Sunnyside Cemetery Association Bylaws

Approved 04/24/2025

Membership:

Each Lot Owner is a member of this Association and is entitled to one vote at the Annual Meeting, regardless of how many Lots he or she owns. If accompanied by a spouse or one other Lot Representative, they may each have one vote. If more than two people represent the Lot, they must decide among themselves as to which two will cast their votes.

Officers:

The Officers of this Association shall consist of five Trustees, who shall serve for a term of three years. No one shall be elected or appointed as a Trustee who is not a Lot Owner or Lot Representative. In the case of any vacancy prior to the expiration of the term of such Trustee, the Board of Trustees may appoint a member of the Association to fill the unexpired term. The Trustees shall meet within 30 days following the Annual Meeting to elect from their number a President, a Vice President and a Secretary/Treasurer. 

Meetings:

The Association shall hold its Annual Meeting on the first Saturday of May at 9:30am at the Lannon Village Hall (20399 W Main Street, Lannon). In the event of any changes in the time or place of the Annual Meeting, the Secretary/Treasurer will post written notice on the Association’s website, on all social media platforms operated by the Association, in any newsletters distributed to members of the Association and at the cemetery in a location visible to all visitors. It is the responsibility of Association members to inform the Secretary/Treasurer or Sexton of any changes to their address and phone number. At the time of the Annual Meeting, the Trustees shall be elected and the transaction of any other necessary business will take place. Trustees shall meet prior to and following the Annual Meeting each year and upon special call by the President. 

Sexton: 

The Trustees shall enter into a contract with a competent person to act as the Sexton during each calendar year. The duties of the Sexton shall be embodied in this contract, along with any compensation that will be made for the work furnished. 

Salaries:

The Secretary/Treasurer shall receive compensation for their duties, a sum determined by the Board of Trustees. The Trustees shall each receive compensation for their duties, a sum determined by the Association. This amount may be reviewed by members at each Annual Meeting. Compensation will be paid once a year, at the Board Meeting following the Annual Meeting. 

Removal of a Board Member:

A board member may be removed by a simple majority vote of the Trustees. There must be a minimum of 3 Board members in order to vote. There must be a valid reason for removal, most notably, misconduct. This would include, but is not limited to: lying to the Board or willfully withholding information from the Board which would be detrimental to the cemetery’s operation, theft of cemetery intellectual, financial or physical property, willful actions which damage the physical property or the reputation of the cemetery, misuse of cemetery funds such as false or inflated expenses. The Board member’s removal is permanent. 

Perpetual Care Fund:

A Perpetual Care Fund will be maintained, to the extent as required by law, by the cemetery Board, for the care of the cemetery. 15% of the Lot Owner’s Lot sale price will be deposited into this Perpetual Care Fund by the Secretary/Treasurer, as directed by Wisconsin State Statutes. 

Lots must be paid in full prior to any burial. No burial shall take place on any Lot that has not been paid in full. One Lot may accommodate a maximum of one casket and up to two cremation or no casket and up to four cremations, space permitting. All ½ Lots will allow for up to two cremations. Lots with monuments that allow for cremation placement inside of a niche, may accommodate additional cremations in each niche, with the approval of the Sexton and all required documentation.

A Lot may be placed on a six month hold, if a prospective Lot Owner deposits a down payment of $250.00 for each Lot they wish to hold. After the six month time period ends, the Lot(s) placed on hold will be reopened for sale and 75% of the deposit made, will be returned to the prospective Lot Owner. 

No monuments will be permitted on any Lot until the Lot has been paid for in full. 

If a member wishes to dispose of any unused Lot(s), that member must be in possession of the original Deed/Burial Rights Purchase Agreement and return this to the Sexton. Upon returning any unused Lot(s) to the cemetery, the Association will keep 25% of the original purchase price of the Lot(s) as a service charge and will return the remaining 75% to the Lot Owner or Lot Representative. Lots may be sold privately, without a transfer fee, once all parties have entered into an agreement, the Deed/Burial Rights Purchase Agreement has been returned to the Sexton and new Lot Owner information has been received by the Sexton. A new Burial Rights Purchase Agreement will be issued to all applicable parties at that time. 

No Lot Owner or Lot Representative may raise a grave above the level of the surrounding land or build a mound on top of a grave. 

