Former Nonpublic Cemetery Minutes for June 8, 2011 @ SHFD @ 6:35 p.m.
Minutes opened on June 27, 2011 on advice of town counsel
Trustees Present: Chuck Stinson, Bill Zanes, Ron Connary; Others Present: Gwen Paquette, Stuart Powers, Rose Connary.
Zanes – A special meeting was called to discuss questions and provide answers in an attempt to settle a question on a personal issue raised by Gwen Paquette; she would like to keep the matter confidential because of family concerns—she did not want to involve the other side of the family.
Stinson/Connary motion (Stinson, Connary, and Zanes voted yes): go into nonpublic session under RSA91-A:3, II(c), matter that could affect reputation, at 6:39. Discussion followed.
Present during nonpublic session—Stinson, Zanes, Ron Connary, Rose Connary, Paquette, Powers, Summers.
Zanes – the matter has not been discussed with the other trustees because of the sensitivity and because he did not want to prejudice them.
Paquette – on June 16, 2005, she paid $500 for perpetual care for Nelson & Gwen Paquette; paid to the Town of Stratford. She purchased it in June after July 4th was the family reunion. She had the committal ceremony at the Baldwin cemetery. It was pouring and muddy. There were about 30 people there. Then they went to Roger’s Campground.
Zanes – It was taken care of five years ago this spring.
Paquette – In December she came up to go to the site. She had done flowers earlier. In December she came up and put a bow on the shrub/tree and took pictures (provided picture). She had an appointment to do the headstone with Barry Normandeau. He received a picture of the site from her. The headstone was not there but in the row ahead of where it should be. The stone was laid two weeks ago. Normandeau told her it was ready in early May. In mid-May, the ground was muddy. Zanes had just gotten home from the hospital. Normandeau sent an e-mail a couple weeks ago to take care of it. A couple weeks ago she came up on Memorial Day weekend. The stone was on the wrong lot. She used the phone at the store and left a message for Zanes at home. She reached him Monday night. We need to find the urn. She heard that Gary Paquette said she (Gwen) had the wrong space. She is the owner of the plot. No one consulted her about the plot. Gary has not legal right to tell anyone where to put the stone. It’s her plot. Her concern is that he was put in the proper place and the stone is put with him.
Zanes said he was caught up with dealing with both sides of the family. He figured Gary would know where Nelson was buried. It is a misunderstanding. Now they are trying to double check all sides of the issue. Normandeau has contacted Jimmy Flanders who dug the hole for the headstone foundation. He expects Normandeau to use Flanders to move the stone. He wants to make sure of where the urn is located. This has to be settled.
Paquette – Nelson wasn’t interred until 2006. She wants to be sure where the urn is located. Normandeau is waiting. He has no time until June 15th to move the stone. Flanders has a bucket that is small to peel back a little of the sod and dirt. It is very rocky there. You can’t tell if it is a rock or the granite urn when you probe. The urn was shoebox size (men’s shoebox size). She will contact Normandeau regarding Flander’s availability.
Connary – is the stone right?
Zanes – No. It has to be moved.
Connary – Are the four corners on the lot?
Zanes – No.
Zanes – this lot is by the family lot. You have to come 9’ from the previous lot, 10’ from Lawrence marker—headstone. Under the family lot is room from Bev and Gary Paquette. Then comes the next open area. She was close to the shrub in a downpour during the funeral. She put lilacs on the ground now where she thinks it is. Lots of people were at the reunion. The little table stone where the stone is now, but the little stones didn’t impede them back during the ceremony so she know they were further ahead.
Powers – it is about 3’ in front of the shrub tree.
Paquette – she drew a sketch showing where she thinks the urn is located. She provided a picture of the lot. She thinks it is 30” in front of the tree, dead center. It is the size of a large shoe box—approximately 8 x 8 x 12 more or less. The urn is about 18: down. She put the urn in the hole herself.
Zanes – Discussed putting a piece of metal or rebar at the urn site so it can be found when it is her time to be buried.
Zanes – asked about a small vault; it is a miniature vault that holds two urns.
Paquette – it is not necessary at this point to disturb him.
Zanes – he wanted the other trustees to know that digging will occur. The town had just taken over Baldwin cemetery just prior to this. It was a private cemetery before.
Paquette – she provided Normandeau’s price for disassembling, scraping, and seeding. The cost is in the range of $1,600. She asked where do we go from here.
Zanes – we need to scrape bit by bit. Take 4” to start and then have someone spot as you probe and go lower.
Paquette – who will pay for this?
Zanes – It will fall on the town.
Paquette – when the discrepancy was pointed out by Gary, someone should have contacted her.
Zanes – the town will have to rectify it.
Zanes – he and others each spent five hours probing and did not find it in the lot where the headstone is located.
Paquette – Normandeau is to contact the trustees.
Zanes – So someone will be there to help.
Paquette – any discrepancies or questions, contact her directly. Later, when it is resolved, she will put in corner markers.
Zanes – the trustees are trying to get corner markers in all the cemeteries. No more probing is to be done. Flanders says it takes about 20 minutes to scrape off the grave.
Connary – what about the sexton. Does he not remember where it is?
Zanes – No, he does not remember and did not mark it.
Zanes – apologized for the discrepancy.
Paquette – her e-mail is gkpaquette@hotmail.com.
Paquette – she would like the work done by the 8th or 9th of July.
Zanes – the probing didn’t find anything int eh other lot. Her lot is 4’ x 8’/
Paquette – there is not much room for a headstone between the urn and the tree.
Zanes – usually the headstone is centered on the family plot.
Connary – we need to have good dirt put on top.
Zanes – they do put good dirt in now.
Paquette – she can be reached at 978-250-1214 in Chelmsford, MA.
Zanes – the cost is about $800 to disassembled and reassemble; the cost is about $810 to scrape and locate the urn.
Paquette and Powers left at 7:24 p.m.
Zanes – he was there when the stone was set. Stanley Marshall didn’t know where the urn was. Gary Paquette told him it was in front of the tree. Gary said the marker was in the wrong place (the bow that had been placed); it should have beent eh row in front of it. Normandeau put the market where Gary said to put it. They didn’t find the burn when they dug 3 ½’ for the headstone foundation in the front row.
Zanes said at Baldwin measurement is from the back of the stone wall and from the center of the road from the gate to the house off to the left.
Rose Connary – will Zanes be available to follow up on issues?
Zanes – yes.
Zanes – we used all options first (probing, asking, etc.), but now we need to go to a more drastic process.
Stinson/Connary motion (Stinson, Connary, and Zanes voted yes): seal the minutes.
Stinson/Connary motion (Stinson, Connary, and Zanes voted yes): return to public session at 7:25.
[Break.]
Stinson/Connary motion (approved 3/0): adjourn at 8:05 p.m.
Submitted by PSummers