Press Release & Media Inquiries

For Immediate Release October 14, 2023

Ceremony Celebrates New Gravestones on the Lost Graves at 2 of the Oldest African American Cemeteries in Florida

St. Augustine, FL — The Northeast Florida community is invited to join the reveal ceremony of the first new granite gravestones on the lost graves at the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries in St. Augustine, two of the oldest African American cemeteries in Florida.

The event will take place during the annual Pinehurst & San Sebastian Fall Restoration Day on October 19th. At 8 a.m. volunteers will meet to clean up the cemeteries and the surrounding area, remove storm debris, and clean headstones. At 10 a.m. there will be a ceremony to reveal the new granite headstones, honor the people buried at the cemeteries, and to thank all the donors followed by a free community lunch.

In the summer of 2023, WAIA began the first major fundraising effort to remedy the lack of gravestones and deteriorating grave markers at the cemeteries through two campaigns: the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Sponsor-a-Grave campaign and the Pinehurst & San Sebastian GoFundMe campaign.

Among the first recipients of a new granite gravestone is St. Augustine Record Columnist Artemesia Holloway Jones, who wrote about happenings in the black communities in St. Augustine. Her gravemarker had completely disintegrated in recent years, but her name will now be forever etched in stone.

More than 200 graves are either unmarked or in danger of losing their grave markers. The oldest known grave at the cemeteries dates back to 1879. Many of the people buried there were born into slavery, and many veterans are buried there as well.

Controversy over ownership left the cemeteries exposed to neglect and vandalism, but in recent years, WAIA has taken ownership of the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries. The small non-profit organization hosts cemetery cleanup events, where they invite community members, clubs, organizations, and churches to join them.

The West Augustine Improvement Association is a small non-profit, volunteer-run community organization founded in 1956 by local teacher Nellie Meade to help out in the predominantly African American community on St. Augustine’s west side and to help with the upkeep of the African American cemeteries.

What to Expect on October 19, 2024

8 - 10 a.m. Community and cemetery cleanup and headstone cleaning. Parking at 711 Pearl Street, St. Augustine, Florida. (Overflow parking at 252 N McLaughlin Street). Please dress in long pants, and closed-toe shoes, and bring gloves and gardening tools such as clippers, rakes, and pruners.

10 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. Granite Gravestone Reveal Ceremony at the southeast corner of the San Sebastian Cemetery.

Speakers:

Welcome by Willie Cooper, Sr., WAIA President Cemetery

History - Thomas Jackson, WAIA Vice President & St. Augustine Historical Society Board of Trustees President

Introducing the Honorees - Lisa Lewis, WAIA Cemetery Advocate

Veterans Ceremony

Song by West Augustine singer Ollie Mae Victory

Prayer and thank you - John Lyons, WAIA

10:30 a.m. - 11 a.m. Cemetery cleanup and headstone cleaning.

11 a.m. - 12 noon Community lunch across the street at St. Luke AME with southern BBQ and more (694 Pearl Street) - Everyone’s invited.

For more information, please visit the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries GoFundMe page and the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries Sponsor-a-Grave campaign at their new website www.westaugustineimprovementassociation.org, you can send a message via social media, or email westaugimprovementassoc@gmail.com.

***** Video footage about the cemeteries and the fundraising campaign can be found on the West Augustine Improvement Association's new YouTube page @WestAugustineImprovement. We would love to see you at the event. For media inquiries, interview requests, and guided tours of the cemeteries:

Contact: Sine Boe WAIA PR Liaison & Social Media Manager westaugustineimprovement@gmail.com

*********************************************

For Immediate Release June 20, 2023

Community to Raise Funds for New Gravestones at the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries in St. Augustine.

St. Augustine, FL — The West Augustine Improvement Association announces the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Sponsor-a-Grave and the Pinehurst & San Sebastian GoFundMe Campaigns.

The Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries in St. Augustine are two of the oldest African American cemeteries in Florida, and more than 200 graves are either unmarked or in danger of losing their grave markers.

The oldest known grave at the cemeteries dates back to 1879. Many of the people buried there were born into slavery, and many veterans are buried there as well.

Controversy over ownership left the cemeteries exposed to neglect and vandalism, but in recent years, WAIA has taken ownership of the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries. The small organization hosts cemetery cleanup events, where they invite community members, clubs, organizations and churches to join them.

WAIA has now created the first major fundraising effort to attempt to remedy the lack of gravestones and deteriorating grave markers at the cemeteries through two campaigns: the Pinehurst & San Sebastian Sponsor-a-Grave campaign and the Pinehurst & San Sebastian GoFundMe campaign. These fundraising campaigns will run simultaneously to give community members, businesses and organizations several opportunities to support and help honor the historic cemeteries.

The West Augustine Improvement Association is a small non-profit, volunteer-run community organization that was founded in 1956 by local teacher Nellie Meade to help out in the predominantly African American community on St. Augustine’s west side and to help with the upkeep of the African American cemeteries.

Video footage about the fundraising campaign can be found on the West Augustine Improvement Association's new YouTube page @WestAugustineImprovement.

For media inquiries, interview requests and guided tours of the cemeteries contact:

Sine Boe

WAIA PR Liaison & Social Media Manager

westaugustineimprovement@gmail.com

Photos:

The Pinehurst & San Sebastian Cemeteries