Dear Families of St. Denis Cemetery,
As Cemetery Director it has been brought to my attention that many here at St. Denis Cemetery are unaware of, or have become complacent with, the planting, decorating and monument regulations at the cemetery. In a continuing effort to provide a dignified resting place for your loved ones & all others buried in the cemetery, there is a copy of the longstanding cemetery guidelines for your review on the parish website under Cemetery and available at the Cemetery Office. These policies are not unique to St. Denis, but are similar to policies that are in place at many Catholic Cemeteries throughout the Archdiocese of New York and the Nation. These rules have been in effect long before I took over as Cemetery Director
After reviewing these regulations, we hope you will have a better understanding of why these policies were put into effect. Our priority is your safety, the safety of all visitors, and the safety of our groundskeepers. The placement of objects does create a hazard for workers while operating ground equipment like mowers, blowers, weed trimmers and snow removal equipment. Our cemetery staff works very hard to maintain a neat, clean and dignified place of rest for all of our loved ones, but their safety and yours must also be considered. With respect for all who have loved ones buried here at St. Denis Cemetery, and have expressed a desire to see these standards maintained, we must ask that everyone comply with the regulations. We are sensitive to your needs, but at the same time, we are very concerned that many have taken the liberty of placing items that have been prohibited. These items do interfere with day to day maintenance of the grounds. Items such as fencing, banner poles, bricks, blocks, stones, large statuary, bottles, pottery, glass vases, balloons, mulch, garden stones, pebbles, and large artificial flowers. Shrubs, trees and bushes are not to be planted on any gravesite. Our end of summer clean-up will begin in September weather permitting. As a result, we must enforce the regulations and ask that all prohibited items be removed from your gravesite as soon as possible. When there is any doubt about a grave decoration, please check at the cemetery office before placing it to avoid possible disappointment later. Together, we hope that we can once again make the resting place of our loved ones a place of dignity where Christ’s comforting presence will be experienced by all who visit St. Denis Cemetery.
Peter Tepper
Cemetery Director
845-226-6818
Fr. Andrew Carrozza
Pastor