Pokemon NO! Gamers Asked to Steer Clear of Cemeteries

 

The recent release of Pokemon Go has brought an increase of people out walking, heads down, iphones on, in search of Pokemon.  The newest craze has fans of all ages out and about trying to “catch them all!”  Here’s the thing.  There are some places you should stay clear of: dark alleys, private property and, need we say it … Cemeteries!

Today my husband was photographing for BillionGraves at a cemetery in Colorado. Now, during our years volunteering with BillionGraves, we have been asked a lot of things, but never “Are you here to catch Pokemon?”  Excuse me?  Yes!  Believe it or not, there has been an influx of people wandering cemeteries looking for those little creatures.

Let this be a PSA, if you will.  Stay clear of the cemeteries.  This is hallowed ground to many people and the visitors there are paying their respects to loved ones they have lost.  There is a time and place for everything, and playing Pokemon at the local cemetery just isn’t right.  

My son, who is a fan of Pokemon, informed me that Pokemon Go randomly generates locations of the Pokemon.  Keep in mind these locations change day by day, so any creatures you missed out on at the cemetery will be available elsewhere on another day.  Be patient.  If you must play, seek out a local park or other public venue.  Avoid private property and dark secluded places.  And, if anything, out of sheer respect, don’t play in the cemetery.

The cemetery security was pleased to learn that my husband was not out capturing Pokemon, but instead capturing images of headstones.  BillionGraves is a volunteer worldwide initiative with the purpose of preserving the information found on gravestones.  Each photograph is tagged with a GPS coordinate so that family looking to find an ancestor’s resting place will be lead to the exact location of the headstone.

To learn more about BillionGraves, visit BillionGraves.com.  To learn more about Pokemon Go, visit Pokemon.com.

Reflections of a GraveFinder -- They Were The Dash.

 

It is no secret that I love volunteering for BillionGraves.  I love that with so little effort and just a donation of my time, I can provide a resource for thousands of people searching for a record for their ancestor or loved one.  Pure and simple.  It’s me, my iPhone and a cemetery.   Step.  Point.  Click.  Move to the next headstone.  Step.  Point. Click.  And yet, it is not as simple as that.  There is the dash.

What do I mean by “the dash?”  I am sure by now you have heard it said that we all have two dates and a dash, and we better make that dash count.  What about those dashes I pass moment by moment as I individually photograph each grave?  Those dashes meant something to a lot of people.  What happened in those dashes affected the lives of others and should be remembered.

Over the past years I have photographed over 150 thousand headstones.  That is a lot of memorials.  Do I stop and think of each person as I move along?  Truthfully, no.  I sometimes zone out because the repetition of the process over a two to five hour timeframe can lead to one’s mind wandering.  But I do try to focus.  To me, it’s a matter of respect.

Each headstone has a name.  Sometimes, as I pass by, I state the name aloud and say hello.  I notice the religious symbol on the stone.  I read the epitaph. Sometimes there is a spouse buried there, as well.  Two feet to the left may be an infant child.  My heart melts and I get emotional as though suddenly this is my family and I am sharing in the loss.

There are the feelings of pride, too.  I have photographed in Arlington, Quantico and Gettysburg.  I have passed soldiers of all ranks and station.  Purple Heart recipients.  Some who died in war and others who lived very long lives.  In my heart, I thank them all for their service.  I say a silent prayer.

I see mementoes on or beside the headstones.  A case of beer and a pack of cigarettes.  Teddy bears.  Matchbox cars.  A rock.  A dime.  Sometimes even a black box, holding who knows what?  I don’t look inside.  It’s sacred.  All memories relating to the dash.

And sometimes I meet the families.  Typically, when I photograph a cemetery and mourners come to pay their respects, I will stop photographing.  I move away or go somewhere else in the cemetery so as to give the visitors privacy.  Sometimes I am so focused I don’t see the family members walk towards me, curious as to what I am doing here.  Did I lose a loved one, as well?  Did I know their father?  Mother?  Friend?  No.  I am here for record preservation purposes only.  After a brief explanation of why I am in the cemetery, the real interaction begins.  The family members want to share their experiences about their loved ones.  They want the stories told.  I’m here to preserve the dates.  They are here to remember the dash.

