Santa Rita Cemetery in Cayo District Reaches Full Capacity for Burials

The Santa Rita Cemetery in San Ignacio Town, Cayo District, has reached its capacity.  Love News understands that currently the only plots available are the ones that have been reserved or pre-paid.  Mayor Earl Trapp took a walk to the area with our correspondent, Eliu Yacab, and explained that there is no more space or burial plots available.  

Earl Trapp, Mayor of San Ignacio / Santa Elena: “This cemetery has been here long before I was born and today it is filled to capacity. We have many residents living in San Ignacio that have their loved ones passed away but for some reason, because of the bond to San Ignacio town they prefer their loved ones to be buried in San Ignacio. We have another cemetery in Santa Elena that is rapidly being filled as well. So, and the reason for that is because we have to bury people living in San Ignacio that has their loved ones pass away in Santa Elena. But again, like I said, the disadvantage or inconvenience to the loved ones that have their loved ones pass away. The people in Santa Elena, likewise, would love to have their loved ones that passed away buried in Santa Elena. They don’t want anybody buried in San Ignacio. So in light of that, what we have done, we have been looking around and we found a 10 acre piece of property here in San Ignacio, more like in the Cayo North area, the owner is asking for $250,000. What he’s saying is that if we can provide him with $50,000 as a down payment then he wouldn’t mind working along with us. So this is what we are asking the general public to work along with us, provide pledges and see how we can come up with the $50,000. Already we have begun to identify a day that we can have maybe a radiothon and a fundraiser that we can maybe get the $50,000 towards this property that is in dire needed here in this municipality.”

According to Mayor Trapp, they have been looking at alternatives, and they have located a land he believes will be conducive for a second cemetery.  The issue, however, has to do with the financing.  The land is private, and is for sale for two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

Earl Trapp, Mayor of San Ignacio / Santa Elena: “We want to organize it in a way to international standards that it will be there for many years to come. If we can organize how people will be buried, and I mean we have an engineer that will come up with the proper planning and we can prepare for longevity. So basically that’s our plea to the general public. Already we have already written letters to local government. I know I spoke to the CEO in the Ministry of Local Government last two weeks and he said he would have followed up but so far nothing yet. We have written the minister, the Prime Minister for the past five, six months. We have written the former government as well and so far no support. So we are asking the general public I mean it is something that we will require to bury our loved ones. So It is imperative that we make a move on this before we don’t have the land close by and then we will have to go all the way behind Bullet Tree Falls. So if we can work together and get the pledges in we can provide the $50,000 that they are asking as a down payment and eventually we find a way how we will do the plan payment to get the $250,000 paid to the owner of the property.”

As Mayor Trapp noted, he has reached out to Central Government for assistance.  We will keep following this story.