Veterans, loved ones forgotten at overgrown cemetery in Apopka

APOPKA, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Weeds and overgrown grass consume the Plymouth Memorial Garden Cemetery in Apopka,  with some of the headstones barely visible beneath the brush.

“The graves just keep disappearing into the grass,” said Lanena Lang, who lives nearby. "It’s disheartening; they can’t speak for themselves in here.”

Lang said it breaks her heart to see such a sacred place seemingly forgotten. 

"I couldn’t imagine wading through all this tall grass trying to find my loved one," she added.

Even some of our fallen heroes are buried in this cemetery.  One headstone memorializes a World War II veteran.  We counted at least ten veteran headstones at the cemetery.

According to county records, the St. James AME church owns the cemetery.  We tried to make contact with them, but no one was there or answered the phone.

“About 25 years, we kept it cut when we couldn’t get nobody to do cut it we’d go down there and cut it ourselves,” said Eddie Hines, who used to oversee the cemetery according to state records.

Hines said most of his family is buried at the cemetery including two of his children.

“It makes you pretty mad when you got down there and ride by there and the grass is as tall as you want to know what’s going on,” Hines said.