CLEAN MACHINE

Kelly Grimaldi is working to clean up the Albany Diocesan Cemeteries, one gravestone at a time.

Grimaldi, associate director for Albany Diocesan Cemeteries, has been organizing gravestone restoration workshops at local Catholic cemeteries for the past 12 years, hoping to teach curious locals about the proper restoration tips and tricks that keep gravestones clean, fresh and preserved.

“It’s to promote the cemetery as something historically and culturally significant to the community,” Grimaldi said. “There’s a lot of art and history here and I think preserving it is necessary to the viability of the cemetery.

Grimaldi held two gravesite restoration workshops last month: one on Sept. 17 at St. Agnes Cemetery (one of her favorites spots to restore), and another on Sept. 26 at Calvary Cemetery in Glenmont in collaboration with students from St. Thomas the Apostle School in Delmar.

It’s only Grimaldi leading the class, so she tries to cap the workshop at around 15-to-20 people — and there’s a waitlist every time.

“I like it, number one, because I don’t feel like such a weirdo!” Grimaldi laughed. “I call them ‘cemetery enthusiasts’ and there’s a growing population of people who are interested. I get a lot of older people who are retired and want to learn a new skill. I have people who are interested in cemeteries or want to learn to clean their own ancestors’ gravestones. So they also leave with this hands-on skill and they’re very satisfied when they’re done.”

During a typical workshop, Grimaldi leads her group through the ins and outs of gravestone restoration. The work requires patience and a bit of elbow grease, but the main takeaway for a proper restoration is simple: Do no harm and be safe while you do it.

“The first thing I teach is do no harm, which means don’t use bleach or metal on a gravestone,” she said. “And I teach them to put their safety first. Gravestones can look stable but you can get really hurt, and these things weigh a lot when they come crashing down.”

Grimaldi uses D/2 Biological Solution, a biodegradable cleaning solution that removes stains from mold, algae, mildew and lichens without harming any marble, limestone or other typical monument surfaces. Some granite stones may be power washed if the structure is stable, and other stones, like ones made of marble, should be washed carefully since the stone is softer and will chip more easily than others.

“You learn how to clean them, how to fill in stress cracks and fill in voids, how to epoxy some pieces back together, and using the right materials that are approved by the best practices of gravestone studies,” Grimaldi said.

St. Agnes Cemetery in Menands is one of the most historic cemeteries in the Albany Diocese, but also most in need of restoration. Established in 1867, the 108-acre cemetery is filled with dated gravestones (Grimaldi calls them “the needy stones”) that could use some sprucing up.

At one of her workshops in May, Grimaldi and her crew cleaned an area of St. Agnes that repeatedly had death dates in 1918-19. “We quickly surmised that it was the Spanish flu epidemic,” she said, “and how timely is that to be restoring pandemic victims’ gravestones.”

Grimaldi has also offered restoration courses at Most Holy Redeemer in Niskayuna and St. Mary’s Cemetery in Troy. Workshops have also been offered through Hudson Valley Community College’s Office of Community Education at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Rensselaer.

“They’re buying years for this historic document,” Grimaldi added. “They’re buying it time because it’s not going to last forever. I can’t tell you how excited people get seeing their ancestors. You’re looking at, from generations ago, the people who are responsible for your very existence.”

To find out about the next restoration workshops, email [email protected].