Students Serve at Rose Lawn Cemetery, Honor 37 Babies

Bishop Thomas K. Gorman Catholic School students returned for a third year to clean grounds, decorate veterans' graves, and hold a burial Mass.

Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Catholicism

Wide view of a well-kept cemetery lawn under tall pines, with rows of small flags planted in the grass and a pale stone columbarium wall at the far edge. — Fifty-five Bishop Thomas K. Gorman Catholic School students placed flags at about 250 veterans' graves at Tyler's Rose Lawn Cemetery and held a burial Mass for 37 unborn babies. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

55 ninth- and tenth-grade students from Bishop Thomas K. Gorman Catholic School performed a day of service at Rose Lawn Cemetery, placing flags at about 250 veterans' graves and clearing flower beds. The students also took part in a Catholic Mass and burial ceremony for 37 unborn babies.

Why it matters

The service day and burial ceremony give local families and students a structured way to honor veterans and the unborn before Veterans Day. It also marks the third consecutive year the school has returned to the cemetery for this work.

Students placed American flags at roughly 250 veterans' graves and raked pine mulch for reuse across the grounds. The source does not specify how many total flower beds were cleared or how much mulch was gathered.

The players

Bishop Thomas K. Gorman Catholic School

A Catholic high school in Tyler, Texas, whose ninth- and tenth-grade students led the service day at Rose Lawn Cemetery.

Rose Lawn Cemetery

A historic cemetery in Tyler, Texas, that hosted the veterans' flag placements, grounds work, and the burial ceremony.

The details

Students raked and gathered pine mulch to be reused across the cemetery grounds, cleared multiple flower beds, and prepared landscaping areas for spring. The day ended with a Catholic Mass and burial ceremony in which the names of the 37 babies were read aloud and students personally helped lay each one to rest in CHRISTUS Mother Frances columbariums.

Veterans Day approaching: students placed flags at veterans' graves ahead of the holiday.
Third consecutive year: students returned to Rose Lawn Cemetery for the service day.

Roadmap

The school's return to Rose Lawn Cemetery for a third consecutive year establishes a recurring service tradition rather than a one-time project. The pairing of veterans' flag placements with a burial Mass for unborn babies reflects the school's longstanding Catholic service identity.

Tyler families can see a concrete example of youth service to veterans and the unborn at a local cemetery. The ceremony marks a specific Catholic practice of burial for unborn babies that residents may not have witnessed directly.

The takeaway

Recurring service days like this one show how a school can build lasting community ties across generations. Residents interested in similar local volunteer work can look to the school and cemetery as starting points.