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ELKINS -- Representatives from the Maplewood Cemetery Board of Trustees made a funding request to the Randolph County Commission Thursday during its regular meeting at the James F. Cain Courthouse Annex.
Speaking on behalf of the cemetery board, Mark Tomblyn and Mark Talbott told Commissioners David Kesling, Chris See and Cris Siler that funding was needed in order to keep Maplewood up and running.
"We need money. With the donations we have and the expenses we have, we simply can't keep it going any longer," said Tomblyn, who is the cemetery's secretary and treasurer. "So we are here to ask if there is any way the commission could possibly help us with any funding."
Tomblyn told the commissioners that the cemetery's board of trustees, which also includes Talbott, has been overseeing Maplewood after a court appointment by Judge David Wilmoth two and half years ago.
"It was bankrupt, overgrown and in terrible condition when we took charge of it," said Tomblyn. "We've had a number of donations, small and large, from people, private citizens, and Delegate (Ty) Nestor gave us a grant from the state a year or so ago. When we took over, it didn't even have a checking account, it had nothing. We've gotten back to where it's safe for people to go and visit their loved ones' burial sites."
Tomblyn said the cemetery is in desperate need of equipment and many other items in order to keep the grounds up and running.
"We are to the point where we just don't have the funds available to keep it going," he said. "And none of us want to see it go back to the way it was when we took it over. We have a lot of needs for the cemetery."
Maplewood Cemetery is a historic landmark. Several important figures that played a vital role in the founding of Elkins are buried there, including Henry G. Davis, Stephen Benton Elkins and Davis Elkins.
"We have three United States senators and a former professional baseball player from back in the early 1900s buried there," Tomblyn said. "The cemetery is 130 years old."
Commissioner Siler asked Tomblyn what the annual expenses were for the cemetery.
"To give you an idea, there is a master trust that was established years ago and it has $100,000 in it, but by law we are only allowed to use the interest on it," Tomblyn said. "There is another private trust that a private individual left for the cemetery, and we can only use interest only. And there's a mausoleum account that interest only can be used. We received $3,495 this year in interest and that's basically the income coming in."
Tomblyn said the liability insurance for the cemetery, which is around $2,500, consumes most of the money that is received from the interest payments. He added that Maplewood was able to purchase a new commercial grade lawn mower this year through donations, however.
Talbott told the commission the reason the cemetery is struggling so much is because of the way it was left before the board took it over.
"The previous owner declared bankruptcy, and prior to doing that he sold everything off that he could sell," said Talbott. "That's why we are behind the eight-ball. We are trying to make up for what he did."
Kesling said the commission wanted to help and would discuss what could be done.
"Let us go back and talk as a group and see what we can do," Kesling said. "We would love to help because there is a lot of history behind that cemetery. It was a shame that it was let go that bad. Let us see what we can do first and we will get back with you."