Historic Alief Cemetery now under maintenance of Harris County

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The Houston area has some historic cemeteries that are badly in need of cleanup. Often it's done by neighborhood groups, but in Alief the job was just getting to be too much for volunteers.

So the county has stepped in to pay some tribute to the past and create a park-like space for the community.

Surrounded by traffic that passes by day and night is a reminder of what Alief once was -- a farming community founded on the fields southwest of Houston. And Alief Cemetery was its burial ground for pioneer families, with lives that bridged the 1800's and 1900's.

The hard life reflected in some of the markers and the ages at which they died.

Volunteers did what they could over the years. One man mowed it a bit at a time, day by day. A Boy Scout troop and students helped out, but more consistent attention was needed.

Over time, the cemetery was forgotten, but later rediscovered by Marie Lee.

"Where people threw their trash, where builders threw their old concrete, and it was just a big mess," said Lee, with the Alief Community Association.

She and other volunteers cleaned it up when they could, but the job required more than that. So their county commissioner took the Alief Cemetery on as a precinct project.

State law allows counties to maintain historic cemeteries without perpetual care. Harris County Commissioner Steve Radack decided Alief Cemetery qualified.

"You go from something that people are appalled by to something they take pride in," said Commissioner Radack.

On Tuesday, county crews mowed the grass, county inmates collected trash, and a survey was taken for a fence that will surround the cemetery.

For Ernest Kobs, a Precinct 3 employee, it's both a job and a labor of love.

"People have a fear of being forgotten and I want to make sure people are not forgotten," Kobs said.

There are ghost stories about the cemetery -- strange lights and tales of an apparition near the graves. That doesn't frighten Marie Lee. But if there are ghosts here, she hopes they'll appreciate what the living have done for the dead.

"They've got a good haunting place now. At least they can find where they want to go," Lee said.

It's the third cemetery project Precinct 3 has adopted. Radack sees it as creating a community asset which can serve as a park-like setting for neighbors.

The inmate labor is free. The only cost to the precinct is fuel to transport people and equipment.

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Alief ISD fifth graders learning to give back

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Some fifth-grade children in Alief ISD are getting a better view of the world by raising money to help others worldwide.

Even though 79 percent of the children at Chancellor Elementary School are socio-economically disadvantaged, they are already learning to give back. "We are about $100 away from our $3,000 goal," teacher Teresa Dola said. These fifth-graders aren't your ordinary kids. They're working to become global citizens. "We give people another chance to make their life better," student Nicoles Lepton said. Students in Dolan's class have been working to raise money to help entrepreneurs in other countries like Mexico, Vietnam, Jordan and even Iraq. They're working with the charity, Kiva, an organization that loans donated money globally to people starting businesses. The students pick recipients from the charity's website. "We read their stories and the ones we have a good, personal connection with, that we can related with, we just start giving it to them because we know how they feel," student Edison Huynh said. But they do their research, taking time to look at conditions in the country. Many in the class are children of immigrants, so they want to give back. Each child set a goal of raising $50 and they've worked to get it. "I've done helping hand tickets around my house, doing chores and taking up all the chores in the house," student Ayodeji Odole said. So far, they've raised $2,900 of their $3,000 goal. They've also made 15 loans. Mrs. Dolan says the project teaches the kids they can always help, and it's had an impact on them. "I think one of the greatest things of this project is to show it doesn't matter how old you are, where you come from, your economic background. Everyone can give, everyone has a way to change the world," Dolan said. "I feel like I'm really connected to the project and I feel like I'm a part of something now," student Daniel Karee said. By Tuesday afternoon, the students exceeded their donation goal with a car wash, reaching $3,200. They plan on raising money through the end of the school year. (Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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