THC Announces New Program for Local Cemetery Preservation

The Texas Historical Commission (THC) recently announced the RIP Guardian program, the newest addition to cemetery preservation programs for the state of Texas. RIP stands for Record, Investigate, Protect; the new program provides volunteer organizations with specific guidelines to follow to preserve local cemeteries.
The RIP Guardian program is part of the THC’s overarching RIP cemetery preservation initiative. Surveys were completed in 49 counties determining that approximately 37 percent of local cemeteries are at risk of becoming lost due to encroachment, vandalism and neglect.
“To lose a cemetery is to lose a valuable part of local history,” said Gerron Hite, state coordinator of the THC’s cemetery preservation program. “It takes a dedicated group of volunteers interested in all aspects of a cemetery, from preservation of individual grave markers to identification of historic and heirloom plants, to safeguard a cemetery from neglect or vandalism.”
Residents in Hays, Hill and Uvalde counties are some of the first volunteers to take advantage of the new program to protect their historic cemeteries.
“We in Hays County share the same desire as all of our sister counties: preventing the potential loss and deterioration of our rural cemeteries,” said Jim Cullen, cemetery coordinator for the Hays County Historical Commission (CHC). “The RIP Guardian program offers a comprehensive plan