Midwest Cemetery Preservation

Midwest Cemetery Preservation Focusing on specific problems and damaged memorials in cemeteries throughout the Midwest and restoring them. Lawrence also manages 391 Memorials currently.

Lawrence Varkalis, President of Midwest Cemetery Preservation has been a contributing member of Find A Grave for the past several years. During which time he has contributed 403 Memorials and 658 Photos. During one of his many trips he became interested in restoration when he came upon a Zinc G.A.R. Monument that was in dire need of repair. Consulting with a monument restoration expert at Washin

gton's Smithsonian Institution he and member Ed Kaminski were able to repair the monument to a near perfect match. This group has members in the field that donate their time and energy to preserving history in a manner many do not always think of, our local cemeteries. We focus on specific problems and damaged memorials in cemeteries throughout the Midwest and do our best to restore them. Committed to keeping history alive through preservation.

12/01/2023

Well it's been awhile since I have posted. Somebody reported this page and it might be deleted. I guess I will just back up the photos and save them.

This is sad....
11/03/2022

This is sad....

For all of those who have asked about supporting me and my channel, we are on Patreon!http://www.patreon.com/whittdocsI appreciate all of those who believe i...

Find a grave website is finally setting new guidelines for posting memorials on their page. After many obituary hunters...
01/12/2022

Find a grave website is finally setting new guidelines for posting memorials on their page. After many obituary hunters have created momorials for people they don't even know.

TitleMemorials for those who are recently deceasedURL NameMemorials-for-those-who-are-recently-deceasedLanguageEnglishMaster VersionMemorials for those who are recently deceasedSummaryBriefly describe the article. The summary is used in search results to help users find relevant articles. You can im...

04/19/2021

Hello everyone. It's been a bad year and a half with Covid-19. Hope everyone is well. We would like to do a cemetery clean up event or tour but this is not possible to schedule events now. The sun will shine again and we will keep you posted. Going to clean some headstones next week. Hopefully see some of you soon!

This is private property and ridiculous.
04/08/2018

This is private property and ridiculous.

The statue commemorates over 4,000 Confederate prisoners initially interred at Camp Douglas, a Union Army prisoner of war camp in Chicago.

Here is an update on the laser cut plate that was replaced in a cross repair. It is starting to match the cross and the ...
10/22/2017

Here is an update on the laser cut plate that was replaced in a cross repair. It is starting to match the cross and the stainless steel backing is starting to make the lettering more visible.

This was a really cool repair. Ludwig Raebiger (1827-1894) was a blacksmith in Crete, Illinois. We held a cemetery pre...
09/13/2017

This was a really cool repair. Ludwig Raebiger (1827-1894) was a blacksmith in Crete, Illinois. We held a cemetery preservation day for church members at the Zion United Church of Christ cemetery in Dyer, Indiana in mid July. The cross on his grave had a broken arm and was probably hand forged by another blacksmith. One of our volunteers is a owner of a welding company. She and her husband donated labor to not only to repair the cross but added a long missing plate from the front. The plate in the pictures was laser cut into steel and welded to a stainless steel backing so the plate will oxidize to match the cross. The backing will stay bright and make it easily readable. Church members reset the base before the cross was reinstalled for his 190th birthday and they threw a party!

https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=183325087

Thank you volunteer's and supporters. This was our first project restoring a zinc monument six years ago.
08/08/2017

Thank you volunteer's and supporters. This was our first project restoring a zinc monument six years ago.

This is what NOT TO DO in a Cemetery. First photo was taken at a AGS (Association of Gravestone Studies) conference in O...
07/31/2017

This is what NOT TO DO in a Cemetery. First photo was taken at a AGS (Association of Gravestone Studies) conference in Ohio 2016. Second photo was taken during a "Ghost Tour" in 2017 Illinois. Both times onlookers encouraged these people.

We had a great turnout for our Cemetery Preservation Day! Thank you to all the church members for their hospitality.
07/15/2017

We had a great turnout for our Cemetery Preservation Day! Thank you to all the church members for their hospitality.

Address

14804 W 113th Avenue
Dyer, IN
46311-3511

Telephone

+17736477861

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Midwest Cemetery Preservation posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Midwest Cemetery Preservation:

Shortcuts

Share