SUN-GAZETTE FILE PHOTO Mike DiRocco speaks at Mount Carmel Cemetery during the service where the ground was blessed in Nov. of 2023.

“Myself and many others have waited a very long time for this day,” said Mike DiRocco of the upcoming dedication of a memorial for infants.

In 2023, DiRocco set out to right a wrong and bring some peace to the families of the over 90 babies that were buried on unconsecrated ground in Mount Carmel, a cemetery adjacent to Wildwood Cemetery in Williamsport. The journey began while DiRocco was searching for his grandfather’s brother, who was stillborn and buried in the cemetery.

Through his efforts with assistance from Caleb Hipple of the Wildwood Cemetery staff, the infants were identified and the grounds where the unbaptized babies were buried were blessed by The Reverend David W. Bechtel on Nov. 11, 2023.

This year’s service will prove to be extra special with the dedication of the monument bearing the names of the infants buried in that portion of Mount Carmel.

“November 8 will be the third year now that we’ve had a mass and a ceremony at the cemetery. This year, though, we will be dedicating the memorial. It’s the combination of three years of work and unbelievable support from our local community,” said DiRocco.

Much of the support from the community has come in the form of monetary donations.

“We raised $22,000 and every bit of it came from our community,” said DiRocco.

“In the very beginning, I was hoping this would be a community project and that’s exactly what it has been,” added DiRocco.

Support also came from local businesses like Carl Crouse of Crouse Funeral Home, who has spent the last two years working with DiRocco to get the engravings just right.

“We spent a lot of time discussing the shape and size of the stone and the lettering. Then he would give me rough drafts for approval. I put several posts out on Facebook to make sure all the names were spelled correctly and once I felt enough time had passed, I gave him the go ahead,” said DiRocco.

The families of those babies have expressed their gratitude for the time and effort to bring recognition and peace to the infants as well.

“I’ve been very fortunate to hear from a lot of the families of these babies. One woman in particular has a twin brother on the list. He died during childbirth and she lived. She had been looking for him her whole life. There’s a lot of little stories like that one that are very nice to hear,” said DiRocco.

A Mass will be held on Saturday, Nov. 8 at 10 a.m. at Saint Joseph the Worker Parish, 702 W. Fourth St., Williamsport and the dedication of the monument at the cemetery will follow at 11 a.m.