“Night of the Living Dead” fans are banding together to help breathe new life into a cinematic landmark.Thanks to George A. Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead,” Evans City Cemetery chapel will stand forever on film. In reality, its future is uncertain. Used for decades as a storage shed, the building has fallen into a state of disrepair. The windows are shuttered. The roof is leaking. Time and the elements have battered the exterior. Cemetery officials estimate it will take $50,000 to return the structure to its former glory.
Gary Streiner, leader of the grassroots effort, believes restoring the chapel will generate income for the 120-year-old burial ground through the sale of engraved brick pavers, tours and rental fees. Streiner, who worked as a sound engineer on “Night” and organized Living Dead Festivals in 2008 and 2009, is a regular on the horror convention circuit. He’s met hundreds of ghoul enthusiasts who want to visit Evans City Cemetery.
He’s already received at least a dozen requests for weddings and vow renewal ceremonies to be held onsite. “The cemetery is so iconic in the whole zombie-horror world,” he says. “If fans knew they could come to the chapel and see it as more than just a boarded-up building, it would draw a lot more people. It would be nice to see it become a ‘Night of the Living Dead’ museum.”
According to Evans City Cemetery Association records, the two-story chapel was erected in the 1920s and utilized for only one funeral – on Nov. 27, 1928. In 1930, officials looked into purchasing a used organ for $5 so mourners could hear music during services, but it was agreed that the “need could not justify the price.”
The pews were sold and the chapel soon became a tool shed.
Ron Volz, longtime president of the cemetery association, says it maintained that function up until last year, when a bigger storage facility was built nearby.
Although the building is structurally sound, Volz and his fellow association members felt it was a liability and needed to be demolished. In September 2011, Streiner asked for permission to save the chapel. The association gave him until next fall to fix it up.
Streiner put the word out on Facebook. The response from fans, he says, was instant and overwhelming. Fundraisers such as “Night of the Living Dead” screenings, monster-themed art shows and zombie walks are taking place nationwide. A documentary film on the restoration project is already in the works.
“We’ve had people from all over the country offer to come and help,” Streiner says. “That’s the power of ‘Night of the Living Dead.’”
Interested in donating? Checks made payable to “Fix the Chapel” can be sent to: NexTier Bank,
P.O. Box A,
Evans City, PA 16033
Fans can also join The Living Dead Festival Group for all the latest news and information:
www.facebook.com/groups/savethechapel/
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