What I do is easy.  It’s just me, the iPhone and a cemetery.  Step. Point. Click.  Move to the next headstone.  But as volunteers for any genealogical project, may we pause to remember for whom we are doing this work?  What we do goes beyond record preservation.  May our work reflect our respect for the name engraved on the stone.  They are more than just a name and two dates.  They were the dash.

Adventures in Grave Hunting

Anyone who knows me well knows that I spend my free time seeking out cemeteries to photograph for BillionGraves.  Living in Virginia, one doesn’t have to travel far before stumbling across a lone grave or small abandoned cemetery by the side of the road, in the grocery store parking lot or out in the middle of a field.  But sometimes graves are hidden, and this is where it is good to have a curious mind and an adventurous nature.

BillionGraves has taken the work out of seeking for some of the locations.  If you download their free App, you will find an icon labeled Cemeteries.

 When you click on the icon, you will see that you have a couple of options.  One is to enter the name and location of a cemetery.  This is great if you know what cemetery you are looking for but just need directions to get there.  The other option is to have the App show which cemeteries are closest to you.

Once you select “Nearest Cemeteries,” you will see a list of the cemeteries and their proximity to where you currently are standing or driving.  Notice in each cemetery section there is also the word "Images."  Beside “Images” there is a number indicating how many pictures have been taken in that particular cemetery.  Don’t assume that if the number is high that means that all the graves in the cemetery have been photographed.  It may mean that someone spent time photographing the cemetery but may not have been able to complete the entire cemetery.  It is worth taking a look.

Memorial Day weekend, my husband and I decided to take a casual drive to enjoy a rare day of sunshine.  While driving, we decided to pull up the BillionGraves App to see if there might be some cemeteries that we could add pictures to for BillionGraves. Being in the adjacent county from where I live, I figured there may be a couple I hadn’t tackled yet.  Sure enough, the App indicated there was one off of RT 15 in Fauquier County.  Ruffner Cemetery.

BillionGraves is great about not only giving a marked location for cemeteries, but the App guided us to the precise location of the cemetery.  This particular cemetery location was behind an industrial building.  May I pause here to say, when you are grave hunting in remote locations, always take a partner with you.  Don’t go alone.  Make your safety a priority.

We pulled to the end of the access road by the building and parked.  In a mere 600 feet of us should be Ruffner Cemetery.  As you see from the photo, we were viewing a wall of trees.  Now, most people might throw in the towel and drive away claiming the BillionGraves App to be in error.  Well, not us!  We love an adventure.  So, with phone in hand, App on display, I sent my husband into that wall of trees to see what he could find.  (You didn’t think I was going to go in there, did you?!)  

In this particular case, there was nothing to find.  The trees and overgrowth were so thick that making his way through the woods was near impossible for my husband.  He gave it a good try and emerged 20 minutes later with nothing to report but bramble scratches and possible poison ivy.  (It is good to wear protective clothing when grave hunting.  We bring along chlorox wipes, bug spray and a first aid kit with us, because we do often find ourselves traipsing in some heavily wooded areas.)

Was the trip a loss?  Absolutely not!  Here’s what we did.  We took a photograph of the location and added it to the BillionGraves App for Ruffner Cemetery.  It’s not a picture of a gravesite, so there is nothing to be transcribed.  It is, however, a great picture of the location, should anyone else venture to seek out the cemetery.  My next step will be to research the cemetery and see who is buried there.  If anything, I will be able to add the names of the family interred at this location.  We may not have headstones, but BillionGraves has the GPS coordinates, we have added a picture of the location, and hopefully soon, we will add some documentation regarding the hidden cemetery site.

Next time you are out on a leisure drive, pull up the BillionGraves App on your phone and see if you can find a cemetery that can be photographed.  Remember, keep your safety a priority and take along a friend or two.  You never know what adventures you may have!