Avery Young, an 11-year-old fifth grader at South Callaway Elementary School, is deciding to clean and decorate the Mokane Cemetery for Memorial Day weekend.
Mighty Mokaner's 4-H Club, a club Young is a part of, requires members to hold a project monthly. She decided to do this for her project.
Young said she decided to begin this project to honor those buried in the cemetery, including her family.
"Members of my family are buried here, along with many others in this community; they deserve this service, due to the amount they did while they were here," Young said.
She finds sentimental value in this personally, however, she believes members of this community will also share joy in this act of remembrance.
"So many who passed away were important in the way they were once community members and veterans; helping build where we live today," Young said.
Young also finds an importance in local history; explaining that the people laid to rest built the history of Mokane, and this is a way to preserve that.
"We are going to power-wash all the gravestones along with putting flowers on every grave," Young said.
She explained many of the gravestones are dirty and need cleaning.
"I plan on cleaning more cemeteries and doing what I am doing here to other places," said Young.
She explained that for the future, this is not the only cemetery she plans to clean. She said she will clean cemeteries where she finds the upkeep to be poor.
Young has been extensively planning this; first needing to introduce the plan to the Mokane Board of Directors to approve her project.
She had to raise money for cleaning supplies, follow 4-H guidelines, do the shopping and put in the hard labor to prepare for the job. Not even doing the full cleaning yet, her work is not finished.
Her aim is to add a token of remembrance for everyone.
Young encouraged other kids to try to make a difference in their communities.
"Do not be afraid to try new things and always speak out against something you disagree with, if you want something changed, try and fix it yourself," she said.