'I'm the last person to do something nice for the person that passed away,' says Montauk gravedigger Alan Burke, who is retiring
For three decades, Alan Burke has scanned the cemetery grounds with a metal detector, searching for the precise locations of hidden markers used to stake out graves on hallowed Montauk land.
Each time, he's meticulously hammered four pins in a rectangle to outline burial plots. And then he digs the graves.
After 30 years of laying Montauk residents to rest, Burke, 70, the sole gravedigger and maintenance contractor at Fort Hill Cemetery in Montauk, retired Monday from a role he held since 1992, shortly after the cemetery opened. His job was twofold: Maintain the grounds and dig the graves.
“I always say, I’m the last person to do something nice for the person that passed away,” the lifetime Montauk resident said a few days before turning in his keys to the cemetery.
As his tenure wound down, Burke met his successors at the East Hampton Town-owned cemetery, the father-son team of Peter Joyce Contracting, who will take over the ceremonial shovel. As they prepared to dig a grave, Burke offered advice on which side to dig from and other tips.
Mike Lackos of Fricke Memorials, who was preparing a niche in the cemetery's columbarium, said recently: "He makes me laugh every time I come out."
The morbid nature of digging graves never fazed Burke. He refers to the cemetery as his backyard. After all, the house where he lives with his wife, Karen, is just beyond a nearby tree line. He walks his dog, Ziggy, on a trail he carved out around the perimeter of the 27-acre property. He taught his grandkids to ride bicycles on the cemetery road.
He raised and lowered the flag each day.
Out of the approximate 400 people buried at Fort Hill, Burke estimates he knew at least half by a hand wave. About one in four he knew on a first-name basis. As many as 10% were on his phone’s speed dial, he said.
“I buried a kid that I used to change his diapers, and he got crushed by a crane,” he said. “That just melts you.”
For the occasional stranger, Burke still tried to forge a connection, however brief. He’d ask a relative one or two questions after a service ended, like the time he couldn’t quite figure out the pronunciation of a French name.
The work fit naturally with his excavating business, Alan Burke Backhoe Service. Running the business allowed him to be ready at a moment’s notice when the call came from a funeral home. He rarely traveled for more than few days at a time.
When preparing a grave, Burke viewed it as a job site.
But during those 20 to 30 minutes when grieving relatives gathered for a ceremony, everything changed.
“Then, it’s the most reverent place in the world,” he said.
Burke’s younger sister, Elise Prado, 69, of Montauk, recently became chair of the board of trustees that oversees the cemetery.
“He’s a piece of cake,” she said of her older brother. “He said, 'You know, you’re my boss'. And I said, ‘I thought we were a team.’ ”
The cemetery was the site of the 1653 raid by the Narragansett tribe of New England on the local Montaukett tribe and is known as Massacre Valley.
An undisturbed section of the cemetery is sacred burial land holding Native American remains. Another section is reserved for descendants of the Montauketts who are residents of East Hampton Town.
Former board chair John McDonald, who worked alongside Burke and recently passed the position to Prado, said he always enjoyed relaying the history of Montauk to visitors.
"It's a very, very special place," he said.
Burke said years of climbing onto a backhoe and dump truck have taken their toll. His body told him it’s time to quit.
He has already secured a plot for himself at the cemetery and planned his headstone that will read: "Alan Burke, I dug my own grave."
"Who else gets to say that?” he said.
For three decades, Alan Burke has scanned the cemetery grounds with a metal detector, searching for the precise locations of hidden markers used to stake out graves on hallowed Montauk land.
Each time, he's meticulously hammered four pins in a rectangle to outline burial plots. And then he digs the graves.
After 30 years of laying Montauk residents to rest, Burke, 70, the sole gravedigger and maintenance contractor at Fort Hill Cemetery in Montauk, retired Monday from a role he held since 1992, shortly after the cemetery opened. His job was twofold: Maintain the grounds and dig the graves.
“I always say, I’m the last person to do something nice for the person that passed away,” the lifetime Montauk resident said a few days before turning in his keys to the cemetery.
WHAT TO KNOW
- Alan Burke retired after more than three decades working as maintenance contractor at Montauk’s Fort Hill Cemetery.
- In his dual role, he maintained the property by mowing the lawn and preparing graves for burial.
- The cemetery includes an undisturbed section that is sacred burial land with Native American remains.
As his tenure wound down, Burke met his successors at the East Hampton Town-owned cemetery, the father-son team of Peter Joyce Contracting, who will take over the ceremonial shovel. As they prepared to dig a grave, Burke offered advice on which side to dig from and other tips.
Mike Lackos of Fricke Memorials, who was preparing a niche in the cemetery's columbarium, said recently: "He makes me laugh every time I come out."
Cemetery is his backyard
The morbid nature of digging graves never fazed Burke. He refers to the cemetery as his backyard. After all, the house where he lives with his wife, Karen, is just beyond a nearby tree line. He walks his dog, Ziggy, on a trail he carved out around the perimeter of the 27-acre property. He taught his grandkids to ride bicycles on the cemetery road.
He raised and lowered the flag each day.
Out of the approximate 400 people buried at Fort Hill, Burke estimates he knew at least half by a hand wave. About one in four he knew on a first-name basis. As many as 10% were on his phone’s speed dial, he said.
“I buried a kid that I used to change his diapers, and he got crushed by a crane,” he said. “That just melts you.”
For the occasional stranger, Burke still tried to forge a connection, however brief. He’d ask a relative one or two questions after a service ended, like the time he couldn’t quite figure out the pronunciation of a French name.
The work fit naturally with his excavating business, Alan Burke Backhoe Service. Running the business allowed him to be ready at a moment’s notice when the call came from a funeral home. He rarely traveled for more than few days at a time.
'The most reverent place in the world'
When preparing a grave, Burke viewed it as a job site.
But during those 20 to 30 minutes when grieving relatives gathered for a ceremony, everything changed.
“Then, it’s the most reverent place in the world,” he said.
Burke’s younger sister, Elise Prado, 69, of Montauk, recently became chair of the board of trustees that oversees the cemetery.
“He’s a piece of cake,” she said of her older brother. “He said, 'You know, you’re my boss'. And I said, ‘I thought we were a team.’ ”
The cemetery was the site of the 1653 raid by the Narragansett tribe of New England on the local Montaukett tribe and is known as Massacre Valley.
An undisturbed section of the cemetery is sacred burial land holding Native American remains. Another section is reserved for descendants of the Montauketts who are residents of East Hampton Town.
Former board chair John McDonald, who worked alongside Burke and recently passed the position to Prado, said he always enjoyed relaying the history of Montauk to visitors.
"It's a very, very special place," he said.
Burke said years of climbing onto a backhoe and dump truck have taken their toll. His body told him it’s time to quit.
He has already secured a plot for himself at the cemetery and planned his headstone that will read: "Alan Burke, I dug my own grave."
"Who else gets to say that?” he said.
Joe Werkmeister covers the towns of Southampton, East Hampton and Shelter Island. He is a graduate of St. Bonaventure University and previously worked as the editor of two North Fork community newspapers.
No bail for alleged CEO killer ... Suffolk cop back on duty ... Trader Joe's plans new LI store ... All LI football team
No bail for alleged CEO killer ... Suffolk cop back on duty ... Trader Joe's plans new LI store ... All LI football team
