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QUICK LINKS _______________
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Please visit our website here
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CONTACT US __________________ IF YOU NEED HELP with cemetery operations or funeral arrangements, please contact John Weilert at 816-213-4750 or john.weilert@sbcglobal.net.
If you need help with archives, locating a grave site, family history or volunteering, please contact
Bruce Mathews at 816-868-1392
To leave a message at the Elmwood Cemetery Office, please call 816-231-0373.
If you would like to make
a donation, please make it out to Elmwood Cemetery Society and send it to our P.O. Box.
(see below)
CEMETERY ADDRESS:
4900 Truman Road
P.O. Box 270255
Kansas City, MO
64127-0255
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THE ELMWOOD
CEMETERY SOCIETY
BOARD OF TRUSTEES __________________________ OFFICERS John Weilert President Ed Matheny III 1st Vice President Hal Lowenstein 2nd Vice President/Counsel Paul Benson Treasurer Nancy Elder Secretary TRUSTEES Bob Denzel DJ Hyde Matheny Bruce Mathews Aggie Stackhaus Fred Truog PICNIC HOST COMMITTEE Anita Gorman Chair Shawsie Branton Mary Davidson Cohen Shirley Helzberg Mary Hunkeler Barbara Potts Barbara Unell
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ELMWOOD CEMETERY:
Stories of Kansas City
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Copies of the award winning book, Elmwood Cemetery: Stories of Kansas City, are still available for purchase. All proceeds go to Elmwood Cemetery for its continued upkeep.
This unique look at the history of Kansas City, as told through the lives of those buried in Elmwood (many who contributed to give us "The Kansas City Spirit") has been honored with two prestigious awards. One came from the Jackson County Historical Society which named the book as its historical book of the year for 2010. Another award was recently received from the Historic Kansas City Foundation.
To purchase a copy, contact
Bruce Mathews at bmathews2@kc.rr.com
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VOLUNTEERS MAKE THE DIFFERENCE
 
UPCOMING VOLUNTEER WORK DAYS IN 2013
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Volunteer work days
are held the fourth
Saturday of every month,
March thru October,
from 9:00 a.m. to noon.
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Volunteering at Elmwood is not only a great way to enhance the physical appearance of the cemetery, it is a great way to make new friends and learn more about this historic treasure.
Elmwood Cemetery has no paid staff and is totally dependent upon volunteers and donations for its preservation. If you, or your group, would like help please contact Elmwood trustee Bruce Mathews at bmathews2@kc.rr.com
BECOME A FRIEND OF ELMWOOD
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VOLUNTEER
SPECIALISTS NEEDED
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Stonemasons: A substantial amount of stone work is needed to repair retaining walls, mausoleums and the beautiful Armour Chapel.
Tree Experts:
Elmwood is full of beautiful, but old, trees. After years of neglect these centerpieces of the beautiful grounds need a lot of TLC. There are also a lot of stumps that need to be ground up.
Monument Conservators:
Many of the beautiful, but old, gravestones in Elmwood need immediate conservation to preserve them for future generations.
Painters & Carpenters:
The Elmwood office and Armour Memorial Chapel are in great need of care. The office needs to be spruced up inside and out. The chapel needs conservators to aid in its historic preservation.
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The Elmwood newsletter is published by Elmwood trustee, Bruce Mathews and designed by Elmwood trustee, DJ Hyde Matheny.
If you have questions about content, or suggestions for topics to include in future issues,
If you have comments or suggestions about the design, please contact DJ at djmatheny@
elmwoodcem-kc.org
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THE KANSAS CITY SPIRIT:
STORIES OF SERVICE ABOVE SELF
THERE HAVE BEEN MANY defining moments which have shaped The Kansas City Spirit. Following the flood of 1951, Joyce C. Hall, founder of Hallmark Cards, commissioned Norman Rockwell to paint this spirit. His words to the artist were: "Paint a picture of The Kansas City Spirit that will forever symbolize the thing in good men's hearts that makes them put service above self and accomplish the impossible."
This book, The Kansas City Spirit: Stories of Service Above Self, not only recalls some of these defining moments, it examines the contributions and personal stories of a few of those whose lives exemplified that Spirit.
