Benefactor John Bergstrom restores funeral chapel at Oak Hill Cemetery for public use

NEENAH - When John Bergstrom attended the funeral of his brother William Bergstrom at Oak Hill Cemetery in 2012, he didn't like what he saw.

The lawns, trees and gravestones of the city-owned cemetery were well maintained by the staff, but he was troubled by the condition of the cemetery's gates, fences, walls, funeral chapel and mortuary vault.

"I couldn't get over how it really needed maintenance in a very big way," Bergstrom told The Post-Crescent. "The fences were deteriorated. The gate was bent up a thousand different ways. The concrete barriers on the perimeter in some places were broken."

Bergstrom inquired about the situation and learned the city didn't have sufficient funds budgeted for the capital improvements he desired.

'It was very much under the radar'

Since his brother's funeral, Bergstrom has been quietly arranging and funding a series of cemetery improvements.

First, he had the main gate fixed. Then the other gates. Then the fences.

"It was very much under the radar," he said.

When it came time to renovate the chapel, Bergstrom was told the cemetery staff kept lawn mowers and string trimmers inside. For the chapel to be restored for public use, the cemetery needed a place to store its equipment.

Bergstrom paid for a $210,000 storage garage, built on the west side of the cemetery. Then he set his sights on restoring the chapel, which last was used for a funeral in November 1983, according to Post-Crescent archives, and had fallen into disrepair.

"It was just a junk room," Bergstrom recalled. "The pews were all gone. The windows were broken. It was in tough shape."

Four local companies hired to restore the chapel

The chapel was built in 1924 in the Tudor Revival style and is made of Eden stone. It was designed by the Milwaukee firm Eschweiler & Eschweiler.

Bergstrom hired Houlihan Construction for the interior woodwork. He retained Miron Construction for the masonry work, Ogden Plumbing for the mechanical work and Schmalz Custom Landscaping for bluestone pavers, plants and trees.

"The bluestone surface areas weren't there originally, but I want them to be there now so there is an assembly area for people," Bergstrom said.

A ramp to a side entrance was built to accommodate people who use a wheelchair.

The chapel features new wooden doors and pews and an altar crafted from a 1910 table that came from the home of F. J. Sensenbrenner, a former Kimberly-Clark Corp. president. The wrought iron gates and stained-glass windows have been restored to their former glory.

The lighting, heating and air-conditioning systems are new, and the tile floor was made to match the coloring of the interior walls.

"It's very, very nice," Bergstrom said. "I think people will be very pleased with it."

The city intends to make the chapel available to the public for funeral services, but the details, including the fee, haven't been worked out.

'It's a present to (Neenah)'

Bergstrom deflected when asked how much he has invested in Oak Hill Cemetery in the past decade.

"I really don't know," he said. "It's a gift. It's a present to the city and to the people of the city."

Cemetery foreman Mark Alberts described the restored chapel as a treasure for Neenah. He praised Bergstrom for recognizing needs at the cemetery, developing solutions and bringing the projects to completion.

"He's been very generous to the city of Neenah and obviously to Oak Hill," Alberts said. "It's been absolutely amazing. Some of these things probably wouldn't have been able to get accomplished without his assistance."

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Chapel has a family connection to Bergstrom

The chapel originally was a gift to the city from Dedrick W. Bergstrom (1847-1928), Bergstrom's great-grandfather. His funeral was held at the chapel.

The Bergstrom family connection to Neenah and the chapel is inscribed on a black stone in front of the chapel. It says in part, "Dedrick built this small chapel as a gift for all of the people to say goodbye to their loved ones."

The inscription is dated 2024 because Bergstrom thought the chapel restoration would take two years. He finished it in one.

"Once I got going, it was exciting. It was fun," he said. "I kind of lost control."

The nearby mortuary vault, which stored caskets when the ground was too frozen for burials, was donated to the city in 1924 by Helen Babcock, Elizabeth Babcock and H. K. Babcock.

Bergstrom has been restoring that building as well. The exterior work is largely done.

"I didn't do the windows, but I will," he said. "It will take some time and craftsmen to do (the interior work), but this is our project for next year."

Contact Duke Behnke at 920-993-7176 or dbehnke@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DukeBehnke.

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This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: John Bergstrom restores Oak Hill Cemetery chapel for public use