By Brett Callwood
On Saturday, December 2, Roosevelt Memorial Cemetery will celebrate its 100-year centennial with an event that will allow the staff and public to commemorate this milestone.
The event will see local city officials and representatives speak, and is open to everyone.
“The Centennial Celebration is in honor of loved ones resting in peace at Roosevelt Memorial Park Cemetery,” said Javier Fernandez, Director of Cemetery Operations at Roosevelt Memorial Park. “Families are especially welcomed to attend. The Centennial Celebration is free to anyone who would like to attend. Roosevelt Memorial Park Cemetery will have speakers and food.”
The longevity is no surprise; Fernandez said that families have preferred Roosevelt Memorial Park Cemetery since Hollywood Boulevard was a two-lane road.
“Founded in 1923, this lovely, gracious Memorial Park in the center of the city offers tree shaded areas for traditional burial, seven magnificent mausoleums, and a peaceful Rose Garden for the scattering of cremated remains,” he saud. “The centerpiece of the park is our Chapel of Faith, offering peace, tranquility, and repose. Roosevelt Memorial Park Cemetery was designed as a place for calm reflection in the midst of an active community.”
Fernandez has served as the Director of Cemetery Operations for the last year and half.
“I’ve had the privilege of serving families and communities for 30 plus years,” he said. “Roosevelt Memorial Park Cemetery communities are united with lots of rich history and traditions. The Gardena community is very diverse with pride and culture.”
Naturally, when any institution exists for this length of time in the Los Angeles region, there will be stories to be told and Roosevelt Memorial Cemetery is no different.
“The year was 1923, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum opens, and a young cartoonist named Walt Disney arrives in Los Angeles with $40.00 in his pocket,” said Fernandez. “The 242-mile-long Colorado River Aqueduct construction to bring water to Los Angeles is half finished, Los Angeles hits one million residents, the Hollywood sign is erected in the Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles General Hospital is completed, and Roosevelt Memorial Park holds its opening dedication. “In March of 1924, the governing board of Roosevelt Memorial Park cemetery and the Rudolph Wurlitzer Co. of North Tonawanda, New York, reached an agreement. The newspaper advertisement announcing the news proclaimed that, as a result, the cemetery would receive ‘the world’s mightiest pipe organ’.”
The event takes place at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, December 2 at Roosevelt Memorial Cemetery, 18255 Vermont Ave., Gardena. Visit rooseveltmp.net for more information.
