Cheslatta Carrier Nation is urging community members to come out and aid in grave-site cleanups, striving to name unmarked graves and maintain the sacred sites.
Elders, community members and staff are all working together to try and name the unmarked graves of the community. To date, cleanup at Grassy Plains Cemetery started on July 22, followed by Hamre Road Gravesite on Aug. 5.
Upcoming clean-ups are set to occur from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. again at Grassy Plains Cemetery for the second round of clean-up and Uncha Lake Road Gravesite on Aug. 19.
Community members who can volunteer will assist with grass cutting, raking and picking up garbage including fake flowers blown around by the weather.
Cheslatta Carrier Nation wanted to look at numbers on it of the graves, so they can start identifying any unmarked sites.
Quite a few volunteers came out for the first round of clean-up, and people were prepared with their weed whackers and lawn mowers.
Five youth workers hired for the summer are also taking part in the clean-ups.
Cheslatta Carrier Nation had their summer students sand all the grave-site crosses and re-paint them at Grassy Plains.
Having community members involved allows them the opportunity to feel like they have done something to connect with their ancestors.
If people are interested in helping with the upcoming grave-site cleanups to aid the community, they can show up on-site, the day of at 9 a.m. with their tools such as mowers or weed-whackers.
Fuel to run these machines will be provided. There is a need for more volunteers to attend and help in the marking process.