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The
Arboretum at Spring Grove Cemetery
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Grounds Maintenance Team |
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Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum has over 60 grounds staff
members responsible for the maintenance of 450 acres of developed
grounds and 300 acres of woodland. The grounds team is subdivided
into eight different crews: customer service, horticulture,
interment, markers, maintenance, mowing, stringtrimming, and
turf. Thomas L. Smith, Executive Vice President, oversees
the grounds operation with the help of six grounds managers
and three supervisors. Whitney Huang, the most recent horticulturist,
manages the horticulture team consisting of nine people. Annually,
the horticulture team plants approximately 150 trees and shrubs,
4,200 annuals, and 20,000 bulbs!
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Thomas
L. Smith
Executive VP of Operations
BS in Botany
Masters of Forestry Science |
Tom
Smith began his career with the Spring Grove Family
as a college student working summers in 1964. He received
a BS degree in Botany from the University of Cincinnati
and a Masters degree from Yale University School of
Forestry. In 1978 Tom became Spring Grove’s 10th
Associate Superintendent. He kept this position until
1984 and then was named Vice President in charge of
operations in 1985. Currently he serves as Executive
Vice President and has been since 2003.
Tom has been a national leader in the Green Industry
as well as the Cemetery Industry. He is a member of
the International Cemetery, Cremation, and Funeral Association
and teaches at the ICCFA University. He is also a member
of the Ohio Association of Cemetery Superintendents
and Officials, the Professional Grounds Management Society,
the Ohio Forestry Association, and the Ohio Nursery
and Landscape Association. Tom has served as president
of the Professional Grounds Management Society, board
member for the Green Industry Exposition, board member
for the Urban Forestry Department of the City of Cincinnati,
and board member of the Civic Garden Center of Greater
Cincinnati. For more than 20 years, Tom has volunteered
as an advisor to the Ohio State Cooperative Extension
Service. In November of 1999, he was awarded the highest
honor from PGMS, the Gold Medal Award. Tom co-wrote
Gardening in Ohio: Month-By-Month What to do Each Month
to Have a Beautiful Garden All Year a revised edition
in 2005.
Tom is also an adjunct professor at the University of
Cincinnati. In 1997 he achieved approval from the Ohio
Board of Regents for a BS degree in Horticulture for
the College of Evening and Continuing Education at the
University of Cincinnati. Tom’s love of horticulture
and sharing that excitement through the Spring Grove
Arboretum and UC’s horticulture program has enriched
the horticulture profession throughout the greater Cincinnati
region and across the United States.
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Whitney
joined Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum as a
Horticulturist in 2004. She received a Bachelor's Degree in Landscape
Horticulture and Design from Purdue University with a minor in Spanish
and studied abroad in Brazil. Her experience includes work with Monrovia
in Azusa, California and the Cleveland Botanic Gardens until being
appointed to her current position with Spring Grove. Whitney is extremely
dedicated to horticulture and to serving the grounds management
profession. She is currently a member of PGMS and the newest Board
member of the Greater Cincinnati branch. She is also a member of the
Greater Cincinnati Association of Cemetery Superintendents and Officials,
the Perennial Plant Association, the American Horticultural Society, the
American Rose Society, and the Ohio Nursery and Landscape Association.
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Whitney
Huang
Horticulturist
BS in Landscape Horticulture and Design
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Brian Heinz
Horticulture Supervisor
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Since
1999, when Brian began his career with the Spring Grove
Family, he has worked in many areas of the grounds operation
including the turf and horticulture departments. Brian
was able to put the supervisory experience he gained
at West Hills Greenhouse to use when he became the Supervisor
of String Trimming and then Mowing. After spending time
in these areas, he realized his true passion was horticulture.
Currently, Brian serves the Spring Grove Family as the
Supervisor of Horticulture. He holds his Pesticide Applicators
License from the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Brian
is also working towards a Bachelor’s degree in
Horticulture from the University of Cincinnati.
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David
began his career with the Spring Grove Family in 1995
as a grounds technician at Oak Hill Cemetery. After
four years of working at Oak Hill, David moved to Spring
Grove’s Funeral Home. There he worked as the facility
maintenance technician. Throughout his seven years at
the Funeral Home, David assisted funeral directors and
oversaw visitations and services. In the fall of 2006,
David was selected as the Supervisor of String Trimming.
He held this position for one year and then moved into
his current role as the Supervisor of Mowing. David
is retired from the United States Air Force Reserve
with 22 years of service, both in Active Duty as well
as the Reserves.
