Boy Scout restores forgotten veterans' gravesite at North Arlington cemetery

While visiting his grandparents' graves at Holy Cross Cemetery in North Arlington, something he has done for much of his life, Dylan Sullivan noticed a gravesite he had never seen before. It was rundown and unkempt and looked as if it had been completely forgotten.

As it turned out, most of the gravestones at the site are those of veterans who served during the Civil War, the Spanish-American War and World War l.

“I knew right away, looking at the site’s condition and its practically forgotten appearance, that something must be done,” Sullivan said.

A junior at St. Peter’s Prep in Jersey City and senior patrol leader of Boy Scouts of America Troop 86, Sullivan had been working hard to obtain his Eagle Scout award. When he came across this forgotten gravesite, he knew he wanted to fix it up.

“I thought it would be a great community project, and hence it became my Eagle Scout project,” he said.

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After a lot of hard work obtaining approval for the project, gathering materials, and putting together a group of people to make it all happen, Sullivan was able to restore the site on Sept. 16. He and his team also uncovered unmarked graves and honored the forgotten heroes laid to rest there, as well as all the other men and women who have served our country.

The first part of the project was physically restoring the site. Sullivan and volunteers used D-2 Biological Solution, like what Arlington National Cemetery uses to keep its grave markers in good condition, to clean up the headstones. Nonna Lisa Pizzeria in North Arlington donated food for the volunteers on cleanup day.

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The second part of the project was an event, organized by Sullivan, to rededicate the site. A ceremony was conducted, starting with a speech from Capt. Adam Tegge of the Marine Corps League West Hudson Detachment, accompanied by Commandant Jack Engdahl.

Numerous local veterans and military members, borough officials, fellow Scouts, family members, friends and others took part in and witnessed the ceremony, which was composed of the laying of a memorial wreath, a three-volley salute, the playing of taps, the Pledge of Allegiance, and the blessing of the graves, led by the Rev. Dave Sison, the chaplain of Holy Cross Cemetery.

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“Although we were faced with inclement weather, that did not stop us from conducting a truly powerful ceremony,” Sullivan said.

“Seeing everyone who turned out to witness it showed me the strength of our community," he said. "We all felt the great words spoken by the Marines, and everyone got chills when taps rang out from up on the hill. It was a tremendous thing that had been done here, and I hope the impact is lasting.”

Sullivan shared his favorite part of the project, something that was not in the original plan.

“At the end of our restoration day, I was walking through the site to look some things over when I noticed something peculiar jutting out of the ground. I realized that it was a piece of a grave marker, completely buried under the ground," Sullivan said. "We ended up uncovering the headstone of Pvt. Robert E. Ryan, a grave which presumably went unmarked for a very long time. I am really glad we were able to shed light on this forgotten hero.”

With the completion of his project, Sullivan is working on the submission of his application and the board’s review for his official Eagle Scout rank.

Going forward, he hopes to continue pushing to find other veterans' graves that may be unknown, with the goal of shedding light on their sacrifices.

“I hope that this restoration ceremony brought the much-deserved attention to these very important men in our nation’s history and our freedom,” he said.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Lyndhurst NJ Boy Scout restores graves at Holy Cross Cemetery