Brothers Return To Pittsburgh To Find Mother's Gravesite Neglected
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- The Pittsburgh Marathon is bringing a lot of people back to town this weekend, but for a pair of brothers who grew up in Sherdan, the trip back home has become a painful one.
Brothers D.J. and Bill Alexander moved out of Pittsburgh years ago. But they're still Pittsburghers at heart and come home every chance they get.
Before seeing the Penguins' playoff game Friday night, they headed to the family gravesite in Castle Shannon. But they couldn't believe what they found.
"Mom was buried like last couple days of June, July 1, to now. There's nothing done," said D.J., who now lives in Texas. "Nothing."
Nothing has been done to the grave since they buried their mom nearly a year ago. It's a pile of mud. But that's not all; the headstone isn't anchored and the date of death was never inscribed.
The brothers are clearly upset.
"We live out of town. If we didn't come back into town, this could have stayed like this for another year, another two years," said Bill, who lives in Chicago. "I just think it needs to be fixed up."
In the middle of our interview, the manager of St. Anne Cemetery showed up. The brothers were given an apology and a promise that the grave will be fixed this weekend.
Then, the parish priest showed up, too.
"I take responsibility because I did not know this up here was not done," said Fr. Robert Cedolia, of St. Anne Catholic Church. "And when your mother was buried in June, that's - you're right - it's uncalled for."
While the apology was nice, the Alexander brothers still can't understand why nothing has been done, especially after they paid a $900 burial fee.
"I think it's totally disrespectful to do that and not finish the job," said Bill. "If it was their mother or their father, the would have done it."
The brothers will be back in town soon to make sure their mother is properly buried:
"I will be back here for the Steelers-Browns game," said D.J. "You know the first place I'm coming? Is right here."
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