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David
Brandt
Stringtrimming & Mowing Supervisor
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Mark Funke
Grounds Manager
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Mark started his career with Spring Grove Cemetery &
Arboretum in 1980 as a student working through his summer
breaks. He rose in the company and has been a Grounds
Manager since 1995. Mark oversees the customer service,
turf, and marker divisions. He also manages the grounds
operations at Oak Hill Cemetery, a member of the Spring
Grove Family. Mark is actively involved with the Ohio
Association of Cemetery Superintendents and Officials
and is a past president of the Greater Cincinnati Association
of Cemetery Superintendents and Officials. He is also
a member of the Ohio Turf Foundation. |
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Paul was educated at the College of Business and Administration
at the University of Cincinnati. He spent five years working
for Proctor and Gamble before joining Spring Grove in
1969. His tenure began by working part time on the
greenhouse crew. In 1983, Paul became Systems Manager,
overseeing 25 major buildings on Spring Grove property
and initiating maintenance on roads, fences, gates,
roofs, plumbing, sewers, etc. Paul is actively involved
in the Ohio Bureau of Worker’s Compensation and
participates in their yearly university program. Paul
also serves as Spring Grove’s Safety Director and
runs the Safety Program.
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Paul
Gallaher
Systems Manager
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Mark Kidd
Grounds Supervisor at Oak Hill Cemetery
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Mark
comes from a family of stone and marble masons and has
ten years of experience in that trade. He was the third
generation to work on Union Terminal. In 1996 Mark and
his father were hired as outside contractors to work
on the Winton Road wall. Mark was hired that same year
as a backhoe operator for the interment team at Spring
Grove. He held this position until 2001 when the Mower
Supervisor position became available. Mark led Spring
Grove’s team of mowers for five years. In 2006
he accepted the Grounds Supervisor position at Oak Hill
Cemetery in Springdale. Mark is a member of the Greater
Cincinnati Association of Cemetery Superintendents &
Officials.
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Prior
to joining the Spring Grove Family as the Facilities
Specialist in May of 2007, Dave spent 23 years in residential
construction and commercial contracting. His responsibilities
include day to day repairs, cost effective maintenance,
and restoration and preservation projects to the Memorial
Mausoleum, Customer Service Center, Historic Office,
Gatehouse, Norman Chapel, and Spring Grove’s Funeral
Home. Dave is also the primary contact for outside contractors.
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David
Lingo
Facilities Specialist
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Jack McAfee
Sexton
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Jack’s
first day on the job was April 1, 1974. He began his
career with Spring Grove as the Supervisor of Mowing,
and he kept this position for 20 years. In 1994 the
Sexton at that time retired and Jack stepped into
fill the position. As Sexton, Jack manages all interments
and runs the day-to-day operations of the five-person
interment team. Jack engineers the layout of all burials,
monument installations, and lot surveys. Jack works
closely with the Spring Grove Family advisors and funeral
directors. He is an active member of the local and state
Association of Cemetery Superintendents & Officials.
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| Tom
has been with Spring Grove since 1972 and has been a
Grounds Manager since 1983. He manages the maintenance
for all equipment as well as the mowing and stringtrimming
divisions. Tom is a past president for the Greater Cincinnati
Association of Cemetery Superintendents and Officials
and is currently the vice president of the Ohio Association
of Cemetery Superintendents and Officials. He is a member
of the Cremation Association of North America and a
long time supporter of the International Cemetery, Cremation,
and Funeral Association. Tom contributes to the ICCFA
Magazine column, “Smitty & Fife”. |
C.
Thomas Pfeifer
Grounds Manager
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Chris Sullivan
Supervisor of Customer Service, Turf, and Markers
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Hired
in the fall of 1994, Chris started his career at Spring
Grove Cemetery and Arboretum on the mowing crew. Quickly,
Chris moved to the horticulture crew after only one
month on the job. In 2002, Chris was transferred to
Oak Hill Cemetery, part of the Spring Grove Family,
where he became a certified backhoe operator and assisted
with the horticulture needs of Oak Hill. In early 2005,
Chris was promoted to his current role as the Supervisor
of Customer Service and Markers. Later in 2006, he also
took over the supervisory duties of the turf crew. At
the present time, Chris is designated a Master Technician
by the Ohio Nursery and Landscape Association and he
maintains his cremation technician certification through
the Cremation Association of North America. He is also
a Certified Chemical Applicator through the Ohio Department
of Agriculture. In 2002, Chris earned a BS degree from
the University of Cincinnati.
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| Allison
functions as an in-house landscape architect and has
provided landscape architectural services to Spring
Grove for over twenty years. She reviews land development
and landscape designs, aiding Spring Grove staff in
interpreting and expressing their development concerns.
Recent sections designed by Allison include Sections
133, 137, 141, 142, and 143. In addition, Allison has
an extensive educational background in ecosystem management
and has participated in environmental research projects.
She is an adjunct assistant professor at the University
of Cincinnati in the horticulture program and teaches
classes on the characteristics of native plant communities.
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Allison
R. Leavitt
Landscape Architect Consultant
BS in Landscape Architecture
M.En. Masters in Environmental Science, Resource Analysis
Ph.D. Botany / Ecosystem Management |
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