The theft at Oak Dale Cemetery – when any person takes something that does not belong to them … that is stealing. Shirley Jones was caught red handed with flowers that she did not own or put on the Oak Dale grounds. Her very lame claim about “saving” these flowers is almost laughable, but it is not a “funny” crime. Any cemetery theft/or damage done to flowers or grave markers, is one of our most hideous crimes. My wish for Shirley Jones is that if she is found guilty, I hope the judge will consider giving her several months of working at the Oak Dale Cemetery doing community service and caring for the very flowers she was so interested in “saving.” My second wish for Shirley Jones is that she learns what a sacred and revered place any cemetery filled with lost loved ones means to those who have family and loved one buried in that beautiful place. Her time would be well spent at Oak Dale watching as people come and go decorating graves of loved ones with flowers. Hopefully, she will learn a lesson that will last her a lifetime. Posted by a Urbana native with loved ones buried in Oak Dale Cemetery.

Bonnie Kempf

Waco, Texas