Published: May 19, 2009 02:54 pm         

"One Rose Will Do" project underway

Monticello — Alice Roberts is once again encouraging local and area residents to be a

part of the "One Rose Will Do" project this Memorial Day weekend. Through

this project, a single flower is placed on graves that have no decorations

at all on them. Roberts and those who help her attach a small note with the

words "One Rose Will Do" to the flower, and put it in the ground in front of

the grave stone.

Roberts said that in many cases the person passed away so long ago that

they no longer have any close family in the area to decorate their grave. In

other cases, the deceased's family members are no longer physically able to

visit the cemetery and place flowers on the grave. Whatever the reason,

there are many graves that will not have any flowers on them at all this

Memorial Day.

This is why Roberts and her family initiated the "One Rose Will Do"

project. She noted that every grave deserves to have at least one flower

placed on it in honor of the person who is buried there.

This marks the fourth year that Roberts and her family and friends have

placed single flowers on bare graves through the "One Rose Will Do" project.

The first year Roberts and those volunteering to help her placed over 200

flowers on graves that had no other decorations.

The second year the group placed flowers on bare graves in six or seven

cemeteries and Roberts said she stopped counting after 328 flowers were

placed on graves. Last year, the third year of the project, the group

visited 16 cemeteries and placed 600 flowers on bare graves.

This year, Roberts noted that the group has almost 700 flowers to place.

The group will once again visit several cemeteries, but they can't get to

every cemetery to place flowers on the undecorated graves.

That is why Roberts encourages everyone to take single flowers with them

when they visit a cemetery to decorate loved ones' graves. Then, when

someone sees a grave that is not decorated they can place one of the flowers

on the grave while they are there. She emphasized that even though she calls

this effort the "One Rose Will Do" project that the flowers do not have to

be roses, and any flower will do.

Roberts also asks local churches and youth groups to get involved by

putting flowers on the older, undecorated graves in the cemeteries located

next to or near their churches.

Everyone can be a part of this effort, Roberts noted. So as local

residents prepare to decorate the graves of their loved ones this Memorial

Day weekend, she encourages everyone to take some extra flowers and take a

minute to place one on a grave that has no flowers on it.

     

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