Preserving History, One Headstone at a Time 

The dedicated, selfless spirit of a true volunteer lives in Joyce Mandley. Often unseen by the public, Mandley devotes her time, energy and knowledge to preserving the histories and headstones of those buried at the Clearwater Municipal Cemetery. Several times a week, sometimes even daily, she can be found at the cemetery after work, diligently cleaning headstones, restoring broken pieces, and researching and documenting the stories of those interred there. 

Mandley began volunteering at the cemetery after discovering that her own maternal cousins from the 1800s were buried there. She made this discovery during the COVID-19 lockdown and used the project as a way to spend time outdoors between her work as a nurse and caring for her elderly parents. Since then, she has cleaned more than 360 headstones at the Clearwater Municipal Cemetery and beyond, even working in cemeteries as far north as Pennsylvania. 

She uses cleaning techniques learned through research, training workshops and networking.  Mandley has also located and repaired broken markers. In addition to her hands-on work, she documents everything on the Find a Grave app, uploading before-and-after photos, adding biographical information, linking family members, and recording GPS coordinates of the graves. 

“This process is important,” she said, “because not everyone can travel to the burial location, or they may not have access to the information on Ancestry.com.” 

Her dedication is evident. “I find that my volunteer work gives me satisfaction in knowing I helped to preserve local history for generations to come,” Mandley said. Gratification, for her, comes from honoring the lives of those buried there. 

Mandley is a walking encyclopedia when it comes to the history of those buried at the cemetery. She shares stories of the remarkable lives and contributions of early Clearwater residents, including pioneer families of the Pinellas Peninsula, veterans, Dixie M. Hollins Sr., the first superintendent of Pinellas County Schools, and Nancy Campbell, who had the first frame house built, among many others. 

“There is a lot of work to be done,” Mandley said of the cemetery.