As an Igo resident, I drive by the Northern California Veterans Cemetery nearly every day.
Last month my reporter antenna perked up when I noticed activity at the scrub oak and manzanita covered property directly north of the cemetery.
Over the course of many days, California Conservation Corps workers and Shasta County inmate crews hacked through the brush.
Fire prevention clearing, I thought.
But then they started hauling out whole trees, and within a few days all the property was cleared, stumps and all. Now that’s a big fire break.
Parking lot, I thought.
A maintenence guy outside the cemetery confirmed my parking lot guess. But as they say in journalism school, “If your mother says she loves you – check it out.”
So Wednesday afternoon I stopped by the Veterans Cemetery office and asked Stephen Jorgensen, the cemetery’s administrator, about the bare dirt lot next door. He confirmed that land would one day be a parking lot, something that’s necessary because overflow vehicles often park along Gas Point Road, especially on Veterans Day and Memorial Day. But even on weeks that aren’t holidays, the cemetery remains busy. Last week, for example, the cemetery oversaw 15 services.
When asked about an estimated completion date, Jorgensen said it just depends.
“We rely upon volunteers and donations for almost everything,” he said. “All the landscaping you see, all the plant materials, they’re donated. I’d like to say we’ll be done with the parking lot by Memorial Day. But can we get it done by then? I don’t know.”
Jorgensen added that students from Shasta College’s Heavy Equipment courses might work on the parking lot as part as their class training.
I learned a few other things at the cemetery yesterday. For one thing, I learned it only has five paid employees – all by the state of California.
I also learned the Veterans Cemetery lowers its American flag to half-staff 30 minutes before the first funeral of the day and 30 minutes after the last funeral of the day.
Perhaps most timely, I learned that Jorgensen does anticipate a larger-than-usual crowd Saturday for Joshua Munns’ service. But other than that expectation, and a few personal touches requested by Munns’ family, Jorgersen said Joshua Munns’ service will have much in common with the other veterans whose final resting place is Igo.
“We treat every veteran’s burial special here,” Jorgensen said.