Lincoln Cemetery Draws Volunteers to Step in the Right Direction

“My mom is back there somewhere, and I can’t even find her,” St. Petersburg Council Member Wengay Newton said as he pointed toward the back of Lincoln Cemetery, at 600 58th St. S, in Gulfport.

The farther back it stretches, the higher the brush. Trash and debris covered tombstones. Newton was determined to find his mother’s grave. “I’ll find her,” he said.

The St. Pete councior launched the effort after he received a multitude of phone calls and emails from people who have ties to the cemetery. They begged him to do something about the mess that is Lincoln Cemetery.

The historic cemetery is a final resting place for thousands of African Americans, from Civil War soldiers to parents of ordinary citizens.

Newton says that he plans to write a letter to the armed forces to bring forth an awareness about the vets who are at rest at Lincoln Cemetery.

“Maybe we could get them to come out here and spruce up the headstones a little bit, that would be a big help,” said Newton. “Anything we can do, we are going to try and do.”

Cars began trickling into the cemetery around 7:30 a.m. Saturday, but some volunteers were already sweaty from pulling weeds and scooping trash. Newton talked to the volunteers as a whole around 8 a.m. to guide their efforts in an organized manner.

Gulfport resident Elizabeth Howlett came out to show her support for the cleanup.

“It makes my heart swell with pride to think that people really care,” Howlett said. “It’s just so disrespectful to the families and to the dead to let things get this bad.”

Fortunately, a large number of volunteers showed up to make the cleanup more effective. The odds are against workers considering what they’re up against. From overgrown grass that would swallow an SUV to tree stumps invading tombstones, the work load was heavy.

“I’m thankful because there’s a lot of people out here that I’ve never met” Newton noted. “There’s a lot of volunteers coming out here and giving up their time and themselves.”

Newton, who organized the event, says that he hopes to have more volunteer work days like Saturday so that families can enjoy visiting lost loved ones without going on a search and rescue mission.

“Right now, a lot of this place is impassable” he said. In the future, Newton hopes to make the cemetery a place where “families can spend some time at their loved ones’ grave sites.”