A Chickasaw County Stapleton Township Cemetery got a face lift on "Join Hands Day" with 24 youth and 24 adults participating. The group built a plastic pipe rail fence, upended gravestones into position, repaired broken monuments, cleared a fence line of debris, cut and mowed weeds, leveled gopher mounds, spaded wood chips to selected areas, spaded out tree roots, repaired the flag pole and more. Preceding this work day, hundreds of laborious hours had already been donated by Pioneer Cemetery Commission members, Township Trustees and others removing brush, leveling ground and other restoration work. With the welcomed addition of many more hours of labor on "Join Hands Day," the workers were pleased to see a transformation of a pioneer cemetery restored to honor.

The new fence going up

"Join Hands Day" project was sponsored by the Chickasaw County Lutheran Brotherhood Branch #8841 in conjunction with their Respect - Teen Project. Branch #8841 donated $400 to build the pipe rail fence. The workers, ages 13 to 79, were represented by ten more organizations and are as follows: The Chickasaw County Cemetery Commission, Stapleton Township Trustees, the Chickasaw County Genealogical Society, Aid Association for Lutherans and Woodman of the World; Youth groups were from the Stapleton and Fredericksburg Lutheran Churches, the Hustlers
4-H Club of Fredericksburg and the Boy Scouts of America from Protivin. A gravestone repair specialist, Mike MAGEE of the Black Hawk County Genealogical Society also volunteered. The Boy Scout leaders of Protivin, catered the noon lunch.

President Jerry TIESKOTTER, spokesman for the Chickasaw County Pioneer Cemetery Commission, was very pleased with the turnout. He expresses thanks to all those who came on this day and also thanks all who have in the entire project given of their time and have given many donations toward this township cemetery restoration project. "Join Hands Day" event organizer, Lorraine WEIDLER, expresses thanks for the fact so many helpers came, realizing this is a very rural community. Many towns were represented with workers coming from Chickasaw, Fayette and Winneshiek Counties.

Early Stapleton Township settlers are buried here. The first burial was Abram STAPLES on April 6, 1858. Abram was the founder of Stapleton Village located two miles east of the cemetery. The post office was in service for the years of 1858 to 1882. The cemetery is located in Stapleton Township, Section 34 on the south side of 240th Street (as it is now designated). Known recorded burials, 1858 to 1910, are from families named as follows: BLANCHARD, BRIGGS, FOLLET, GARDNER, HALLOCK, HAUS, MCCRAE, MILLETT, RANDALL, STAPLES and WATERWORTH. There are also many unidentified graves.

Those who participated in the days event were: Jerry TIESKOTTER, Robert SMITH, Gene ARENS and Don ARENS of Lawler, Fred and Priscilla REISNER, Jeanette KOTTKE, Bob and Karen DOWNES of Fredericksburg; Betty TYLEE, Thelma ALLEN, Lorraine and Bob WEIDLER, Julie ECKENROD, Leslie and Delight BORCHERDING of New Hampton; Duane and Shirley JOHNSON of Torrance, CA; Mike MAGEE of Waterloo; Don and Mary WENDLAND of Waucoma; Youth and their leaders from Fredericksburg were: Adam KLIESS, Adam VOLKER, Joel NEUENDORF, Sue BRITT, Wynn HARTSON, Brandon OHM, Jeff ROCHFORD, Shawn REISNER, Brian TODD and Scott DAVIS. Protivin Boy Scout Leaders Ken FENCL and Luke RACKS, Scouts Kyle FENCL, Luke SITKA, Chris SHAME, Justin VRBA, Casey FENCL, Greg MEIRICK, Lee MEIRICK, Travis VRBA, Andrew REICKS, Jacob BRUESS, Dalton BRUESS, Cody FENCL, Kyle PANOS, Nathan MRACEK and Shane BARLOON.

The "Join Hands Day" Volunteers

Hustlers 4-H Club boys (L-R):
Brian TODD, Shawn REISNER, Scott DAVIS and Jeff ROCHFORD