More than 250 parishioners of St. Francis de Sales (SFS) Parish, Kohima Town, participated in a mass social work drive at the Common Graveyard in Keyake, near BSF Camp, on Saturday in preparation for All Souls’ Day on November 2.
The five-hour cleanup drive began with an invocation by catechist Abel Lotha. Parishioners, including youth and parents, brought their own tools and cleared wild shrubs, thick undergrowth and debris from the cemetery and gravesites.
Assistant parish priest Rev. Fr. Peter Zeliang said the annual initiative served as both spiritual and physical preparation for All Souls’ Day, when special prayers and a Holy Requiem Mass will be offered at the cemetery at 3 pm for the faithful departed.
He expressed gratitude for the strong turnout, noting that the collective effort had restored the cemetery’s tidiness and dignity after the monsoon months.
“This is a meaningful initiative that demonstrates our respect for the dead,” he said, adding that such efforts should continue periodically as a shared responsibility to care for the final resting places of loved ones.
The parish has maintained the annual tradition of cemetery cleanup and Eucharistic celebration for several years.