Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens Pulls Out the Stops for Schaefer's Interment

Mark Sands, a maintenance man at the Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens, was ready to hustle when he learned that former Gov. William Donald Schaefer had passed away on April 18.

“His longtime companion Hilda Mae is here, so we knew he was coming someday,” Sands said.

Sands, 29, has worked at the Gardens for the past seven years. When he, along with his fellow maintenance crew members, were offered overtime for the preparations necessary for Schaeffer’s interment, he jumped at the opportunity.

“I figured there was not too much more to be done because we had already spruced up a bit because of Easter,” he said. “It was a blessing in disguise.”

Still, the work hasn’t been easy.

Scott “Scoot” Standiford, 45, another maintenance man, has been doing eight hours of manual labor a day for the past week.

“We had to get all the graves pretty and nice-looking for the camera crews,” Standiford said. “Because [Schaefer’s] a big official, we have to do more work.”

Pat Bridge, superintendent of the maintenance team, appreciates her crew's efforts.

“Oh Lord,” Bridge said. “We had to get the grass cut, upgrade the flowers; there was a lot of soldering to be done. The team’s been working hard.”

But Bridge didn’t mind the extra efforts.

“It’s stuff we’d be doing anyway but it got pushed to the top of the list because of Schaefer,” she said.

Assistant Superintendent Scott Toop, 45, was too awestruck by Schaefer’s presence to worry about the amount of work involved.

“We’ve done fallen hero burials, but this is probably something we won’t ever see again,” Toop said. “It’s an honor he’s coming here.”

Toop remembers seeing Schaefer coming around the Gardens a few times to visit his longtime girlfriend Hilda Mae Snoops, who died in 1999. He described Schaefer as a cheerful, good man.

“We pulled out all the stops for this,” he said. “We have to—Maryland loves the guy.”