First Recipients of IDFPR's Cemetery Relief Fund Grants Making Strides to Restore Abandoned and Neglected Cemeteries

CHICAGO - Illinois' Cemetery Relief Grant Program is already laying the groundwork for a future in which abandoned and neglected cemeteries are no longer overlooked.

Launched last August, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) provides eligible local governments, not-for-profit organizations, and cemetery authorities with grants of up to $20,000 to clean, restore, and maintain cemeteries that have fallen into disrepair.

This past Spring, IDFPR awarded its first round of grants to 10 recipients to support projects aimed at revitalizing burial grounds across the state. The program reflects the Department's long-term commitment to ensuring communities have the needed resources to preserve and restore the beauty of final resting places across Illinois.

"Across Illinois, this program is already delivering meaningful improvements," said IDFPR Secretary Mario Treto, Jr. "Restored cemeteries mean protected history, safer grounds, and more inviting places for families to gather and remember. These changes help ensure loved ones are honored in beautiful, respectful settings for years to come."

For many awardees, the program offers more than financial support - it provides an opportunity to honor local history and strengthen community pride.

"How a community remembers its pioneers and founders says a lot about its character," said Milton Township Supervisor Elizabeth "Buffy" Higgins-Beard. "We hope the community enjoys and can learn some of the history from this area due to our renewed efforts."

Milton Township received $20,000 to restore Jewell Grove Cemetery, a one-acre, Civil War-era site in Wheaton. The funding has supported maintenance of the cemetery's tree canopy, removal of invasive plants, and the repair and replacement of damaged headstones.

In Bishop Hill, a rural community of about 100 residents founded by Swedish pioneers in the mid-1800s, the grant program enabled long-needed maintenance at its historic Bishop Hill Cemetery, where many early settlers lie in unmarked graves.

"As a small not-for-profit with little spare funds, we never would have been able to do this project without the grant's assistance," according to Mike Wiater, a director with the Crete Area Historical Society, the organization that worked on the grant application process. "The grant allows us to hire contractors to accomplish our project. We really appreciate the help."

According to Bishop Hill Treasurer Sharon Wexell, the work has included repairing broken tombstones, gravelling an overgrown path, and trimming bushes and trees. The village has also begun erecting a memorial stone in honor of those buried in unmarked graves, complete with a QR code that will link visitors to additional information.

"Our ancestors established a very unique Swedish settlement, and we should and are compelled to preserve the history of our ancestors and the hardships they endured to settle this area," Wexell said.

Other grant recipients echoed the importance of the program in preserving their communities' historical roots.

"Cemeteries hold such a rich history of life and family," said Kris Gilbert, treasurer of the Ogle County Historical Society. "So many descendants still live here or return here that I can usually find someone related to a relative from the 1800s. - family ties are strong here."

"We wish to honor the legacy of those who are buried and no longer have family members available to maintain their gravesites," said Jill Landgraf, administrative officer for the City of Red Bud, which received a $20,000 grant. "We want to ensure their memory lives on through their headstones."

Palatine Township Assistant Administrator Catherine Veller emphasized the importance of state support for maintaining safe, respectful and dignified resting places.

"With limited local funding available for cemetery maintenance, state assistance helps preserve these important historical landmarks, enhances visitor safety, and ensures future generations can continue to honor the individuals laid to rest within them," Veller said.

State lawmakers representing grant-recipient communities also lauded the program.

"Our cemeteries are sacred sites, and it's important that we take the steps necessary to restore and renew these meaningful places," state Rep. Anthony DeLuca (D-Chicago Heights) said. "This grant will deliver additional care, providing the dignity and respect that is deserved."

"How we take care of cemeteries says a lot about a community," said state Senator Patrick Joyce (D-Essex). "Well-groomed plots honor those who are buried and provide a proper environment for families and visitors to reflect. This investment will go a long way for the Village of Crete, especially for those with loved ones buried in the nearby cemeteries."

"Everyone should have a clean, safe and respectable place to commemorate and visit those who they love that have passed on," said Sen. Michael Halpin (D-Rock Island). "I am glad to see these funds go towards a worthy project of restoring this cemetery in Macomb and I hope the restoration brings comfort to the families of those buried there."

"I am happy to see the city of Macomb receive this Cemetery Relief Grant which will help ensure continued respect and dignity for the final resting places of so many of the city's residents," said state Rep. Dan Swanson (R-Woodhull).

"Our cemeteries are places of remembrance, reflection, and local history," said state Rep. Nicolle Grasse (D-Arlington Heights). "This grant will help ensure that Palatine can continue honoring those who came before us while preserving an important part of our community's history. Thank you to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation for investing in the preservation of these meaningful spaces."

"Every day, we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us," said state Rep. Nabeela Syed (D-Palatine). "Too often, people's final resting places go untended as those who knew them pass into history themselves. This support will enable our community to better honor the memories of those who rest here, taking care of them in the way those who loved them in life would have wanted."

"Our cemeteries serve as sacred resting places for families and deserve to be maintained with dignity and respect," said state Rep. David Friess (R-Red Bud). "This funding will provide additional resources to support the ongoing care and maintenance of these important sites."

The full list of grant award recipients for this inaugural funding round includes: