De Pere Greenwood Cemetery is facing an erosion crisis June 12, 2023. PC: Fox 11 Online
LEDGEVIEW, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Progress is being made in the preservation and restoration of the De Pere Greenwood Cemetery, Brown County’s oldest non-denominational cemetery. Along the banks of the Fox River, erosion was washing away the hillside, threatening to unearth the buried.
Volunteers continue to clean up the De Pere Greenwood Cemetery following Tuesday’s storm, which littered it with branches and debris. It’s just a small part of a much larger project to preserve some of Brown County’s history.
“We have the Lawtons, we have Lenfestys, we have Syble Hopp. We have a lot, a lot of people here that are from all walks of life,” said Jewels Sowers, president of the De Pere Greenwood Cemetery Association.
A hillside full of trees and invasive species, coupled with erosion, was threatening the stability and tranquility of the cemetery.
The cemetery association securing a one million dollar grant from the state to clear the hillside and add fill to shore it up. It’s a project that started late last year.
Sowers said, “The benefits have been absolutely wonderful.”
Not only has the restoration saved some of the burial sites at risk of being unearthed, because of erosion, but it’s opened up views of the Fox River too.
“There’s more sun. I like the view of the water. I think that’s nice. It just gives it more of a bright feel than more of a kind of dark gloomy feel that I feel like I had before,” added Lindsey Meier of Green Bay.
Other upgrades to the cemetery include a water system. Cement will be poured soon in order to add a storage shed. And prairie plants will be added to the hillside to keep it from eroding.
The cemetery association is hoping to raise an additional $1.5 million dollars to complete other projects on site, including the addition of four reflection points.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s $10 or half a million, if they want to give, we’re just blessed for what we have,” added Sowers.
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