Bannockburn Cemetery works come to life

HEADSTONES sit peacefully in the sun, casting shadows across the recently mowed lawn.

There is a pile of dirt next to a manicured garden bed, shoots of planted green emerging from the ground.

A gravel path leads to a clean bench seat, beckoning visitors to rest in the cool breeze.

These works did not come about by themselves; they were enacted by the Bannockburn Cemetery Trust. And for the past 18 months, the volunteer group has been meeting every Tuesday to maintain, improve and beautify Bannockburn’s only cemetery.

Cemetery Trust member Melissa Gillett said the group wants to make sure the cemetery is a “nice place.”

“We host these weekly working bees so that the cemetery can be a place that local people are proud of,” she said. “Cemeteries are visited by a lot of people, and we want people to see ours for how beautiful it truly is.”

The groups working bees typically last around two hours, but members frequently head to the cemetery on their own accord, usually for general maintenance.

In the past, the trust has transformed the cemeteries front entrance, replaced the old post fencing with an aluminium fence, alongside a variety of other works.

Ms Gillett said projects are often funded through donations from the community and the Shire.

“We were lucky enough to receive some funding from some grants, like the Community Strengthening Grant from council, and the Bannockburn Connected Communities Grant,” she said.

“The Cemetery Trust also uses some of its own money to pay for the works.”

The group of eight is showing no signs of slowing down, with plans for future developments already in the works.

“For our next project, we’re going to transform our rotunda area into an information centre,” Ms Gillett said. “We want to put in a sliding door, some windows and close up the back so we can install some information boards, informing people of unmarked graves, areas of interest, that kind of stuff.”

“There’s always more work to be done, so our projects are just going to keep evolving.”