Trustees approve Poor Farm plaque, direct payment from capital reserve and ask vendor to expedite

At a meeting of the Brentwood Cemetery Trustees, members voted to proceed with a bronze marker for the Brentwood Poor Farm Cemetery and to pay for the work from the town's capital reserve general cemetery maintenance fund. Trustee Jillian made the motion and Trustee Skip seconded it; the motion passed with the board's unanimous assent.

The trustees discussed the plaque proof from the vendor and the way the lettering would appear on bronze. Superintendent Joyce reviewed the vendor's revised proof and told the board she thought it looked appropriate: "I personally think it looks really good," she said. Trustees then agreed that the title line would appear in all caps and that the rest of the text would use standard upper- and lower-case capitalization. Trustee Skip called the voice vote: "All in favor, aye," and the board recorded no opposition.

Nut graf: The trustees combined a design decision with a budget decision: rather than request select-board approval, the trustees concluded the marker could be paid from the capital reserve fund used for cemetery infrastructure and maintenance, and authorized staff to ask Mortensen Dufresne to expedite production and to provide a photo of the bronze sample for final approval.

Board members reviewed the funding path and payment process. Joyce explained that the capital reserve general cemetery maintenance fund may be used for municipal cemetery infrastructure and that the trustees of the trust (the town's fiduciary body for trust funds) typically process invoices: the department arranges the work, the trustees of the trust receive the invoice with the cemetery vote and then the trustees' fiduciary office issues payment. The packet presented to trustees shows the relevant fund balance and the packet page cited during discussion as the fund summary (packet, p. 8 of 9).

Trustees discussed vendor formatting details during the presentation. The board asked staff to request a real-photo example of the chosen font and to confirm whether the letters would appear raised and colored-in on the bronze. The board then authorized Superintendent Joyce and Trustee Jillian to contact Mortensen Dufresne to try to expedite the order.

Ending: Staff will follow up with Mortensen Dufresne, obtain a production photo for final trustee approval, and submit the invoice to the trustees of the trust for payment from the capital reserve general cemetery maintenance fund. The board adjourned with the next meeting set for September 11.