I would like to begin by thanking the Cubs and Scouts from JV Troop 17, JV Pack 3017, their parents and siblings for helping clean-up the cemetery grounds on October 23, 2021. After a fair amount of rain and wind, the ground was covered with downed branches and limbs and this group of volunteers wasted no time in cleaning it up. We sincerely appreciate their help in caring for the cemetery grounds.

I also want to acknowledge the continued efforts of our Adopt-A-Block volunteers and others for keeping their blocks and sections neat and tidy. This time of year, it’s all about the leaves!

A total of 190 hours of volunteer labor was contributed during the month of October, 82:30 of which was spent on block and monument restoration projects. Much appreciation goes to John McGlothlin, John Elliott and Kurt Elliott for a total reconstruction of the Reed block in the City section. Given the wet and cold weather, our restoration efforts have come to a close for the year and we all look forward to new projects in 2022.

What’s New—We recently added a new bulletin board to the side of our Interpretive Center, under the Kiosk Pavilion. We have, thanks to Eric Rogers, QR Codes posted that will take visitors to the following: Jacksonville Cemetery Burial Records, the Cemetery Map, the Friends of Jacksonville’s Historic Cemetery website, and the Self-Guided Walking Tour of the cemetery grounds. So far, they have proven to be very helpful and well received by visitors to the cemetery.

Come early spring, we will be adding Story Boards to eleven grave sites of early Pioneer families to Jacksonville and the Rogue Valley. The Story Boards will provide visitors with a brief, informative look into the lives of these Pioneers and the contributions they made to Jacksonville and Southern Oregon. A number of the Story Boards will also contain photographs.

Our appreciation to Dee Reynar for suggesting and spearheading this new and exciting project. We anticipate that the new Story Boards will prove to be as popular as our original Interpretive Panels, resulting in the addition of more Story Boards in the future.

Looking Ahead—As 2021 comes to an end, we will start planning our events and activities for the new year. Our hope is to offer five or six scheduled “History Saturday in the Cemetery” programs along with at-request tours. Hopefully, we can bring back our annual “Meet the Pioneers Living History Tours” on October 7 and 8, 2022.

A Special Thank You— to each of our volunteers who do so much in caring for the cemetery and supporting our organization. Sincerest appreciation and gratitude to all who have made donations helping us carry on with our work.

Wishing all a very Merry Christmas, happiest of holidays and a safe and healthy New Year.