The Kansas City Spirit: Stories of Service Above Self should not be read merely as a history book (although that it is). It is a how-to book for future generations of Kansas Citians... how to give back and make this community a better place in which to live. Example is a powerful force. The people profiled in this book are testimony to the fact that it does not matter whether you are rich or poor, woman or man, white or black, American Indian or Latino, young or old, Protestant, Jewish or Catholic, we all have a role to play in lifting up even the least among us.
Authors:
Bruce Mathews, with Mamie Hughes, Andrew Kaplan, Christopher Leitch,
Lynn Mackle and Carol Powers
Foreword by: R. Crosby Kemper III
Publisher: Kansas City Star Books, Doug Weaver
Designer: DJ Hyde Matheny
Editor: Carol Powers
Associate Editor: Judy Pearlstein
Specifications: 240 pages, hard cover, 4 color
Retail price: $27.95, plus tax
To order: contact Bruce Mathews, bmathews2@kc.rr.com
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of The Kansas City Spirit will be donated for the betterment of Elmwood Cemetery.
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HELP PRESERVE
A LANDMARK
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Robert McClintock
Mausoleum
ELMWOOD CEMETERY has no paid staff. It is preserved by a dedicated group of volunteers, but volunteers alone cannot totally maintain this rich piece of history. There are many expenses necessary to maintain this beautiful landmark and to honor those buried in it with dignity and respect.
Please consider supporting Elmwood Cemetery in any way you can. Donations can be sent to The Elmwood Cemetery Society, 4900 E. Truman Road, Kansas City, Missouri, 64127. Donations using PayPal can be made online at the cemetery's website, www.ElmwoodCem-KC.com.
The Elmwood Cemetery Society is a non-profit 501(c)13 entity. Donations are tax deductible. However, donations that must be made to a 501(c)3 can be made through the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation, c/o The Elmwood Cemetery Preservation Fund.
Thank you for your support.
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SPECIAL THANKS
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KUDOS go out to some very special Elmwood volunteers.
First the Elmwood Cemetery Society would like to thank Scott Boldrey, with KC Metro Lawn & Snow, for plowing snow from the roadways in Elmwood, not once, but twice this winter.
Additionally, while the March 23 volunteer work day was officially cancelled due to the weather, there were a few hardy souls who insisted on coming anyway: Loxie Stock and Aggie Stackhaus cleaned the chapel to get it ready for the Easter sunrise worship service of Wesley Heights Methodist Church; Jackson County Legislator, Scott Burnett, came ready for work with his chain saw and pickup truck. He helped me cut up a number of limbs that had fallen as a result of the winter's heavy snows; And, Alex Perez, one of the "Graveyard Shift" crew from Bishop Miege High School, along with Thad Cooper from Frisbie Monument Co, reset over two dozen gravestones that needed attention.
Thank you all, so much.
Bruce Mathews
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IN TRIBUTE
ADELE HALL
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By Bruce Mathews
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ON JANUARY 26, 2013 the truest example of The Kansas City Spirit passed from our midst. Adele Hall was the guiding light of her family, a champion for a staggering number of charitable organizations, a strong supporter of Elmwood Cemetery, and the dearest of personal friends.
From 2009 until her death she was the Chair of the picnic committee for Elmwood Cemetery. With the support of Anita Gorman, Shawsie Branton, Mary Hunkeler, Barbara Potts, Barbara Unell, Shirley Helzberg and Stephanie Noland, these ladies annually attracted hundreds of people from all over the country to join us at this unique family gathering. They helped raise thousands of dollars for the preservation of Elmwood. The picnic will go on and Adele will be watching over from above.
Adele and Donald Hall have been friends with Presidents, donated millions of dollars to charities, and yet she always had time for the least among us. She knew everyone's first name. It did not matter if it was the president of a large corporation or the person who came to the home to collect her trash, she conversed on an equal level with all of us. She was the nicest person I ever met and served as an example of the type of person we all want to be when we grow up. She did not just give her time, money and name to causes she believed in, she gave her heart.
Her father-in-law, Joyce C. Hall, defined the Kansas City Spirit as "that something good in the human heart which allows us to put service above self to accomplish the impossible." Kansas City never had a better example of such a legacy.
