Bedias Cemetery Association seeks new offi cers, donations

The Bedias Cemetery Association, the caretakers of the Baptist and Methodist cemeteries in Bedias, will hold its annual homecoming and business meeting Saturday, March 7, at the Bedias Civic Center, 3652 Main Street. The meeting will begin at 10 a.m. and all are encouraged to bring their favorite finger foods for the lunch that follows the meeting as well as their favorite work gloves for cemetery cleanup and general maintenance.

Association President Steve Woodall told the Examiner that despite downed poles in the area during the recent storm, there was no significant damage at the cemeteries but mowing and dying trees, a residual effect of the 2011 drought, remain their biggest financial challenges.

Woodall said, “We still have trees that are dying and we’re taking them out. That and the mowing are our biggest expenses. It costs a lot to mow and to keep it up. It costs a lot to take down trees because they have to take them down piece by piece.”

Families are responsible for the graves and headstones of their loved ones, but the Association’s responsibilities include mowing both cemeteries, purchasing rock for the road, sand for the settling graves, and removal of limbs and debris as a result of dead trees or high winds. Removing the dead trees is necessary to keep them from falling and damaging the headstones.

Woodall added that some longtime board members are retiring so the organization anticipates electing some new officers at the March 7 meeting.

The tax-exempt 501c3 organization is also soliciting donations and memorials to assist with the upkeep and maintenance of those laid to rest in the Bedias cemeteries. Donors should include their address with their donation so the Association can send a receipt as well as send a card to the family advising of the memorial given on behalf of their loved one. Donations should be mailed to the Bedias Cemetery Association, P.O. Box 579, Bedias, Texas, 77831.

For additional information about board participation, donations or memorials, call Steve Woodall at (979) 248-4439.