Good fences make good neighbors: Volunteers pitch in at Center Cemetery in Southampton

SOUTHAMPTON — The wrought-iron fence around the historic Center Cemetery is getting a fresh coat of paint, thanks to the efforts of volunteers.

“It’s really a Tom Sawyer moment,” said Judith Miller Conlin, the chair of the town’s cemetery commission.

Conlin said that people started painting the fence, which is more than 100 years old, earlier this month with volunteer shifts on Wednesdays from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon. The committee is still looking for more volunteers, she said, and the plan is to continue painting until it “gets too chilly,” after which the painting will resume again in the spring.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Conlin said, noting that the black paint they’re using is “very dense. It’s going to ruin your paintbrushes.”

Conlin said that a number of people have stopped by and encouraged the volunteers. Konstantine Sierros, the owner of of Paisano’s Restaurant & Pizzeria, brought by pizza and soda one time as a thank you.

Sierros said he’d seen the volunteers at work as he was driving by and thought their lending a hand “was the most grandest thing to do.”

“We’re all one community,” Sierros said.

Those interested in volunteering can reach out to Pamela Gaspar, another member of the cemetery commission, at 413-539-3303 or email gasparpam17@gmail.com.

Gaspar said that if people want to get a group together, she can set them up to paint at any time.

“It’s a really, really giant job,” she said. “We want to make it as easy as possible.”

Gaspar noted that, at most, they’ve had seven people painting the fence in a day, and Conlin said that so far no men have volunteered. “We would certainly love to have any of the guys who want to come out,” Conlin said.

Center Cemetery is the town’s oldest cemetery, with its first recorded burial in 1738. Simeon Wait died from “drinking too much cold water,” according to the marker.

The current wrought-iron fence was installed in 1900, a gift to the town from William Foley. It is Conlin’s understanding that the Lyman Sheet Metal Company made the fence.

Conlin, 66, is a lifetime resident of Southampton who lives in a house built by her grandfather’s grandfather. She has served on the cemetery commission for over 25 years.

“I’ve always been drawn to cemeteries,” said Conlin, explaining that she enjoys the historical insights gravestones provide. “It’s interesting to see through the generations how the images have changed.”

Conlin also noted that she has a number of ancestors buried at Center Cemetery, and that she intends to be buried there as well.

“I like to poke around and keep things nice for them,” she said.