Last year, Walden Life Scout Joseph Davis had an idea for his Eagle Scout project: a restoration of the Shawangunk Colored Cemetery, an 1860s burial site located at the corner of Routes 208 and 300 in Wallkill. After working with his family, friends, and several organizations over the past few months, Davis completed his project last week, turning the run-down cemetery into a shining historic preservation.

On Saturday, September 28, Davis gave a small tour of the cemetery to several local officials, including BSA Assistant Scoutmaster Pete Cocks, Shawangunk Supervisor Ken Ronk, Shawangunk Historian Kyle Williams, and his parents Mike and Kimberly Davis. Through careful planning and elbow grease, Davis and his team rebuilt the site’s staircase, refurbished the fencing, cleaned and repositioned the headstones, removed debris, planted grass, and added a bench.

Additionally, each headstone and its respective burial were registered to findagrave.com, ensuring that these individuals would never be forgotten. These included Susie Brown, 1868-1923; Calvin Johnson, 1808-1869; Henrietta Lynet, 1848-1908; John Lynet, 1820-1900; Harvey Miller, 1833-1868; Phoebe Miller, 1829-1883; Jacob Minard, 1817(?)-1900(?); Diana Minard, 1820(?)-1901(?); Susan Minard, 1798-1864; Jennie Roosa, 1783-1865; Catherine A. Rose, 1868-1928; and an unknown person.

Throughout the process, Davis’ biggest challenges were planning the restoration and bringing the materials to the cemetery. However, he persevered and considered the project a huge success.

“I feel like I accomplished a lot of good work, I did what I needed to do and then some, and it came out great,” Davis said. “It was definitely challenging to plan it all and get everything over here, that required a lot of strength.”

Everyone else involved with the project felt similar about the outcome and was extremely proud of Davis and the effort he put into it.

“Thank you for doing this Joe, the cemetery is a cornerstone of the town’s history, and your project is a great way to honor these individuals,” Williams said. “The restoration will definitely attract eyes to this location.”

“Joe did a fantastic job, it’s nice to see how he came out of his shell and made the transition from a boy to a man,” Cocks said.

“Joe planned, worked out all the donations, and wrote letters to make this project work. He executed the project with his troop and followed through,” Mike said. “He displayed true leadership and I couldn’t be more proud.”

A special thank-you goes out to everyone who helped Davis along the way with his project. These individuals and groups include the following:

- Pete Cocks, BSA Assistant Scout Master
- Dan Dannor, Director of Environmental Services for C2G
- Kimberly and Mike Davis, Joseph’s parents
- Dave LaSpada, President of the Wallkill Lions Club
- Eagle Scout Jack Pelzar and his mother Christine
- Ken Ronk, Shawangunk Supervisor
- Kyle Williams, Shawangunk Historian
- Brant Winum, Superintendent of the Wallkill Valley Cemetery Association
- Al Wohlgemuth of Durants Tool Rentals
- Boy Scouts of Walden Troop 33
- C2G Environmental
- Durants Tool Rentals
- Messco Building Supplies
- Scotts Corner Hardware
- Wallkill Lions Club