Driftwood residents Remington Templeton with grandparents Bob and Judy Templeton honored veterans interred at Driftwood Cemetery at the unveiling of a veterans memorial April 27. About 100 people attended the ceremony which included guest speakers and the color guard. SUBMITTED PHOTO
Driftwood Cemetery adds veterans memorial
Driftwood Cemetery Association, a non-profit organization, maintaining the cemetery grounds located off FM 150 at Elder Hill in Driftwood, honored its interred veterans with a memorial unveiling and ceremony on Saturday April 27.
Last year, Association chairman and Driftwood resident Bob Templeton noticed there was no memorial recognizing veterans. “We let these individuals go off to war and we need to offer some tribute of thanks,” Templeton said.
The group soon commissioned a stone monument with engravings to include all branches of service represented there, and all names of service personnel, with space for additional inscriptions.
To dedicate the memorial, the Dripping Springs VFW provided a Color Guard, which rendered military honors.
History buffs enjoyed guest speakers, which included Chairman of the Hays County Historical Commission Kate Johnson, Hays County Commissioner Pct. 4 Walt Smith, Cemetery Historian Marie Bassett, and Association President Stan Jones. Refreshments were served afterwards.
The cemetery came into existence in 1884. “Within the peaceful oak-shaded bounds of Driftwood Cemetery lie citizens of the Republic of Texas, veterans of the Civil War, as well as of America’s major foreign conflicts, and the good people of Driftwood, regardless of denomination,” Bassett said.
“What comes to mind when you think of a cemetery?” Templeton asked. For him, it offers a link to the past. “By dressing up graves, we make a connection. It’s all very personal,” he said.
Templeton and other Association members would like to hear more ideas from the community and see a renewed interest in the local cemetery. For more information visit