On a personal level I will always cherish her friendship. We worked together on various projects for over 30 years, beginning with Children's Mercy Hospital Golf Classic and culminating with Elmwood Cemetery. She wrote the foreword to our 2010 book about Elmwood, and the day before she died I received an email from her asking how Ella (the Elmwood deer) was doing. In 2011 I was honored to receive The Kansas City Spirit Award. I will always hold dear the memory that it was she who nominated me.
Everyone involved with the preservation of Elmwood Cemetery will remember her genuine support and be guided by her example. Our prayers go out to Donald and the entire Hall family. She touched everyone and everything in Kansas City.
 | | 2010 Picnic - Shirley Helzberg, Barbara Unell, Mary Hunkeler, Shawie Branton, Barbara Potts, Anita Gorman, Adele Hall |
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WHERE DID I COME FROM? ________________________________
If you have an ancestor buried in Elmwood Cemetery, we would like to hear from you. The Elmwood Cemetery Family History Project has been created to share information and perpetuate the life stories of those buried here. Family histories, stories, biographies, family photos are treasures meant to be shared.
Rev. George Miller (1834-1900) and his wife,
Mary Walker Hockaday (1840-1931)
photos courtesy of Margaret Hauber
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Elmwood Cemetery
FAMILY HISTORY PROJECT
TO ASSIST GENEOLOGISTS, family members and historians, the Elmwood Cemetery Society is compiling a family history project. The project includes information on the more than 36,000 individuals buried in Elmwood, along with their ancestors/descendants who are not. The family history project includes birth, marriage, death and burial dates/locations, biographies, family genealogies, and sources of information. It is, like all genealogical undertakings, a work in progress. You can view the project at www.ElmwoodCem-KC.org.
If you have information, photos, etc. on family members buried in Elmwood, or their ancestors, and you would like to have it included in this family history project, your participation will be greatly appreciated.
To submit materials, or if you have any questions about this project, please email Elmwood Cemetery Society board member, Bruce Mathews, bmathews2@kc.rr.com.
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ELMWOOD AND
THE PRIESTS OF PALLAS
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"The Priests was a week-long festival held annually from 1887 to 1912, and revived briefly from 1922 to 1924. Festival supporters set out to promote Kansas City's image as the "Athens of the West" and to parallel other celebrations such as New Orleans's Mardi Gras and St. Louis's Veiled Prophet. Pallas Athene was the patroness of the festival and motifs were based loosely on figures from Greek mythology. Festivities included three parades with ornate floats, and numerous concerts and other performances. Nightly parties culminated with an elegant masked ball where guests received an official annual souvenir. In 2005, several local historical groups combined to re-create the Priests of Pallas masked ball at Union Station." (Source: Missouri Valley Special Collections, Kansas City Public Library.) (Editor's note: The last ball was held in 2007.) The photographs accompanying this story are of the official programme from the 1889 Priests of Pallas. This programme lists individuals of the various committees who put on the ball. Fifteen of these men are buried in Elmwood: John P. Loomas, Chairman of the Executive Committee; Hon. William Warner, Chairman of the Reception Committee; Lamdin E. Irwin; Frederick S. Doggett; Wyan Nelson; William Askew; Charles L. Dobson; Dr. Jefferson D. Griffith; Edward Lowe Martin; William Weston; Robert Keith; Kirkland B. Armour; John Conover; Augustus Trumbull; and Morrison Munford; John P. Loomas was the manager of the first convention hall that burned on April 4, 1900. He helped to oversee construction of its replacement which was finished in a mere 90 days, just in time for the July 4, 1900 Democratic National Convention. He continued to serve as the hall's manager. He was the second president of the Priests of Pallas; Maj. William Warner had a distinguished career as a Union general during the Civil War, and after the war was elected Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. He was elected Mayor of Kansas City in 1871. He married Sophia Frances Bullene, sister of Thomas B. Bullene who was also elected mayor of Kansas City, and was one of the founders of the mercantile store that became Emery Bird Thayer. L.E. Irwin was the first president of the Priests of Pallas and the second chief of police in Kansas City, Missouri. Each of the other committee members had distinguished careers of their own.
