The three cemeteries in VanBuren Township are scheduled for cleanup during the first two weeks of April. InkFreeNews file photo by David Hazledine.

Press Release

MILFORD — Cemetery cleanup in Van Buren Township will take place April 1-15.

This includes Milford Cemetery, CR 60; Mt. Pleasant, Bowser Road and CR 250E; and Salem, CR 900 and CR 200.

Mt. Pleasant and Salem are owned and managed by the Van Buren Township Trustee’s office, using tax dollars for maintenance. Milford Cemetery is owned and managed by the Milford Cemetery Association and is a nonprofit whose only income is from the purchase of burial spaces and donations.

Any decorations and grave blankets remaining after April 15 that are not secured on the foundations or headstones will be removed and disposed of by cemetery maintenance personnel. Any faded or torn decorations will also be removed by cemetery maintenance personnel, regardless of location on gravesite.

If you have items you want to keep, remove them before April 15. There will be a dumpster at Milford Cemetery, located by the toolshed on Roy Auer Drive for disposal of trash. Decorations/trash at township cemeteries must be taken off-site. New decorations may be placed after May 1.

Perennial plantings must be maintained by lot owners. Leaf-bearing trees, shrubs and bushes should not be planted. All gravesites must adhere to cemetery rules concerning placement of decorations and plantings.

For the benefit of safety, shepherd hooks, glass decorations or glass vases are not permitted. Encroaching on another burial space is not permitted. For the purpose of mowing, gravesites should be clear of anything that would hinder the ability of maintenance crews to mow and trim around foundations.

The trustee’s office and the Milford Cemetery Association thank the friends and family members of deceased loved ones for abiding by the cemetery rules, allowing the maintenance personnel to efficiently and properly maintain the cemetery as a beautiful place for visitors to honor their loved ones.

Community groups will be doing trimming around foundations at Milford Cemetery the week before Memorial Day services. Volunteers are welcome. More information will be coming regarding date and time.

Questions regarding Mt. Pleasant and Salem cemeteries can be directed to Diane Perry, Van Buren Township trustee, at (574) 658-9686. For Milford Cemetery, call (574) 453-8676.

Copies of rules for all cemeteries can be viewed at milford-indiana.org.