Dunker and Robinson work to restore local cemeteries

As one of the older counties in the entire state of Illinois, Pike County is filled with small cemeteries. And over time, these cemeteries have started to show the wear and tear of old age and the effects of weather.

Two Pike County residents have become well known for their work of restoring these cemeteries, whether big or even just small family plots. Those two people are Kevin Dunker and Kathy Robinson.

Both are not new to cemetery restoration as Dunker has been at it for over five years and Robinson for much longer. In fact, it was an unlikely meeting that brought the two together, to work for the first time.

When Dunker purchased the land that he built his house on, it also came with a long-deteriorated cemetery that didn’t even have a name, he would later name it Journey Cemetery. in 2018, he decided to begin working on the cemetery, at that time he had no idea what he was getting into.

One day while working on Journey Cemetery, he gave Robinson a call in hopes she could tell him the mix that was needed to repair the gravestones. Robinson, rather than explaining the process over the phone, decided that it would be easier to show him in person.

“She came over to see Journey (Cemetery) and she couldn’t believe it. She didn’t think I was going to take it this seriously,” Dunker explained.

And what started at Journey, has blossomed into a great partnership. While the final results are always nice to enjoy, it’s a long process that goes into fixing the stones.

“Kinderhook was the hardest cemetery we worked on, it took a long time and a lot of repairing,” Robinson said.

“That was about a three-year project. The stones were down, brush had to be trimmed, some of the stones had been tossed down the hill,” Dunker added.

They recently finished up at Shinn Cemetery that sits to the southwest of New Hartford. Shinn Cemetery is a popular old cemetery in the area thanks to its unique location and notable people buried there.

One such person, who the cemetery was named after was Daniel Shinn, who was one of the first pioneers to arrive and settle in Pike County. He arrived in Pike County in 1820 and helped to build the first jail among other buildings in the county. Shinn would pass away in 1952 and was buried in the cemetery that bore his name.

“That was one of the best cemeteries we worked at, the Shinn family has done a lot to keep it up and put up the Shinn Cemetery sign in 2010,” Dunker noted.

Currently, the two just began working at Prairie Mound Cemetery which is only a couple of miles away from Shinn Cemetery.

One of the unique parts of the cemetery is its peacefulness and accessibility for Dunker and Robinson. Due to its location, you have to be looking for the cemetery to find it.

“We were out there for a full day and hardly had any cars come by, just tractors and side by sides. And it’s easy we can drive our vehicles up there and not have to lug our equipment and buckets too far,” Dunker said.

Prairie Mound Cemetery also has a stone with one of the neatest markers you’ll find.

“Grand Army of the Republic is a fraternal organization for Civil War veterans, that one is Ephraim Cram.

Those are flag holders and they put them on the back, and you can actually slide a flag down. It says GAR Post 477, that tells you it’s the Summer Hill Post,” Robinson explained.

The project is no small task and in around eight hours of work, they were able to complete over 20 stones. However, they still have a ways to go as some of the stones have fallen over and nearly sunk into the ground. Those will require a lot of time to get pick up, fix, and set.

One of the next projects and one of their biggest to date, is setting the stone of Joseph Bennett at Akers Chapel Cemetery. Bennett is notable for his military accomplishments.

“He fought in the War of 1812, he’s one of the oldest people up there, his whole family is up there and they’re all in pretty bad shape. He just needs his military stone and we’re going to give it to him,” Dunker said.

To follow along with their progress, you can join the Facebook group “Pike County, Illinois, Then and Now” or search for “Find a Grave” on the internet and look at each cemetery and grave site individually.

If you would like to help restore these local cemeteries, Dunker recommends donating to the cemetery of your choice and noting that you want your money used in restoration efforts, rather than lawn and brush maintenance.

KEVIN DUNKER (l) and KATHY ROBINSON (r) prepare to move a stone. This is the final step when fixing a gravestone. Once they get the stone (very heavy with even two people) picked up, they will then sit it in the ground and surround it with concrete.

THE STONE of Ephraim Cram, who fought in the Civil War and then became a part of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of veterans from the Union Army.

SHINN CEMETERY one of the older cemeteries in the county and the most recent cemetery Dunker and Robinson completed.