Oak Grove cemetery is the resting place for the majority of the unclaimed community members who have passed in the city of Grand Rapids – almost 400 individuals are buried here in unmarked graves with the only record of who is buried there being a single, handwritten book. Folks may be buried here for many reasons: being unhoused at the time of passing, lacking support systems who can make those decisions after passing, or families simply being unable to afford the cost of a burial.

An annual public memorial will be held again for the second time on Sunday September 21st to honor these individuals, however, we are calling on the City of Grand Rapids to make permanent, necessary changes to Oak Grove to allow the community the opportunity to acknowledge, mourn and celebrate these folks as they wish, when they wish.

What we are asking:

• Neighbors buried at Oak Grove continue to be largely unidentified in the community and it remains difficult for community members to know if their loved ones may be buried here. We need a permanent, accessible and regularly updated record of those buried at Oak Grove. Our proposed solution is a digitized, publicly accessible list of those buried at Oak Grove which would be accessed via a QR code placed on both updated signage for the cemetery and the Grand Rapids city website

• Oak Grove’s location is largely unknown within the community. The signage currently being used for the only entrance is small, difficult to identify and the address listed online for this entrance is incorrect. We are asking that the city honor the folks buried here by updating and improving signage to the cemetery to be clear, large enough to easily identify, and for the address to be corrected anywhere it is currently listed.

• Water access to the unmarked graves of Oak Grove is insufficient. Insufficient water means neighbors cannot show the respect they wish for those buried here with plants, flowers, or simple watering of the grass the way that is currently possible for the marked graves located within the same cemetery. We are asking that the city take the steps necessary to improve water access to the unmarked section of the cemetery by adding additional water hookup points.

We need the city to support the Grand Rapids community at large by making clear WHERE Oak Grove is, WHO is buried there, and to provide the dedicated grounds workers with the water access they need to maintain the resting places of ALL of the folks buried there.

This petition will be shared with the Grand Rapids City Commissioners, City Manager and Mayor.

City Commissioners: Kelsey Perdue, Marshall Kilgore, Milinda Ysasi, Lisa Knight, AliciaMarie Belchak, and Drew Robbins.

City Manager: Mark Washington

Mayor: David LaGrand