“The tree roots were almost as big around as the trees, and there were human remains all tangled up in them, it was sad.” Edward Charles Henry, better known as Chucky, described the situation at the St. Matthew Cemetery, located near North Street in New Iberia in the aftermath of the latest spate of storms in Iberia Parish. “I was nervous to start the project, but after I got started, I knew I had to do it. If it was me, and my remains got scattered like that, I know I’d want someone to take care of me.”

Patricia Wesley heads up the initiative to get the cemetery cleaned and repaired, and it has been the job of a lifetime for her. “When I first saw this mess, I had no idea how bad it really was. But there were bodies and bones scattered everywhere. These remains didn’t even have caskets, many were just put in the vaults in black plastic,” she said. “I’ve been here (in New Iberia) for 23 years. The cemetery has not always been well-kept, and the hurricane and then heavy rains we’ve had since October made everything much worse.”

Hurricane Delta swept through the area and downed several trees in the cemetery, where veterans from the Spanish-American War, Civil War, World War I and World War II are buried. Vaults were demolished, gravestones lost, and human remains mixed with debris from the damaged trees. Rubble was strewn everywhere. 

Chucky Henry of Chucky’s Vaults and Monuments answered the call to help in the cleanup. He wasted no time digging in and getting vaults repaired and replaced, and remains reburied. “I put each one into a new casket, and back into a vault. Some of the people were buried two deep, but there were some buried three deep, which we didn’t know starting out,” he said. “I didn’t think about the money; this is work that needed to be done.”

So far, Henry has restored 18 vaults, but help has been difficult to get and slow to arrive. “FEMA has helped some, through the Louisiana Cemetery Task Force, out of the Attorney General’s office. We’re received funds for approximately nine of the eighteen vaults,” said Wesley. “Unfortunately, many families had several graves that were affected, and FEMA has restricted applications to one grave per family per household. Chucky Henry has a compassionate heart. He has been working with no thought of where compensation would be coming from.” 

The initiative is asking for help through surrogacy. Anyone can call the Louisiana Cemetery Task Force and become a surrogate for a grave in order to receive FEMA funds for the work. R.V. Goings of the task force said, “The period for FEMA registration for this storm has ended, but many of the families did not realize the graves were damaged for months. We feel positive that they will continue to work with us, and hopefully the cemetery can undergo full restoration.”

Once the vaults are all fully rehabilitated, there is still work to be done: restoring headstones, and making the cemetery more navigable by pouring cement around the vaults and throughout the cemetery to cut down on weeds and long grass. “I know these cement companies that pass through here every day have some waste cement. If they’d just stop here, I could build some forms and use the cement in between tombs to help the cemetery look better. Families could visit their deceased loved ones more easily.”

Retired judge Charles Porter has family in St. Matthew’s, and he is helping to move the rehab along. “I’ve talked to Mayor Freddie DeCourt. We discussed his experience restoring St. Peter’s Cemetery. We’d like him to design walkways and improvements to bring a more positive spirit into St. Matthew.” Porter’s daughter, Kelly, a local activist, has been assisting with monthly grooming at the cemetery.

Other help has come from across the street. Rev. Alfred Phillips of Mt. Calvary Baptist Church, which has a cemetery adjacent to St. Matthew, has lent his hand to grass cutting and other routine maintenance at St. Matthew.

More help is desperately needed to restore St. Matthew. Anyone who would like to sponsor a vault as a surrogate for a FEMA claim is asked to call the Louisiana Cemetery Task Force at 225-326-6000. Local cement companies with waste cement are encouraged to call Chucky’s Vaults & Monument at 337-346-0159.