About
What Is It?
A nonprofit organization that is working to clean, beautify, and revitalize the 6-acre Olivewood Cemetery, Houston’s first incorporated African American cemetery, which had suffered decades of neglect.
Help Needed:
Tasks include mowing grass, clearing weeds and brush, and planting flowers. Please contact the organization for COVID-related updates.
Details
Minimum Age to Volunteer
None. All ages are welcome, but children must be accompanied by an adult.
Time Commitment
Cleanups take place from 9 AM to noon, on two Saturdays a month, weather permitting. Dates are listed on the website.
Training Needed
None. Please sign up in advance, watch the brief volunteer video, and bring a completed volunteer waiver, which can be found on the website or here.
Help Needed
SATURDAY VOLUNTEER
“It only takes about a week in the summer for the cemetery to be overrun with vegetation. Beyond routine mowing and weeding, we try to beautify and restore the old landscaping that has changed with time.” Tasks include mowing grass, removing vines and weeds, clearing small saplings and brush, and planting flowers.
Contact Details
Contact
Please visit the organization’s website for current information.
Location
DESCENDANTS OF OLIVEWOOD, INC.
Houston, Texas 77007
Location Details
Houston, Texas 77007
“If you wish to ensure entrance to the cemetery, please call or email to make an appointment. Please do not attempt to visit the cemetery after hours.”
Additional Information
Examples of past Scout projects
Eagle: Asher J. (Troop 1881) led more than 70 volunteers in an Olivewood work day; volunteers mowed grass, chopped away heavy overgrowth, hauled debris, and planted flowers. (2018)
Eagle: Jack M. (Troop 11) removed underbrush and garbage and documented graves at 1870. (2011)
Eagle: Chad R. researched the cemetery’s history and recorded names and other information on the markers, and prepared a report. (2010)
Gallery
This is near Arne’s party store. The cemetery is a peaceful place with birds and trees and some flowers. It’s bright and not creepy. It was interesting for our group to see all the old gravestones – some from long-ago wars – and there was something that everyone could do, even the young kids. Some kids cleared brush and took away branches and leaves, and others raked, or put pieces of wood in the dumpster. The teens used weedeaters and someone had a mower. The representative of the Descendants who helped us with the project was very nice and told stories about the people who were buried there. The kids liked seeing that their cleanup efforts made a difference.
I volunteered here with my church and it was very rewarding to see how much better the cemetery looked after we had finished.