I am happy to announce that I have started a new business. Right now it is a part-time endeavor, but I believe that I have the drive to make this business into my primary source of employment and income in the next several months. I am very excited and happy to tell you about my business.
First of all, the name of my business is Wes-Tex Gravesite Care. That's right, as you might guess by the name, the mission of my business is to offer professional quality care for gravesites. By the way, I am not sure gravesite is the way the word is properly spelled, because my spell check is going crazy as I write this; nonetheless I decided to make a compound word out of gravesite. Then I used a play on my name and the fact that we are located in the western portion of the state.
Wes-Tex Gravesite Care is a unique business with a unique niche. My mission of offering professional quality gravesite care is geared toward providing a service to those who need assistance in caring for their loved one's grave or other memorial site. Why would someone need my service? I have found that there are several reasons someone could use a gravesite care service. Foremost, many people have spent years caring for a special person's gravesite, and now these people are less physically able than they were in the past. For others, maybe time has become a factor, and they just are not as able to go out and check on their loved one's gravesite, allowing the gravesite to become overgrown with weeds and grass, or perhaps the opposite, maybe lush grass that once covered the grave has begun to die, leaving patches of bare dirt. Finally, I have found that many persons live several hours away from their loved one's grave, possibly one or even several states away. This situation means that relatives may be able to visit the gravesite only once per year, maybe not even that often.
Wes-Tex Gravesite Care will provide gravesite care and maintenance for those who find themselves unable to care for their loved one's gravesite for any of the above reasons, or any other. I primarily serve the Midland-Odessa area, and the Permian Basin, of West Texas. There are many cemeteries within an hour's drive of Midland, many more only another hour away. I also make frequent trips to Central Texas, and could offer services there on a scheduled basis.
My interest in starting my business was sparked when I visited a historic cemetery in Stanton, TX, where a convent was located just before the turn of the Twentieth Century. Stanton in that past era was known as Mariensfield, a German word for Field of Mary. This cemetery is the final resting place of several Sisters from that convent, as well as for many pioneers of the expansion into West Texas. There are many early ranchers and "cowboys" buried there, as well as several veterans from World War I. Along with these historical graves, there are graves of World War II veterans, as well as veterans of later wars, right up to vets who lost their lives in recent battles in the Middle East. And there are many current burials there as well.
As I strolled through this cemetery, I noticed that some graves were in excellent condition, the markers clean and easy to read. Other graves were sunken, were bare of grass, were covered with leaves and debris, or were in need of having the headstone cleaned or repaired. Some of the headstones, many dating back as far as the 1880's, were cracked or toppled, while others were broken and laying in pieces. On some of the older stones, the inscriptions were nearly invisible or even seemingly obliterated. As I looked at the varying states of neglect and deterioration of these gravesites, I realized that some of the relatives of those buried here might not be able to care for the graves, some relatives had themselves died in the intervening decades. Other graves were recent, but still in need of care that the relatives apparently were unable to give. And I felt the calling. I could learn to provide these services, and could help show honor and respect for the resting place of those who had gone on to that Better Place.
Now, in the dawn of my endeavor, I believe that I have found a profession that I can build first into a part-time business, then, as I gain more clients, I fully believe that I will be able to eventually replace my current income with the earnings from this service. I have worked for government agencies and corporations in the past, always earning money for someone else while never being paid what I thought my life energy was really worth. So I see Wes-Tex Gravesite Care as both a source of self-employment and a means to provide service of a higher calling to those who may need my assistance.
If any of you know of anyone who may need my service, I would appreciate it if you mentioned my endeavor to them. If you need my services yourself, I would be happy to speak with you. If you are in the Gatesville area, I could even offer you my services there, as I frequently visit my mother and other relatives. Most of all, I ask all of you to send me your positive thoughts and your prayers as I attempt to turn this dream into my next reality.
