A small parish on Nova Scotia's Eastern Shore wants Halifax to take over several of its church cemeteries as a declining and aging congregation means they may soon be unable to care for them.

Fewer than a dozen people attend St. James United Church in Jeddore. Built in 1878, generations of local families have been buried in its graveyard. But the church will close this year and the building will either be sold or demolished.

That will leave the cemetery without a caretaker. "It needs to have someone care for it in the future," says Rev. Joan Griffin.

"With the aging population here, tomorrow or next week — we don't know who's going to be able to look after it, and that is a very big concern."

Volunteers, including a man in his 80s, are currently doing all the work. He's sought community help, but hasn't received it.

"No one is available," Griffin says. "Most of the story is, 'I work in town. I'm too busy.'"

5 cemeteries need help

The community is in the Halifax Regional Municipality and Griffin hopes the city will take over cutting the grass, opening and closing graves, and repairing headstones.

It's one of five cemeteries in parishes she oversees that will need such help in the near future. Two of the cemeteries have money put aside to maintain them, and that money would be handed over to the city.

"People are aging. In three of the places for which we have cemeteries right now, we don't have any congregations. The congregations have closed and moved on," she says. "Who's going to look after the cemeteries?"

An Osyter Pond church in a similar situation was put up for sale, but now faces demolition.

"At one time, church was the community. That's where people gathered to catch up on one another's news, to share happiness, to share woes, and to simply be together. Now, people are being called in many directions," Griffin says.

'There are a lot of souls resting here'

Valerie Shears and her husband help cut the grass and tend to the St. James graveyard.

Her father and two brothers are buried there, along with earlier generations.

"My ancestors are here and hopefully someday I'll probably be here," she said. "It is a concern because the congregation has been dwindling. There are a lot of souls resting here."

On Tuesday, Griffin asked Halifax council to take over the cemeteries.

The graveyard is in Coun. David Hendsbee's district and he brought the motion to council.

"We've done it in the urban core," Hendsbee says. "Perhaps it's going to be a reality in the rural areas that those congregations are dwindling in size so perhaps another administrator may be required and that may be the municipality."

During the debate, some councillors suggested the city should create a municipal administrative body to operate graveyards and deal with what they believe will be more and more similar requests from small rural churches.

City staff will look into the request before council decides what to do.