Pleasant Ridge
Sunnyvale, TX
Project Details
Cemetery Type
Private
# of Burials
1,400
Location
Sunnyvale, TX
Services
Mapping, Record Digitization, Memorial Photography
Types of Records
Ledger books, paper maps, excel sheet
The Challenge
Pleasant Ridge came to Lazarus with a couple of issues. The first being, they were ready to go fully digital. Tired of comparing paper records to their excel sheet, and tired of having to drive out to the cemetery to confirm plots. They also wanted to change their labeling system. For years, all of the plots on the map were labeled in Lots. Pleasant Ridge wanted to change this into Rows.
Our Process
Lazarus started by traveling to Sunnyvale, TX, and meeting with the owners of the cemetery. Then, while on-site, we scanned the ledger books, walked the cemetery to document headstone information, and flew the drone to capture a high quality aerial image.
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Back at the offices, the ledger books were transcribed, and imported into the current Excel sheet they were using. We then ran formulas to find duplicates in the records. When we began our mapping, we now had a crisp aerial view of the cemetery. This allowed us to see exactly which "Lots" needed to be included in their respective new "Row." As we mapped, we updated the Excel sheet so that the labeling of the plot was changed to its respective new row. We also used the data that we captured on-site to find any missing burials that were not in the materials provided by Pleasant Ridge.
The Result
Pleasant Ridge now has their entire cemetery at their fingertips. They can search everything in a matter of seconds. The cemetery is now organized into neat rows, and not in messy lots it used to be. The map now looks and is, much cleaner. Now, as they sell plots in the future, everything is much easier to keep track of.
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All of their records are now secure for the future. They have also ensured the longevity of their cemetery as whoever is next in line to take the cemetery manager position, has no more mess left for them.