Anonymous donor challenges public to match $35,000 toward Fairfield Evergreen Cemetery backhoe

FAIRFIELD – An anonymous donor is challenging Fairfield residents to match a $35,000 donation toward a new backhoe for the Fairfield Evergreen Cemetery.

The cemetery board sent a letter to community members earlier this month informing them of the board’s need for a new backhoe, expected to cost $70,000. Cemetery staff need a new backhoe to dig graves, but since the backhoe is now over 40 years old, finding parts for it has become difficult and this has led to delays in digging.

An anonymous donor has stepped forward with a $35,000 gift, and is challenging the community to match it. Fairfield Evergreen Cemetery is a private, non-tax supported perpetual care cemetery, and thus relies on burial fees and donations to operate. An endowment fund was established in 2023, and money from this fund has allowed staff to reset a number of headstones near L Street within the cemetery, and construct a new street called M Street on the eastern edge of the property.

The deadline for donating toward the $35,000 matching challenge is Dec. 20. Checks can be made payable to the General Fund of the Fairfield Evergreen Cemetery, and in the memo line note that the check is toward the $35,000 match for the backhoe. Donations are also accepted at the cemetery’s website at fairfieldevergreencemetery.com.

For more information on the challenge, call the Fairfield Evergreen Cemetery office at 641-472-2501.

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Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com