Hazel’s Back Yard
What is Hazel’s Back Yard?
Hazel’s Back Yard is a place of natural beauty owned by The First Unitarian Society of Ithaca. It was deeded to us by Hazel M. Hauck in 1964, an active member in the Society. The Back Yard is a sacred trust and there are certain policies in place to maintain it as a natural area. Members and friends of The First Unitarian Society of Ithaca can visit this site as a place of quiet contemplation and we can have our own cremated remains, and those of our loved ones, placed at this spot. The Hazel’s Back Yard Committee is in charge of maintaining the property and reporting any concerns to the Board of Trustees.
Where is Hazel’s Back Yard?
It is located on Twin Glens Road, a public road off of Cayuga Heights Road in the Village of Lansing. There is a large rock on the left side of the road which highlights the entrance path to Hazel’s Back Yard. You’ll find a plastic container behind the rock which contains maps and copies of the HBY brochure.
What is the current procedure for having ashes placed in Hazel’s Back Yard?
Members can register with the Church Administrator in the main office. The use of Hazel’s Back Yard, a nameplate on Hazel’s Back Yard Memorial Plaque, and inclusion in the Memorial Book carry a fee of $150. Hazel’s Back Yard is the spiritual reminder of the person and the nameplate on the Memorial Plaque is the visual reminder. Information about organizing and planning for the end of life can be done through the Minister and the Ithaca Memorial Society.
What is the Committee planning?
The Hazel’s Back Yard Committee would like to see the area made into a more user-friendly place and that is where the Committee needs ideas and suggestions. Right now, Hazel’s Back Yard is a lovely wooded area, but it is wild and not clearly marked. Visions have been proposed of a circular path with benches along it so that members and friends could visit the Back Yard and enjoy the wild in a more structured format. Also, to make the “entrance” more visible, it has been proposed that a wooden trellis structure be erected midway along the Twin Glens Road so that visitors can easily identify the property.
How can you help?
The Committee is always looking for help to decide how to maintain the property and to actually do the work needed. If you would like to volunteer you may call the church office at 607-273-7521 (ext. 21) or email cadmin@uuithaca.org.
Current Hazel’s Back Yard Memorials
Walter C. Muenscher, 1891-1963
Minnie W. Muenscher, 1894-1983
Hazel M. Hauck, 1900-1964
Glenn W. Hedlund, 1909-1976
Helen H. Hedlund, 1911-1993
Myron Slade Kendrick, 1894-1980
Louise Perrine Frost, 1892-1985
Frances E. MacDaniels, 1891-1986
Lawrence H. MacDaniels, 1888-1986
Edward Albert Lutz, 1910-1987
Max Schwartz, 1913-1990
Nita Collier Kendrick, 1898-1993
Bart Conta, 1914-1993
Dr. Joseph Nesbitt Frost, 1890-1994
Warren Wadsworth Currier, 1923-1996
Lois D. King, 1934-1998
Madeline O’Connell Lutz, 1912-1998
Richard H. Thorn, 1928-1999
Barbara B. Schwartz, 1919-2000
Mary B. Wood, 1914-2000
James L. Gulledge, 1932-2001
Terrace D. Pratt, 1910-2003
David Allee, 1931-2003
Elizabeth M, Wien, 1941-2005
Claire Conta, 1919-2005
Catherine A. (Nan) Howard, 1915-2005
Harriet L. Budke, 1926-2007
Donna Schwaiger Hall, 1950-2007
Mary S. Jaffe, 1917-2009
Marcia Alice Wilber 1918 – 2009
Natalie Basford Fancher, 1914-2009
John A. Taylor, 1931-2011
Brainard Fancher, 1914-2014
Betty Robinson Postle, 1925-2015
William D Pardee, 1929-2016
Martha Ladd Allee, 1932-2016
Linda S Folley, 1959-2016
Mark Pedersen, 1958-2018
Barbara Pardee, 1933-2018
Constance Currier 1924 – 2019
Patricia Grace Court 1955 – 2020