All Lot Owners or Lot Representatives must stay within the boundaries of their Lot(s) for the installation of a monument/headstone. Each Lot is 48” wide. The Sexton shall review and approve or deny each request made by a monument company and will stake the Lots for the installation of all monuments/headstones. No monument/headstone shall be installed by a Lot Owner, Lot Representative or anyone not approved by the Sexton. Any Lot owner or Lot Representative that purchases a monument bench or headstone that contains niches which allow for the interment of cremated remains, must submit the required documentation for these monument types. All care related to monuments/headstones and their foundations are the sole responsibility of the Lot Owner or Lot Representative. The cemetery is not responsible for any cleaning, repair or resetting of a headstone or foundation under most circumstances. Should a situation arise where a Lot Owner/Lot Representative believes the cemetery is responsible for care, a written request shall be made by the Lot Owner/Representative to the Board for review.

All monument/headstone foundations must be set flush with the ground, so as to let the lawn mower pass over them. All foundations must have a 4 to 5 inch wash on all sides of the monument/headstone. Every monument/headstone installed requires a foundation and this foundation must be installed by a monument company. 

New burials require at least eight months to settle. Seeding or sodding of new burials is not advised during that period of time. Lots with new burials will not be seeded or sodded until after this time period has passed. If families with to seed or sod new burials sooner, they will be responsible for all supplies used and for watering of the seed or sod. 

Dogs are not permitted in the cemetery.

No Lot Owner or Lot Representative is permitted to plant or replant trees or bushes without permission from the Board of Trustees. A request to donate a tree may be made to the Board and upon approval and installation, the donated tree becomes property of the cemetery. A memorial plaque may be added near the donated tree by the donor. All cemetery guidelines regarding tree donations must be followed. For more information, request these guidelines from the Sexton. 

The planting of annuals or perennials and the placing of decorations on a Lot is limited to the foundation of monument/headstone, the base of the monument/headstone and the two feet of space in front of the monument/headstone. If the area is exceeded, teh Board will take appropriate maintenance measures, such as removing items from the Lot. Items such as headstone saddles and headstone hooks (in winter) are permitted. The remainder of the Lot is to be grass covered, aside from situations where there is a flush monument/headstone placed on the Lot for additional burials. ½ Lots do not allow for this two feet of space in front of the monument/headstone and all flowers, decorations and the like, must be placed on the foundation or base of the monument/headstone. If a member wishes to plant flowers or place flower pots on their Lot, they are expected to maintain them by watering, removing weeds and trimming around them. 

Due to their interference with cemetery maintenance and operation of equipment, benches, other than monument benches and those placed by the Board, will not be allowed. Any bench that has not been approved by the Board and any non-monument bench will be removed. All new monument benches must be placed in line with the existing monuments in that row. No offset monument benches will be permitted. 

All winter decorations, wreaths, flowers and flags must be removed from Lots before March 31. Cemetery staff will begin removing winter decorations on April 1st. Any living winter decorations, such as wreaths or sprays, will be removed as soon as they become brown, at the discretion of the cemetery staff. Wreath stands and hooks are permitted in winter. All spring, summer and fall decorations may be placed on Lots beginning April 1st and must be removed from Lots by November 30th. Cemetery staff will begin removing spring, summer and fall decorations on December 1st. All veteran’s flags will be removed immediately after Veterans Day. No shepherd’s hooks will be allowed to be placed on any cemetery Lot. Current shepherd’s hooks must be removed by the Lot Owner/Representative. Cemetery staff will remove all shepherd’s hooks or other Lot decorations that are old, worn, broken, hazardous or out of season, at their discretion. Lot Owners/Representatives may not install any type of framing, borders or edging around the two foot area in front of the monument/headstone. No glass, no rocks or stones and no projectile like objects may be placed on the Lot. 

All rubbish must be placed in receptacles. 

Balloon releases are not allowed. 

No cremations may be placed inside of a monument/headstone or spread/buried on a Lot unless a burial was scheduled with the Sexton. A cemetery representative is required by law to be present to conduct the burial. All required paperwork and cemetery fees must be received prior to any interment of cremated remains. 

No burning of any material is allowed in the cemetery, including candles. This does not include any groundskeeping performed by cemetery staff. 

Should circumstances arise which are not covered by these provisions, the Trustees of the Association are empowered to use their discretion in the matter.