A thank you for cemetery clean up

As a Fallbrook native whose family is buried in the Odd Fellows Cemetery, I wept tears of joy when I read about the North County Chief Petty Officers Assn (NCCPOA) work at clearing Fallbrook’s older cemetery in “Chief Petty Officers remember Sgt. Pittenger” [Village News, 9/2/10]. After many years of writing letters, making phone calls, and trying to get someone, anyone, to listen to me about the state of this historic place, it was so wonderful to know that this organization did this amazing thing on their own.

It was even more fulfilling to me, as a Marine Corps daughter and Navy wife, knowing that they did so with honor and respect.

My father served in three wars – World War II, Korea, and Vietnam – and could have been buried in any National Cemetery. He chose to be buried in this place because he came to love Fallbrook and wanted to be buried close to the military base where he first met my mother.

It has caused me so much pain seeing this cemetery go to seed over the years and not being able to get anyone to answer my pleas for assistance.

Thank you, NCCPOA, for taking on this project. Thank you for doing so to honor Sgt. Pittenger, but also for honoring all the other Fallbrook pioneers, veterans, and regular citizens who are buried there.

I cannot tell you how much this means to me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Kathleen Dunning-Torbett