Omaha's oldest cemetery is in need of help to clean up damage from an August storm.

Strong winds on August 20th uprooted entire trees at Prospect Hill Cemetery near 33rd and Parker. Several trees lost heavy limbs, some still hang precariously overhead.

Other trees cover crushed headstones, still more are badly scarred. Cleaning up this mess takes more than the efforts of a few volunteers.

"It makes it very difficult and we did send out an appeal recently to help with the cleanup, but we simply do not have the money to do it,” says Prospect Hill trustee Louise Baumann. “As anyone who's ever had to have a downed tree taken away, it's expensive."

She says it's always been a struggle to keep Prospect Hill looking nice. Mowing the 17-and-a-half acre cemetery costs $1,500.

”The endowment fund does not really cover even mowing it every year," says Baumann. "We are badly in need of help with that."

Established in 1858, historic Prospect Hill is the final resting place of many familiar names...Millard, Byron Reed, Woolworth, Poppleton, Lake; they're all here along with the lesser known.

John Nichols, who was a bodyguard for Abraham Lincoln is buried at Prospect Hill. So are nine soldiers of the first Nebraska volunteers who died in the Spanish-American War. “We know we have two from 1812 and every war since, of course," says Baumann.

Volunteers have done some work, but removing large trees is more than they can handle. "When an act of God comes through like this, what do we do? We beg for volunteers and we beg for contributions,” says Baumann.

The Prospect Hill trustees are looking for assistance both physically and financially. Anyone wishing to volunteer time to help with the cleanup or give a tax deductible donation should contact the cemetery at 556-6057.