Match Sought for $2,500 Edgewood Cemetery Grant

Blogger's Note: The following was provided by Hobart's Run.

If you have driven along the Keim Street border of Edgewood Cemetery recently, you may have noticed that the overgrowth on that bank has been removed.

Hobart’s Run extends a heartfelt thank you to Elliot Menkowitz, local investor and philanthropist, for generously helping with efforts to improve the condition of this historic graveyard.

Menkowitz paid for landscaping company Bella Vista, owned by Brett Moser, to clean up the previously unsightly and steep, difficult-to-maintain bank. Unfortunately we don’t have “before” photos, but the images here show that the unwieldy weeds have been cut down to size, which will help immensely with mowing and other maintenance when spring arrives.

Menkowitz also replaced the old Edgewood Cemetery sign along High Street with the attractive new

The cleared bank along Keim Street.

marker.

Banking on new donations

Hobart’s Run and Edgewood Historic Cemetery Inc. are seeking donations toward a $2,500 matching pledge – the second of its kind – from Harlan “Bud” Wendell, a resident of Menlo Park, Calif., and a Hill School class of 1942 graduate with family ties to John Potts, founder of Pottstown.

Wendell’s first pledge was fulfilled in the fall of 2018 thanks to donations collected as part of a community-wide clean-up. Wendell – pleased to learn the Pottstown citizenry stepped up to care for this 12-acre resting place – now is offering this additional pledge as further incentive to keep residents and friends engaged with the project. 

 All funds currently will be used to pay mowing expenses, currently estimated at $20,000 per season.

The Edgewood-Hobart’s Run partnership hopes more Pottstown area residents will donate what they can to earn the $2,500 matching pledge so their dollars (as well as Wendell’s matching funds) will be available to maintain this abandoned site for another year.

Contributions can be made to Edgewood Historic Cemetery and mailed to the Cemetery Board c/o 740 E. High St., Pottstown, PA 19464.

The Board also will embrace and support civic organizations that organize fundraising events or share ideas to bring in essential dollars. 

 The Cemetery volunteers again thank the Three Fingers Neat club for last fall’s terrific golf tournament benefit. Contact Andrew Monastra, Edgewood’s Board president, at amonastra@themglaw.com or 484-4595412, or Cathy Skitko at Hobart’s Run at cskitko@thehill.org or 610-705-1017.