By Taylor McClure
Special to The Record
John Dezan is a second-generation cemetery keeper and gravedigger for the Pine Hill Cemetery in Magog. He was looking for employment when he and his father decided to maintain the cemetery together over a decade ago. Throughout his career, he has discovered some interesting stories of the people at Pine Hill and has realized that his role is more than just about keeping the cemetery; it’s about keeping the history of the people and the stories of the Eastern Townships.
“The cemetery was displeased with who they had doing the general maintenance and my dad said well, if I was not working anymore full-time for my employer, he thought we could do this together. I did it with my dad for 13 years,” said Dezan.
As a cemetery keeper, Dezan is in charge of maintenance and is responsible for the cemetery. He is also in charge of the burials at Pine Hill. “Doing the physical work is easy. It’s learning the proper way to treat people when they come to the cemetery, when they are coming for the inevitable.”
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