There is a first time for everything, and recently my husband, Jim and I, along with our good friend Dee Lindaman tried our skills for the first time at repairing the tombstone of a brother to my grandmother. (In preparation, Dee had alerted cemetery personnel we were going to attempt the repair.) Okke Sievers died as a young child and his grave is marked with a cylindrical stone mounted on a base.
The cylindrical base had become loose and it was probably only a matter of time before it might be damaged beyond repair. These photos show some of our work and the completed repair.
We removed the top portion (it would slide off), leveled the base and added fill dirt to stabilize it. Despite the small size, it was still quite heavy. We cleaned the base first by sweeping any loose accumulation of dirt and then using only water.
After we thought the base was straight, Dee Lindaman used a level to ensure it was. We had to make several adjustments before we were sure the base was level.
Jim placed masking tape to prevent the adhesive from spreading beyond the intended area.
Resting from our labor.
The finished repair with the stone firmly mounted on the base.
Two other stones we cleaned. The Mutter stone was cleaned, leveled and remounted on the base, the Vater stone still needs to be leveled.
Our trio is not about to take up repairing stones as a career anytime soon. It is hard work! But it was gratifying to have accomplished this small job.
You were working VERY hard. That was a big job, and it looks great. The work crew look great, too!
Thank you, Mary, Jim and Dee for taking the time to repair this. It is wonderful to know that there are those who care enough to do this. It shows great respect.