Anchorage Volunteers Honor Veterans With Headstone Cleanup

Volunteers filled Anchorage Memorial Park Cemetery on Saturday with a simple mission: honor the veterans who can no longer speak for themselves.

The fifth annual Nuvision AK Memorial Day Headstone Cleanup brought together community members, a local credit union, and American Legion Jack Henry Post 1. Each volunteer received a shovel and cleaning supplies to restore weathered headstones throughout the cemetery.

For Laura Dean, First Vice Commander of the Legion Post and an eight-year Air Force veteran, the event felt like coming home. "My grandmother and my dad's side of the family would go visit our family graves every Memorial Day weekend and clean the headstones," she said. When Nuvision proposed the cleanup, her answer was immediate: "Yes, this is exactly what I love to do."

The timing makes the gesture even more meaningful. Memorial Day weekend offers a chance to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice, not just enjoy a day off.

Dean asked attendees to take a moment during their weekend barbecues to think of veterans who have passed. It's a small request that connects celebration with remembrance.

Sunny's Take

William Merrill, one of the volunteers, captured the heart of why people showed up. "It's a very patriotic thing to do," he said. "Somebody needs to take care of those that took care of us."

That simple exchange, caring for those who once cared for us, is what keeps this tradition alive. Anchorage Mayor Suzanne LaFrance attended the cleanup, recognizing the city's deep military roots. "Anchorage is a military community," she said, noting the thousands of active-duty members and veterans who call the area home.

The event proves that patriotism doesn't require grand gestures. Sometimes it's a bucket of soapy water, a scrub brush, and the willingness to spend a Saturday morning on your knees.

Five years in, this cleanup has become part of how Anchorage honors Memorial Day. The headstones shine a little brighter, and the memory of service lives on through volunteers who refuse to let it fade.