according to Cunningham.
We'll check back in at the end of summer.
