Glen Arbor Cemetery holds sixth annual Memorial Ceremony
From staff reports
This year’s Memorial Day weekend ceremony at the Glen Arbor Cemetery will begin at 10 am on Friday, May 23, and will feature a eulogy of veteran Ruell Welch, one of the four Civil War veterans buried at the cemetery. Poetry by Anne-Marie Oomen will be read, taps will be played by Norm Wheeler, and the Glen Lake School eighth graders will claim the names of those buried at the cemetery whom they each have studied.
The cemetery is located at 6305 Forest Haven Road in Glen Arbor. Park along the road and walk the path in. A track chair has been requested for those with mobility issues. Tick protection is strongly suggested. The ceremony should last 30 minutes. Limited seating will be available. Cancellation only in case of potential lightning strikes.
From 1977-2021, the cemetery, located at 6305 Forest Haven Road, west of downtown Glen Arbor, was mistakenly under the auspices of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. In 2015 a devastating straight-line windstorm buried the cemetery under fallen timber.
Then in 2019 the Township, along with many volunteers, began working with the National Park Service to provide documentation that proved the township’s ownership and resulted in the cemetery being transferred back to the Township. That year the National Park Service opened an entrance to the cemetery and the first annual Memorial Day Ceremony was held.
Once the township regained ownership in 2021 the one-acre site was cleared and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) work was performed to locate any unmarked graves. To everyone’s surprise the GPR work revealed 75 unmarked graves and a “potter’s field” with additional remains. Finally, in 2024 a stone marker was placed at each unmarked grave.
For information contact Glen Arbor Township Clerk Pam Laureto at glenarbor@glenarbortownship.com or call 231-334-3539.
