Foliage...Foliage...And More Foliage!

The spring and fall colors found in our Northwest Arkansas cemeteries are some of our favorite! And, since we are in the middle of our fall season, I wanted to share some fall photos with you and also invite you to share your own fall cemetery photos in our Cemeteries in the Fall Photo Contest. This contest is found on our Facebook page and is beginning to pick up momentum!

To participate simply like our website page, go to "Photo Contest" and then upload and invite your friends to vote.

A couple of years ago I purchased my first "nice" camera for the purpose of taking photos of monuments that we had made in the cemetery.

As I practiced and became better at photography, I discovered that I have a passion for not only capturing memorials, but also for capturing memorials that are surrounded by beautiful fall colors.

I wanted to share some of those photos with you. Please note all of these photos are the property of Emerson Monument Co. and may not be used without prior permission for any purpose.

Creating Timeless Memorials

One of the things I enjoy most about my job is the opportunity to really get to know the families I work with and help them create beautiful memorials for their loved ones. That is also the hardest part of my job, as it is tough to watch families hurt and try to cope with the pain they are feeling. However, it is always an honor to know that they have chosen to trust both myself and my team here at Emerson to create their loved one's memorial.

When families come into our store they often come in with an idea of what they would like the memorial to look like. Sometimes the idea is something they thought up that represents a hobby, belief, or life long mission. Other times the family might bring in photos of something they have seen out in the cemetery that they would also like to have for their loved one.

I recently worked with a sweet family that came to me with an idea for a memorial for their beautiful daughter. They brought in this photo (below) and asked if we could do something similar.

There were several things the family liked about this monument. They loved the shape with the detailing on the top and bottom sides. They also loved the raised carving (you can see the carving just above her name appears to "pop out" from the granite) and the two bases that it sits on.

As I began to visit with the family about their ideas I came to learn that they wanted the design to be soft and feminine yet classic. We decided that a raised, shape carved rose in place of the hand would be stunning, along with a raised, shape carved ivy border up top.

The family also told me that the monument would be going in an older section of the cemetery and that the surrounding monuments looked like this (below).

Isn't that beautiful?! Those old monuments are stunning and timeless, two elements that the family wished to accomplish with their daughter's memorial. Keeping the surrounding monuments in mind, we suggested that the monument be "steeled". A steeled monument is a monument that has had the shiny polish removed to create a classic look.

Once we worked with the family and they approved of the shape, size and design, we began working on the monument. I have added photos of the process below.


We sandblast the monument

We carefully place a specil stencil on the monument.

We shape carve the monument by hand

Beautiful!

Completed monument in the cemetery

This stunning memorial is a beautiful reminder of sweet Cara's life and the legacy that she left to her family, friends and to others whose lives she may not have even realized she touched.

If you are interested in creating a memorial for yourself on a pre-need basis or for a loved one, please contact Emerson Monument Co. and we will help guide you through the process.



The Austin Cemetery at Best, AR

Nestled deep in the Ozarks somewhere between Rogers and Clifty, Arkansas, sits the quiet little community of Best. Surrounded by trees, creeks and views, this community is home to one of the largest oak trees in the nation. But this small community is home to another interesting slice of history- The Austin Cemetery.



The Austin Cemetery at Best

At first glance, The Austin Cemetery is host to stunning views. However, as you look more closely, you will notice dozens of identicle small square headstons dotting the landscape.

 

These simple headstones, made of concrete and lacking inscriptions, were erected several years ago in honor of individuals whose graves had not been marked.

 

But finding these unmarked graves certainly wasn't easy. In fact, a lot of time and effort went into this privately funded project, resulting in the discovery of these unmarked graves.

 

So how did they determine where these unmarked graves were without a cemetery map or cemetery records? Well, they scraped the land and looked for areas in which the dirt appeared "different". And as they continued with their search they realized that the areas of "different dirt" were actually in perfect rows and even left room for a narrow pathway down the middle.

 

Determined that these individuals, regardless of their race, gender and history, lead lives worth remembering, the property owner erected small memorials on their behalf. But who are these people? Where did they come from and what did they do during their lifetimes? This project gained the attention of several area residents who are working to answer those questions. What an amazing project, indeed!