HOPKINSVILLE, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – Formerly known as Green Hill Memorial Gardens, the privately operated cemetery in Hopkinsville has come under new ownership within the last month, with a couple inheriting over a decade of issues. Chrissy Buckner and her husband Mark officially took over ownership at the beginning of April, renaming it Ancestral Haven Memorial Gardens.
“It was never on my bucket list,” Chrissy told Christian County Now about acquiring the property. She first met the previous owner when her son was working on an Eagle Scout project to raise over 100 sunken gravestones at Green Hill. They had a few more encounters over the years, with her other son also doing lawn maintenance at the cemetery.
The Buckner’s eventually got a phone call from the owner, who offered to gift them Green Hill Memorial Gardens at no cost. He told them health issues prevented him from keeping up with maintenance and if they did not accept, he would surrender the property to the state. They were initially hesitant before eventually accepting.
“I thought something was fishy, because you don’t just give away something like that,” said Chrissy, “I had heard the horror stories of Green Hill…if I had let it go to the state, then everyone who is owned markers or anything is not going to get squat.”
Issues overlapping with new ownership
The previous owner has since left the city after a brief transition period. Around three weeks into ownership, the Buckner’s have just started to scratch surface of an overwhelming process to restore the cemetery that Chrissy says was neglected not only not the grounds, but behind the scenes for the past 14 years.
“I want to turn it around,” owner Chrissy said. “I want it to be how it was before and I want people to be happy with it because there has been so much anger and hurt and dissatisfaction. I want people to get what they’re owed.”
Christina McCabe, whose mother is buried at the cemetery, told Christian County Now that prior to the new ownership nothing was done to prevent the headstone she purchased from sinking into the ground. She said, “We made the previous owner aware, and nothing was done. I even took potting soil myself and tried filling in the gap.”
After a sudden burst of concerns about conditions on social media, another resident, Kimberly Paige, visited the cemetery on April 24, sharing photos of stacks of plaques and tall grass. According to the owners, these markers are doubles that have been remade and installed at gravesites left by the previous owner.
After being faced with multiple concerned residents, owner clarified on social media that per the deed, families have purchased interment rights, not the actual land. Due to this, the cemetery is not public property, and any aggressive behavior may result in grounds for trespassing.
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Tackling previous issues, plans moving forward
The cemetery had previously scheduled a community service day prior to a surge of online complaints. Volunteers came out on April 25 to mow, weed eat, provide gas money and cleanup ahead of Mother’s Day.
Chrissy specifically thanked the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association of Kentucky, Chapter 1-8 for organizing an additional community service day for May 9. They also committed to maintain two military gardens on site. Other local lawn companies have also offered their services, and they are overall grateful for the community support they have received so far.
After first acquiring the property, owners announced that all existing plots, contracts and burial rights remain fully honored, assuring families that all records remain intact, all rights of interment are preserved, and all existing agreements will continue.
On the short term, heading into the summer the owners are focused on organizing paperwork and cosmetic maintenance such as fixing markers, filling vases and more, “There are graves that need to be lifted, there are graves that need to be cleaned… there are graves that are tilted,” she said.
Among the several hurdle’s she says they have to tackle; they recognized that there are a lot of people who are owed markers. They have begun reaching out to impacted families to communicate a possible timeline.
One of her main goals is to flip it from a for profit business to nonprofit as well as applying for grants to help with funding in the future.
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