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MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND AT ELMWOOD ______________________________ May 25, 26 and 27  |
IF YOU ARE PLANNING to visit Elmwood Cemetery over the Memorial Day weekend, please know that volunteers from the Elmwood Cemetery Society will on hand to assist you in any way we can. If you need help locating a grave, have any questions, or would like to express your thoughts on any matter concerning the cemetery we will do our best to make your visit a pleasant one. The grounds will be open from dawn to dusk each day. Volunteers will be available to assist you from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
We will also have available a free self-guided walking tour brochure. Copies of two current books Elmwood Cemetery: Stories of Kansas City, and The Kansas City Spirit: Stories of Service Above Self will be available for purchase. Proceeds from the sale of these books go toward the preservation of historic Elmwood.
For additional information feel free to contact board member, Bruce Mathews, at bmathews2@kc.rr.com.
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RESTORATION OF THE
ARMOUR CHAPEL DOORS
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A MAJOR STEP FORWARD in the preservation of the Armour Memorial Chapel has commenced. On March 8 Eric Haynes and his crew from Superior Woodcraft removed the front doors. They are now in his shop where they will be completely restored. A temporary door has been installed. When work on the front doors is completed, work to restore the east doors, leading to the lower level, will begin. The work is being made possible through generous grants by two long-time Elmwood supporters, Jim Bernard Jr. and Mary Davidson Cohen. When Jim's father, Jim Bernard Sr., passed away on February 8, 2012, The Francis Family Foundation committed a grant to honor his memory. The grant could go to the charity of Jim's choice. He selected Elmwood. Mary's grant is through the Barton P. and Mary Davidson Cohen Charitable Fund. Our heartfelt thanks go out to Mary and Jim for this and all they do for Elmwood Cemetery. The next major undertaking for the Armour Chapel will be the replacement of the roof. For some time the roof has been leaking in all four corners. This work will include: replacement of the existing composition shingles with slate; repair of the flashing; and repairs to the guttering. Thanks to a challenge grant from The Victor E. Speas Foundation we are 1/3 of the way to the $48,000 needed to complete the roofing work. If you would like to help us achieve this goal donations can be made to: the Elmwood Cemetery Preservation Fund through the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation - 501c(3); directly to the Elmwood Cemetery Society - 501c(13); or through PayPal by visiting the Elmwood website at www.ElmwoodCem-KC.org. All donations are tax deductible as allowed by law. Please designate that your donation is to go the Armour Chapel roof repairs.
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AREA SCOUTS
PRESERVE THE PAST
AT HISTORIC ELMWOOD
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 Dallas Tierney 12.28.12
(Kansas City, Mo.) Since 2004, local Boy Scouts from the Heart of America Council have selected Elmwood Cemetery as the site to complete their Eagle Scout Service projects. On Saturday, December 28, 2012, Dallas Tierney became the twenty-eighth area Boy Scout to join the ranks of other Scouts in the preservation of the historic cemetery. Dallas is from Troop 394 chartered to the Shoal Creek Community Church. His project consisted of restoring, resetting and straightening and over 100 gravestones. Tierney completed his project in Block 6 of the cemetery, an area where his family has ancestors buried. History of Eagle Scout Service Projects
at Elmwood Cemetery
______________________________ Since 2004, these 28 local Scouts have reset a total of 1,545 gravestones, placed 24 new Civil War markers, and given new memorials to 51 individuals who have previously rested in unmarked graves. Scouts not only set the 51 new gravestones, but, through their fundraising efforts, were able to purchase and donate them. And these Scouts did not work alone. Helping them were 840 Scout leaders, parents, siblings, other troop members and friends. Significance of Eagle Scout Service Projects
______________________________ The Eagle Scout Service Project is an integral step in becoming an Eagle Scout, Scouting's highest award. The Scout is to plan, develop, and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to his religious institution, school, or community. The Eagle Scout candidate must accept responsibility for planning, directing, and following through to the project's successful completion. About the Heart of America Council,
Boy Scouts of America
______________________________ The Heart of America Council, Boy Scouts of America serves 19 counties in and around the Kansas City metropolitan area and serves over 36,000 young people through more than 1,100 Cub Scout packs, Boy Scout troops, Venturing crews, and Explorer posts. If you would like more information about Scouting in Kansas City please call (816) 942-9333 or visit www.hoac-bsa.org. If you know of a Boy Scout who is working toward his Eagle and would like to complete his project at Elmwood Cemetery, contact Elmwood board member, Bruce Mathews at bmathews2@kc.rr.com.
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