Perilla Wilson, chairman of the steering committee that will ultimately evolve into a formal board of directors, said she hopes Catholic and non-Catholic citizens will join the effort to restore this most historic place. The group is operating under the auspices of the Archdiocese of Mobile with the Very Rev. Michael L. Farmer, chancellor, serving as chaplain and the Rev. James S. Kee, S.T.L., J.C.L, judicial vicar, as legal advisor.

Mrs. Wilson told the gathering that the cemetery is rapidly deteriorating and needs immediate attention. Also needed are complete records of burial.

Former Archdiocesan Director of Administration Bill Woolfarth, has retired and is now working part-time as Catholic Cemetery administrator. Restoration of this wonderful historic property will be his focus, Woolfarth said while conditions at the cemetery are stabilized, help is needed to restore it to former glory.

The cemetery, which encompasses roughly 150 acres in three sections, dates to1848 and is located in Toulminville. Over the years, the cemetery has fallen into disrepair due to the ravages of weather and time, family members moving away from the area and not providing for care of graves, and loss of records due to fire. He said he hopes one of the projects of FOCC will involve identifying unmarked graves.

“We actually don’t even know the names of everyone who is buried there,” said Woolfarth. He and Mrs. Wilson hope that more people will join in efforts to update records. Members of the Mobile Genealogical Society are already undertaking this task but there is a need for more volunteers to do various things.

HMPS will assist in publicizing FOCC and help the group develop programming, including a Perpetual Care Fund similar to that instituted by the Friends of Magnolia Cemetery. The Magnolia Cemetery “Friends” group evolved from an HMPS subcommittee, according to HMPS past-president Helen Wilson, who also attended the meeting. She said information about the cemetery will be added to the HMPS website at www.historicmobile.org.

Fr. Farmer said Mobile’s Catholic Cemetery differs from all other Catholic cemeteries in the United States in that it is not a revenue generator. “All the other cemeteries in the U.S. are revenue generators,” he said, adding that the lack of a friends or support group is part of the reason Mobile’s cemetery is not a revenue generator or self-sustaining entity. Fr. Farmer asserted that getting the Catholic community, as well as other citizens, involved will help this cause.

Perilla Wlson says she hopes the next meeting, which is open to the public, will be well attended. The next informational meeting will be held at the Sarto Center of St. Pius Church. For information, call Ms. Perilla Wilson at 344-5359 or contact her via email at perilla.w@juno.com.