Gravestone Repair Workshop

Gravestone Repair Workshop – it’s free!
Sunday May 31, 2026 – 10am to 6pm, Dille Cemetery

SPACE IS LIMITED – SIGN UP TODAY!

Sponsored by Mt. Victory Community Improvement Corp. with support from Hardin County Community Foundation

Join us Sunday May 31, 2026 for the hands-on gravestone repair workshop and learn the proper techniques to clean, reset, and restore broken markers with care and respect. Whether you’re a history lover, preservation enthusiast, or just interested, you’ll leave with meaningful skills that make a lasting impact on how to repair gravestones stones and markers – Mark will shows us his method* on transforming broken & vandalized gravestones to beautifully repaired and properly cleaned!  SIGN UP TODAY »

The workshop will be led by Mark Morton, owner of Gravestone Guardians of Ohioan and members of *Cemetery Conservators for United Standards. Mark is recognized expert in the field of gravestone repair and cleaning – he guide workshop participants through the correct, respectful, hands-on techniques for preserving and restoring historic cemetery markers.

We’ll welcome you to Dille Cemetery, also referred to as Pioneer Cemetery or Eddy Cemetery – established in 1841. Let’s acknowledge and pay respects to the pioneers buried here who carved a place out of frontier wilderness for themselves, their families and their descendants some of which are standing right here among us today!

The Dille cemetery is an authentic pioneer cemetery and the front line of history related to Mt. Victory and the surrounding area. Let’s take the first step in repairing these gravestones that were vandalized years ago and deserve to be repaired!

  • WHEN: Sunday May 31, 2026 from 10am to 6pm
  • WHERE: Dille Cemetery (south just off Marion Street, east of Main St.)
  • SIGN UP » (space is limited to 25 people)
  • DEADLINE: sign up is May 27, 2026
  • PARKING: please park over in Drive Thru lot OR across the street at the old Fleet Wing station by the grain elevator (please do not park on Marion Street)
  • LUNCH: will be provided but feel free to bring your own – we’ll break for lunch at 1pm

Although we’ll only have the ability to repair 1 or 2 gravestones during the workshop, the goal of the workshop is to teach the repair technique to others who might then take their new skill and help repair ALL the broken gravestones in the Dille Cemetery that were vandalized years ago. It’s time to give this place the respect it deserves!

NOTE – Dille cemetery is managed & maintained by the Hale township – as with any cemetery, it’s protocol to tread carefully and respectfully as you walk this hallowed ground.

SPECIAL THANKS TO RIDGEMONT FFA STUDENTS!

CIC would like to extend a very special thank you to FFA students and their fearless leaders Lori Romi and Stephanie Joliff! The FFA students documented and cataloged the gravestones in Dille Cemetery that are in need of repair and special care. Their effort will be used for years to come as we move through the process of diligently repairing these Dille Cemetery gravestones that were vandalized years ago.