Speaker-Sandy Starks, Forest Lawn Cemetery
Sandy Starks is a graduate of Buffalo State College and has had a varied career. She worked for ten years in the wine and liquor industry in South Florida. She has also been a manager at Wegmans and was WNY Programs Coordinator for Roads Scholar (Formerly Elder Hostel). She has also worked as a tour guide and later became Interpretive Program Director at Forest Lawn Cemetery, a position which she now holds. Sandy coordinates and conducts programs, tours and presentations that highlight the beauty and history of Forest Lawn and Western New York.
Sandy Starks from the Forest Lawn Cemetery spoke about “Symbols in the Forest Lawn Cemetery.” It was an interesting depiction of the history of the cemetery along with the stories of various prominent personalities that Buffalo has the privilege of having as tenants in this cemetery. For a summary of the history please review https://forest-lawn.com/page/history/. Ms. Stark’s talk covered the contributions of Erastus Granger and Charles Clark in the development of the cemetery. Historically significant monuments include Red Jacket, the GAR (Grand Army of the Republic), Millard Fillmore (President), Louis Blanchard Bethune (first woman architect), Sarah Hinson (started flag day exercises) and Darwin Martin. Frank Lloyd Wright’s Blue Sky Mausoleum (http://www.blueskymausoleum.com/) is a huge attraction at the cemetery. Interesting trivia about the mausoleum is that there are 24 spots available and 6 of them were pre-sold before the mausoleum was fully functional. Ms. Stark’s talk ended with the profound message that each tenant in the cemetery has a story and some of the stories are depicted through the displays on their final resting spots. Some are poignant and others funny. “To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die”. Let us each write our own story.