Cemetery located at St. Sebastian Catholic Church in Byron Center. The cemetery is situated on a wooded hillside between the historic and the new church buildings.
From the Kent County MiGenWeb Project Master Cemetery List:
“Cemetery: SAINT SEBASTIAN'S CEMETERY (View - Church)
Alternative Name(s): Catholic Cemetery
Section: 29
Street Address: Wilson Avenue south of 84th Street, Byron Center, MI
Owner Contact Information: Saint Sebastian Church, 9408 Wilson Ave SW, Byron Center, MI 49315, (616) 878-1893.
Transcriptions: (DT) , ES 1992
Record Sources: Compendium, Sourcebook (12), DAR.
History: Unknown.
Religious, Ethnic Affiliation: Catholic
Description: St. Sebastian Cemetery is located behind St. Sebastian Church, which is on the east side of Wilson Avenue, south of 92nd Street. It is a very picturesque little cemetery with large spruce trees surrounding it. There are only about 200-300 graves in a small area here. The oldest stone we saw was 1877, and there were only a few broken stones. The grounds were surrounded by farm fields, but Wilson is quite a busy street here. The cemetery had a lot of plantings of perennials -- peonies, iris, daylilies, etc. It was nicely mowed and trimmed. It is still active. There were many stones from the Homerich family. We noticed a Homerich street not too far away. (S.M.G. Davis, June 2000)”
From the gravestone of Monsignor Herman H. Zerfas:
"Msgr. Herman H. Zerfas
Aug. 24, 1921 - Dec. 6, 2010
Tu Es Sacerdos
Ordained May 31, 1947
In Aeternum"
"You are a priest forever"
From the parish website:
“The death of one of our sisters and brothers is a significant event for us as the Church. It is a time when we, who loved the deceased person, mourn our loss. It is a time when we as a Church celebrate God’s gift of life and mark, with special rites and gatherings, the return of that life to our loving God. It is a time when the Church earnestly seeks to minister with compassion not only to the deceased but to the living which includes their family, friends, and parishioners as well.”
9408 Wilson Avenue SW
Byron Center, Michigan
49315 USA