Those of you who may have read my profile know that I have been reading and transcribing information on tombstones in towns in the Spis Region of Slovakia, in which no Jews remain. My colleague is a very devout Evangelical Christian with great respect for the Jewish people. He and others who live in towns that no longer have a Jewish presence have done their best to clean up and maintain the vandalized and abandoned cemeteries, sometimes fixing the surrounding fences, and so forth. They feel a certain responsibility to honor those who were martyred from their town, by caring for the ancestors of those people, and they do this with great respect and care. (I even have photos of their clean-up efforts.)
Recently these people in Slovakia were seeking funds to help with the clean-up and possibly raising fallen stones to set them upright and maintenance after the clean-up. It's hard work and needs more hands to accomplish this. In some rare cases they have even rebuilt or poured cement around a grave, so that the gravestone can be reset, at the request and payment of a descendant of that person.
Now I have been told that it is improper for non-Jews to be doing this. That it might need at least a Jewish mashgiach (supervisor) to ensure all is done appropriately. With about 700 Jewish cemeteries in Slovakia alone, it would seem to be an impossible job to be done by bringing teams of Jews to do the work. (Where would they stay? For how long in each place? etc.)
Can anyone provide any information to support the idea -- or not -- that if all is done in a respectful manner, that non-Jews are permitted to do this in places where there are no Jews?
