Families upset at floral vase-only policy at Henderson cemetery

People said Sunset Garden Memorial Cemetery, off Oxford Road in Henderson, gave them no notice of the change, leading to piles of flowers and other items in nearby trash bins.

During a visit to her grandmother's grave last week, she said, she noticed flowers beside the grave marker had disappeared.

“I pulled up, and I get out, and I start walking, and I’m like, 'All of her stuff is gone,'” Ayscue said.

A sign outside the cemetery’s office spells out the policy: Flowers in vases only, and nothing around grave markers.

Ricky Pearce bought Sunset Garden in December and said he’s trying to clean up the cemetery, which has more than 11,000 graves. The rule limiting trinkets and memorials dates to the 1970s but wasn't enforced by the previous owner, he said.

“It was hard for me to make that first decision to go by these rules," Pearce said. "I swallowed hard, and it was hard to breathe.”

“It should not have happened without contacting the families,” Rosa Perry Fuller said of the policy change.

A plaque at Fuller's late husband’s grave was cleared away.

"It meant everything to me. To come yesterday and [not] see it, it broke my heart," she said.

In response to complaints, Pearce said he's allowing people to put either an LED light or a flag within their flower arrangements. He said he hopes the compromise will make a majority of family members happy.