My Eagle Project

Project Description

Project name: Harwood Texas Negro Cemetery Clean-up

Describe the project you plan to do.

Organize a group of people to go to Harwood, Gonzales County, Texas and clean up the Negro Cemetery there. My sister, Heather is buried in the Harwood Cemetery in 1990. Over the years, as my family has traveled to Harwood to visit the grave of my sister, I have noticed a fence around the perimeter of the cemetery. On one side of the cemetery, I saw that there are graves on the other side of the fence. My mother told me it was the ‘black’ cemetery and that the Harwood Cemetery Committee does not do the upkeep on it. I climbed the fence and saw many graves in the undergrowth. Jamie Owens, who lives in Harwood presently, took the pictures I have attached 13 April 2009. My plan is to get permission from the Gonzales County Commissioner or Gonzales County Judge to clean the Harwood Negro Cemetery. After getting permission from my local and council scout leaders, I will select a date for the clean up. I will contact my friends, associates and possibly the Alpha Rho chapter (UT-Austin) of Alpha Phi Omega, the National Service Fraternity to enlist volunteer help with the clean up. I will enlist people who are willing to donate the use of weed-eaters, mowers, mulchers, trailers, trucks, hoes, machetes, gloves, bags and other appropriate equipment. I will organize transportation for those who need it to come help with my project on the day of the clean up. I will organize the provision of drinking water and cups for the workers and doughnuts or breakfast tacos for a mid-morning break for refreshments. I will organize the provision of a pop-up shade so workers can get out of the sun when needed to take a break during the hard work. I will arrange for the removal of the branches and other debris that needs to be removed from the site. I will consult a gardener or nursery operator to see if spreading the mulched natural material may be spread around in the cemetery area to suppress new growth of the weeds we will remove. If appropriate, I will organize the spreading of the mulch throughout the cemetery to suppress new growth of weeds. I will contact a local news agency to inform them of my upcoming project which is a service to those who cannot serve themselves, and is also a service to the youth and adults who will work along side of me in doing a good deed for the community.

What group will benefit from the project?

Unnamed and unnumbered families, who may come at some time in the future to look for their ancestors’ burial places. Families of the slaves, veterans, and other African American, and Hispanic individuals who are buried in the Harwood Negro Cemetery. There is no telephone number, as the possible posterity of those buried in the cemetery could be in the thousands and are unnamed. My project will also benefit the residents of Harwood, Texas, who live near the cemetery and who may wish to visit, but cannot due to the present condition of the cemetery.

---

Name of religious institution, school, or community Telephone No.

Harwood Negro Cemetery west of County Road 230 on South Second Street, Harwood, Texas 78632

---

Street address City State Zip code

My project will be of benefit to the group because:

There is a fence that divides the graves. The white people are buried on one side in a well kept section of the Harwood Cemetery. The African American and Hispanic graves are on the other side of the fence in a section unfenced and un-kept. I believe the clean up effort itself will cause the people involved to ponder race relations. As it is, no one can safely enter the cemetery without boots and jeans to protect from snakes, poison ivy, or other such possible dangers. Graves are covered with overgrowth of weeds. A clean cemetery will allow visitors to enter.

This concept was discussed with my unit leader on: Matt Kruzie

4-8-09 Date

The project concept was discussed with the following representative of the group that will benefit from the project.

	Jamie K. Ownes Representative’s name	13 April 2009 Date of meeting
	Harwood, Texas resident Representative’s title	Phone No.

Project Details

Plan your work by describing the present condition, the method, materials to be used, project helpers, and
a time schedule for carrying out the project, the estimated cost of the project, and how the needed funds will
be obtained. Describe any safety hazards you might face, and explain how you will ensure the safety of those carrying out the project.

If appropriate, include photographs of the area before you begin your project. Providing before-and-after photographs of your project area can give a clear example of your effort.