May God bless all of you,
And May God Bless America
First of all, the name of my business is Wes-Tex Gravesite Care. That's right, as you might guess by the name, the mission of my business is to offer professional quality care for gravesites. By the way, I am not sure gravesite is the way the word is properly spelled, because my spell check is going crazy as I write this; nonetheless I decided to make a compound word out of gravesite. Then I used a play on my name and the fact that we are located in the western portion of the state.
Wes-Tex Gravesite Care is a unique business with a unique niche. My mission of offering professional quality gravesite care is geared toward providing a service to those who need assistance in caring for their loved one's grave or other memorial site. Why would someone need my service? I have found that there are several reasons someone could use a gravesite care service. Foremost, many people have spent years caring for a special person's gravesite, and now these people are less physically able than they were in the past. For others, maybe time has become a factor, and they just are not as able to go out and check on their loved one's gravesite, allowing the gravesite to become overgrown with weeds and grass, or perhaps the opposite, maybe lush grass that once covered the grave has begun to die, leaving patches of bare dirt. Finally, I have found that many persons live several hours away from their loved one's grave, possibly one or even several states away. This situation means that relatives may be able to visit the gravesite only once per year, maybe not even that often.
Wes-Tex Gravesite Care will provide gravesite care and maintenance for those who find themselves unable to care for their loved one's gravesite for any of the above reasons, or any other. I primarily serve the Midland-Odessa area, and the Permian Basin, of West Texas. There are many cemeteries within an hour's drive of Midland, many more only another hour away. I also make frequent trips to Central Texas, and could offer services there on a scheduled basis.
My interest in starting my business was sparked when I visited a historic cemetery in Stanton, TX, where a convent was located just before the turn of the Twentieth Century. Stanton in that past era was known as Mariensfield, a German word for Field of Mary. This cemetery is the final resting place of several Sisters from that convent, as well as for many pioneers of the expansion into West Texas. There are many early ranchers and "cowboys" buried there, as well as several veterans from World War I. Along with these historical graves, there are graves of World War II veterans, as well as veterans of later wars, right up to vets who lost their lives in recent battles in the Middle East. And there are many current burials there as well.
As I strolled through this cemetery, I noticed that some graves were in excellent condition, the markers clean and easy to read. Other graves were sunken, were bare of grass, were covered with leaves and debris, or were in need of having the headstone cleaned or repaired. Some of the headstones, many dating back as far as the 1880's, were cracked or toppled, while others were broken and laying in pieces. On some of the older stones, the inscriptions were nearly invisible or even seemingly obliterated. As I looked at the varying states of neglect and deterioration of these gravesites, I realized that some of the relatives of those buried here might not be able to care for the graves, some relatives had themselves died in the intervening decades. Other graves were recent, but still in need of care that the relatives apparently were unable to give. And I felt the calling. I could learn to provide these services, and could help show honor and respect for the resting place of those who had gone on to that Better Place.
Now, in the dawn of my endeavor, I believe that I have found a profession that I can build first into a part-time business, then, as I gain more clients, I fully believe that I will be able to eventually replace my current income with the earnings from this service. I have worked for government agencies and corporations in the past, always earning money for someone else while never being paid what I thought my life energy was really worth. So I see Wes-Tex Gravesite Care as both a source of self-employment and a means to provide service of a higher calling to those who may need my assistance.
If any of you know of anyone who may need my service, I would appreciate it if you mentioned my endeavor to them. If you need my services yourself, I would be happy to speak with you. If you are in the Gatesville area, I could even offer you my services there, as I frequently visit my mother and other relatives. Most of all, I ask all of you to send me your positive thoughts and your prayers as I attempt to turn this dream into my next reality.
May God bless all of you,
And May God Bless America
Neat idea, Wes! I'll be interested to learn how it goes. Do you have a list of services and prices? I lived in Stanton, so I've stood at the spot of your inspiration. While many cemeteries are well tended, there are probably thousands of these little, rural cemeteries that could use assistance from the families and folks like you. Godspeed!
ReplyDelete-Steve McLean