RADCLIFF, Ky. — Located just down the road from Fort Knox sits the final resting place for thousands of veterans; Kentucky Veterans Cemetery Central in Radcliff. 

The cemetery was created in 2007, and is one of five in the state for veterans and their spouses. It’s also home to the state’s 9/11 memorial.

But what truly makes the place special is its dedicated team of caretakers, who do the day-to-day work of honoring those who served our country through their hard work. It includes hand digging holes for headstones, setting and aligning them by hand, and ensuring each one is lined up and square with one another.

“So we take a very much pride in our ability to come out in the hold string lines and measure our string lines off of headstones and then run our tape, measure off of each headstone to make sure we’re spaced out evenly,” Greg Timberlake, a superintendent at the cemetery said.

Typically, the cemetery has three or four services a day. As the processions go by, the caregivers take a brief pause from their work, remove their hats, and place their hands over their hearts. A final moment of respect for someone they never knew, but still honor. 

“My thing that I always tell the new guys when they start, when you’re finishing a grave, when you walk away, would you be satisfied if you walked up and that’s where your mother was buried,” Cody Angus, another superintendent at the cemetery explained. “And if you’re not happy with what that looks like, you know, we got to we got to make adjustments. We got to improve.”

Shane LaGrone, the cemetery’s director, explains they have enough capacity to bury veterans for the next 50 to 60 years. LaGrone adds his team will remember the work they do here for the rest of their lives.

“Hundred years from now, we’ll still have this same look, same feel, same tug at the heartstrings just because it’s an honor to all the veterans, not just a cemetery,” LaGrone said.

A monument to those who served, watched over by its often-overlooked caretakers.