I will be calling and/or email people to get them involved. I have set up a special email account at philipwindham_eaglescoutproject@yahoo.com that I will use in my advertising of my project in both the Luling Eagle and the Gonzales Inquirer news papers. Volunteers can email me to tell me they will help. I will forward to each emailing volunteer a schedule of events at the project and the safety guidelines I have listed below. I have contacted the Gonzales County Judge to get permission to clean the cemetery. I will contact people I know and those who have been suggested by my Scout leaders to be helpers for my project and who will: Work, provide trucks, transportation to and from the project, trailers, mowers, chippers, hoes, weed-eaters, sickles, gloves, bags, water cans, cups, other appropriate tools that may be suggested by those I will contact. I will contact two local nurseries to ask about whether or not spreading the natural mulch from the clean up is healthy for the land in the cemetery. The table below lists items and expenses needed for my project. Item Description Quantity Unit Cost Total Cost 1 Ice 8 $1.00 $8.00 2 Water 20 gallons $.25 $5.00 3 Gas for travel round trip from Kyle to Harwood 4 vehicles @70 miles each $0.585/mile $163.80 4 Fuel for machines 12 machines $0.43/hr $5.16 5 First Aid Kit 1 $10.00 $10.00 6 Garbage bags 5 $.05 $.25 7 Sack lunches for volunteers 50 $2.00 $100.00 8 9 TOTAL $292.21* * I will present my project to the members of my Ward and request their assistance. The funding for my project will be provided by my church. Table below lists other tools and equipment needed to complete my project. Item Description Unit Quantity Chainsaws 8 Machetes 8 Weed Eaters 3 Garden Rakes 2 Chipper 1 I will discuss Safety Issues with project workers at the beginning of the work. Items I will cover during this briefing will include the following: Everyone must wear a hat; sunscreen is recommended Everyone must wear gloves; Operators and assistance running the chain saws and weed eaters must wear safety glasses; Whoever is running the wood chipper must wear ear protection; Everyone must wear long sleeves and gloves Everyone is encouraged to take water breaks every 15-20 minutes In case of injury, a first aid kit will be available. The items in the first aid kit include (but are not limited to): topical treatment for poison ivy and poison oak, tweezers for removing thorns, cleaning solvent and pads and bandages for bandaging cuts of all sizes, eye wash, hand soap and a gallon of tap water. If there is a serious emergency, Sally Windham will call 911 from her cell phone to alert the Gonzales County EMS or other appropriate emergency services personnel. I plan to perform the clean up on 16 May 2009. Whatever work needs to be finished, if any, will be completed on 6 June 2009 by members of my scout troop. The workers will meet in Harwood at the cemetery at 8:00 and will work until 12:15 noon. We will take a 15 minute break at 10:15. My goal is to have 50 people present to work for 4 hours. The following details the work schedule for this project. 7:30 a.m. I will arrive at the work site and set up the easy up shade, first aid station and water table. 8:00 a.m. All volunteers arrive on site and check in with me. 8:15 a.m. Divide volunteers into teams and make assignments: Group 1 4 Chain saws 5 Chain saw haulers (haul off the stuff cut by the saws) 1 Safety Supervisor Group 2 4 Chain saws 5 Chain saw haulers (haul off the stuff cut by the saws) 1 Safety Supervisor Group 3 4 Machetes 5 machete haulers (haul off the stuff cut by the machetes) 1 Safety Supervisor Group 4 4 Machetes 5 machete haulers 1 Safety Supervisor Group 5 1 Chipper operator 1 Chipper operator assistant 2 Garbage pick up 2 Mulch spreaders/garden rake 3 Weed Eaters 1 Safety Supervisor 8:30 a.m. Begin working 10:15 a.m. Fifteen-minute break 10:30 a.m. Resume working 12:15 noon Round up volunteers and closing remarks and words of appreciation Assessment of work completed and determination of need for second day or not Ronald Sherman will obtain a travel permit as needed for the travel to and from my project. I will counsel with Lyndert Kramer and J. Frederic Bell, both of Lockhart, Texas, who have many of the tools and equipment I will need to complete my project. Both are members of my church. They will help me. Also, Bill Edgel and Kert Robinson will be my pathway to Eagle guides. Both Mr. Robinson and Mr. Edgel have experience helping young men achieve Eagle Scout. Any garbage needing to be removed from the site will be taken to a dumpster at Windham Plumbing. The before pictures have been taken by Jamie Owens, current Harwood resident.