By Lachlan McKay
Work started last fall to prepare the Smith Family Cemetery for the coming season.
Located in Nauvoo, Illinois, on the east bank of the Mississippi River, the cemetery is the final resting place for four generations of family members.
Among those buried here are Joseph Smith, Sr. and Lucy Mack Smith, Joseph Smith, Jr. and Emma Hale Smith, Hyrum Smith, Don Carlos Smith and Samuel Smith.
As many as 100,000 people a year visit the cemetery. This traffic, in combination with the challenging Nauvoo weather conditions, had caused the gravel parking area in front of the cemetery to deteriorate through the years.
Thanks to your generous donations, the Joseph Smith, Sr. and Lucy Mack Smith Foundation was able to partner with the Joseph Smith Historic Site to fund the paving of the parking spaces. In order to harmonize the parking area with the historic setting of the cemetery, a tar and chip surface was installed. The result
is a much needed and very attractive improvement to greet visitors to the cemetery.
In addition to funding improvements like the new parking area, your contributions
help purchase flowers for planting in mid-May and cover various expenses related to lawn care, such as fertilizer, mulch, and mowing.
Whenever possible, volunteer labor is used to keep expenses to a minimum. In August, family members will have an opportunity to contribute their time and talent to re-stain the cemetery fence as part of a service project during the upcoming family reunion.
During this time of economic are more important than ever. Please consider making a donation to the foundation to help in our continuing efforts to honor those who have gone before.