June, 2009
Dear Cousin,
My name is Cynthia Ann Gillespie Mills, and I am a descendent of the Gunn-Greene-Gillespie Families of Mississippi. My husband and I visited the old plantation cemetery
near Egypt, Mississippi in the summer of 2004. We were deeply saddened to find it in a
deplorable condition – overgrown vegetation, overturned tombstones, etc. While
considering what we might do to halt the ravages of nature on this “Gunntown” Cemetery,
the idea came to coordinate the Gunntown Cemetery Restoration along with a Family Gathering. We feel
that there are many descendants of the Gunn-Greene-Gillespie families, who, like us, will
want to restore and preserve the burial place of our ancestors and join with others in
sharing our mutual heritage and building family relationships.
To enter the cemetery that summer, we had to duck down and push aside vines and
branches. We were disappointed to find numerous overturned tombstones amid fallen trees and
extensive undergrowth. The dense foliage made it difficult to locate some grave markers. I was personally disappointed not to be able to find the tombstones of my great
grandparents (William Potts GILLESPIE and Mary Josephine GUNN), who I know, from
Mr. Jimmie King’s Tombstone Inscriptions, are buried there (Burial Index). If nothing is done to
preserve it, this wonderful cemetery will be lost to our family.
We feel a strong desire and responsibility to preserve this ancestral resting place. While
we
plan to spearhead the organization of a GUNN-GREENE-GILLESPIE Cemetery
Restoration
and subsequent Family Gathering, we need your help to make it happen! Volunteers are
vitally needed in many different capacities. (Please see Contact Us on home page.) We
invite you to participate and take advantage of a great opportunity to work together for a
common purpose, to honor our heritage and build a more profound sense of family.
The Gunn-Greene-Gillespie Families website, found at http://www.gggfamilies.com/, focuses on two acitivites: the Gunntown Cemetery Restoration (green side) and the Gunn-Greene-Gillespie Family Gathering (blue side). Both of these events will take place the week of May 17, 2010. To learn more, please refer to "News and Updates" or Contact Us on home page. We thank you for your interest and look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Cynthia Gillespie Mills
4187 Center Street
Culver City, CA 90232
310-838-8960
gggfamilies@gmail.com
