A POOLE grandmother left incensed by instructions to remove ornaments from her late husband’s grave has defied orders by supergluing them to his headstone.
Gillian Hunt has been here before. In April 1994 she made the headlines after the then-church warden at St Mark’s Church, Talbot Village, dug up flowers planted on her husband Colin's grave to make the area easier to mow.
Now, after 28 years without issue, the since re-married Gillian says she is “hurt” by the church’s resurgent efforts to enforce cemetery regulations regarding grave decorations.
As reported, site operator Salisbury Diocese recently left hundreds of notes on graves within the cemetery ordering the removal of all decorations – including fresh flowers – in accordance with their unstated regulations, believed to be linked to health and safety.
The notice warned that if the grave owner does not comply within three months a contractor would be called in to “make good the work required to comply”.
The fears that history could repeat itself proved all too real for Gillian, 77, who has taken direct action by supergluing three ornaments left by her grandchildren to her late-husband’s grave.
She told the Echo: “I come up regularly and when I read the letter I thought ‘I don’t believe this’ because I’ve been here before. There’s no compassion at all. Don’t they realise people come here to sit and recollect?
“They don’t want fresh flowers, they don’t want ornaments, what on earth can we have? If they had their way the cemetery would just be bare, lifeless and overgrown.”
The church apparently hosted a public meeting on the issue in May.
Gillian added: “What also hurt was the fact they said they’ll bring contractors in to remove and destroy them. If I see someone digging up the flowers I will walk in on a Sunday service if I have to. I’m very placid and go along with a lot of things but this – no, they won’t win.
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“I just want a reason why. The graves are tended, colourful and they want to take that away for some rules which they refuse to disclose.”
Husband and father Colin Snow died in July 1991 at the age of 51.
His daughter Nicola said: “We’ve got family down the other end of the cemetery, but we can’t find them because it’s so overgrown. Yet they’re worried about small decorations for health and safety when headstones buried by long grass represent a trip hazard.
“It doesn’t make sense.”
Salisbury Diocese has twice been approached to comment, however no response has been received.
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