Belleville cemetery owners fined $500 over upkeep; complainants cite ‘slap on wrist’

The matter came before the South Carolina Perpetual Care Cemetery Board for a final order hearing on Nov. 2, 2022, as a result of a formal complaint issued on Sept. 27, 2022.

The board issued a final order dated Dec. 20, finding that the cemetery violated Section 40-8-220 of the South Carolina Perpetual Care Cemetery Act, which states that cemeteries must be maintained to present a cared-for appearance, including, but not limited to, shrubs and trees pruned and trimmed, flower beds weeded, drives maintained and lawns mowed when needed.

“We received a fine payment in the amount of $500 on Jan. 3, 2023,” said Lesia Shannon Kudelka, communications director and ombudsman at the S.C. Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.

Orangeburg’s Belleville Memorial Gardens and Orangeburg’s Crestlawn memorial Gardens, a historically white cemetery, are both owned and operated by the same company, Gainesville, Florida-based Faithful Heritage Holdings Inc.

The final order states that Gwendolyn M. Austin, regional administrator for Faithful Heritage Holdings LLC, appeared at the Nov. 2 hearing on behalf of Faithful Heritage Holdings, which was represented by attorney Carl D. Hiller of Columbia-based HHP Law Group LLC. Attorney Alexis Bell, assistant disciplinary counsel at the SCLLR, represented the state.

Hiller in an email said, “My client has not appealed the decision and has no further comment. I likewise have no comment.”

Jan Summers, an office administrator who answered the phone at the Crestlawn office, said, “I was told to tell you no comment,” before abruptly hanging up. 

The order stated that the $500 civil penalty sanctioned against Faithful Heritage Holdings was “not intended to punish the respondent, but to protect the welfare of the people at large.”

LLR had assigned an investigator to probe the allegations that the grounds at Belleville Memorial Gardens had not been properly maintained, with his findings including overgrown grass covering grave markers, broken benches and various signs, statues and monuments that were dirty and needed cleaning.

The order stated that while the cemetery’s owners contended that they did not willfully violate Section 40-8-220 of the South Carolina Perpetual Care Cemetery Act, “habitual violation of the same duty is evidence of willfulness.”

Orangeburg native Terrence Cummings, who now lives in Columbia and whose grandparents, parents and uncle are buried at Belleville, has been among several citizens reaching out to Orangeburg County elected officials expressing concerns about Belleville Memorials Gardens not being properly maintained, particularly in comparison to Crestlawn.

He said while he was not completely satisfied with the state Perpetual Care Cemetery Board’s ruling, there has been some improvement at the cemetery since the hiring of new territorial manager, Ken Kleiner.

“I was actually subpoenaed and was present on Nov. 2, 2022, as a witness, while my friends Gina (Cooper) and Jackie Strickland (Parks) were present via video,” Cummings said.

“I was not completely satisfied, though as a biblical principle, I do not despise small beginnings. Faithful Heritage Holdings Inc. has supposedly 22 properties across the U.S. If one were to Google Faithful Heritage Holdings Inc., they’d find this company does not keep covenant with its customers,” he said.

Cummings continued, “I was somewhat dissatisfied as this was just a slap on the wrist. … All families pay a fee when using perpetual care cemeteries that goes into a trust fund. That money is supposed to be used for perpetual care. BMG is the same under the S.C. Code of Laws.”

He said Kleiner has worked to improve the appearance of Belleville Memorial Gardens.

“The winter has set in and the grass is dormant; however, Mr. Kleiner has worked to improve BMG. His challenge is that as territorial manager, he has responsibility for other cemeteries, one even in Charleston. He does not have the personnel, nor equipment.

“There are far too many plots and gravesites that need attention; however, Mr. Kleiner did say he welcomes people reporting to him at the Crestlawn Cemetery, where he is housed on Highway 21 on a regular basis. This would speed up concerns,” Cummings said.

Jackie Strickland Parks, a resident of Frederick, Maryland, has parents and a brother-in-law buried at Belleville Memorial Gardens. She said she could not say she was “fully satisfied” with the board’s decision.

“It’s like it was just a slap on the wrist. My understanding is that management of the cemetery has changed several times over the last few years. The gentleman that is in charge now seems to be trying to get a handle on things; however, just some of the things that were said during the hearing gave me pause for concern,” Parks said.

“My hope is that they will just rectify whatever the problem is. They have a supervisor for the property that they own at Crestlawn, but they don’t necessarily have that level of supervision when they come over to Belleville. So I hope that that’s something that they took note of to see if that will help resolve the problem,” Parks said, referring to Faithful Heritage Holdings.

She said an ill-kept cemetery was “the last thing that anybody should have to deal with.”

“Relatives have paid into having the perpetual care. It is a little disconcerting. A group of us are meeting on a regular basis. We’re seeing that we really need to be on top of things,” Parks said.

Cummings said, “It is our intention to make sure that ‘perpetual care’ is maintained, and this means we must inspect what we expect. That will ensure compliance. With more filed complaints, the S.C. Perpetual Care Cemetery Board may have to give greater sanctions, potentially removing Faithful Heritage Holdings Inc. If the board is not an advocate, the stronger measure is to have the governor unseat the SC PCB.”

“In December, a few of the items we complained about were improving, but the concern is if the perpetual care continues when the weather changes in the spring. There are at least three other persons who have filed complaints with SCLLR. We’ll see if the PCB will entertain these concerns at its March meeting,” he said.