Volunteer Opportunities
Boneyard Bookworms January Book Club
Thursday, January 30 - 6pm
Boneyard Bookworms meets once per month on the grounds of Laurel Hill or West Laurel Hill. There is no fee to join or attend, but registration for each session is required. To offer a unique perspecti…
​Sitting with Grief within Meditation
Wednesday, February 5 - 6pm
Grief is a natural response to loss and when we allow ourselves to mourn, we can honor the pain that is felt and let go. Meditation is a wonderful and gentle tool in the process of mourning. Kirsten B…
The Great Backyard Bird Count 2020
Saturday, February 15 - 9am
The National Audubon Society’s annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is a free, fun and easy event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of bird p…
Boneyard Bookworms February Bookclub
Thursday, February 27 - 6pm
Boneyard Bookworms meets once per month on the grounds of Laurel Hill or West Laurel Hill. There is no fee to join or attend, but registration for each session is required. To offer a unique perspecti…
Black History Month Walking Tour
Saturday, February 29 - 1pm
Every February, Americans commemorate and pay tribute to the achievements and central role of African Americans in shaping our history. This February, West Laurel Hill Cemetery will pay tribute to som…
Death Café
Wednesday, March 4 - 6pm
Death Café is a unique opportunity for members of the public to meet and discuss death over cake and coffee. This group-led discussion has no specific agenda and serves as a welcoming platform for in…
Duffy’s Cut Memorial Service
Sunday, March 8 - 2pm
This year marks the 8th Anniversary of the Duffy’s Cut Memorial Service. Join the Duffy’s Cut Project team and West Laurel Hill for this annual service on Sunday, March 8, 2020. Guests are enc…
Virtual Death Café
Wednesday, May 6 - 6pm
Laurel Hill Cemetery’s Death Café is a unique opportunity for the public to meet and discuss death. For this installment, we are meeting virtually on Zoom! This group-led discussion has no specific…
Beautiful Blooms: Virtual Arboretum Tour
Sunday, May 24 - 11am
Take in the beautiful trees and gardens of Laurel Hill and West Laurel Hill Cemeteries’ certified arboretum in this virtual tour. Aaron Greenberg, Board Certified Master Arborist and Arboretum Manag…
Artistry Above Ground
Art & Craft Virtual Market - Friday, May 29 to Sunday, May 31
Peruse a curated collection of antiques, crafts, vintage items, artwork and handmade wares at this virtual spring market. Visitors will have the opportunity to leisurely browse and purchase arts and c…
Virtual Death Café
Wednesday, August 19 - 6pm
Laurel Hill Cemetery’s Death Café is a unique opportunity for the public to meet and discuss death. For this installment, we are meeting virtually on Zoom! This group-led discussion has no specific…
Yoga in the Cemetery Goes Virtual
Saturday, August 29 - 11am
Find inner tranquility and balance during a one-hour yoga virtual session led by experienced yoga instructor, Emily Tara Sabalbaro. Emily teaches an all-levels, slow-flow class that enhances alignment…
Philly Goat Project Community Goat Walks
Wednesday, September 9 - 5pm
West Laurel Hill has once again partnered with the Philly Goat Project to offer socially distanced community walks on our beautiful grounds for people of all ages! Walks will happen the second Wednesd…
Illimitable Dominion - A Performance by Forgotten Lore Theatre (Weekend 1)
Fringe Festival Performances on Friday, September 18; Saturday, September 19; Sunday, September 20 - Multiple Times
1859. Poe was dead to begin with. The dominion of the Red Death grows, infecting the streets of Charles Dickens’s London. Blending and bending the legacies of two literary icons, Illimitable Dominio…
Illimitable Dominion - A Performance by Forgotten Lore Theatre (Weekend 2)
Fringe Festival Performances on Friday, October 2; Saturday, October 3; Sunday, October 4 - Multiple Times
1859. Poe was dead to begin with. The dominion of the Red Death grows, infecting the streets of Charles Dickens’s London. Blending and bending the legacies of two literary icons, Illimitable Dominio…
SOLD OUT - Sacred Spaces and Storied Places
Sunday, October 4 - 11am
The expansion of Fairmount Park in the 1860s prevented further growth of Laurel Hill, and in 1869 its sister cemetery, West Laurel Hill, was established just across the river in Bala Cynwyd. This gene…
Boneyard Bookworms October Book Club
Wednesday, October 7 - 6pm
This socially-distanced meeting will take place outside at West Laurel Hill Cemetery under the portico at the funeral home/cemetery office. Masks are mandatory, and no food or drink will be served. Pl…
Lower Merion in the Industrial Age
Tuesday, October 13 - 5pm
The Industrial Age in America had its genesis in the Schuylkill River Valley and this area provided more than half of the industrial wealth of the United States until the 1870’s. Lower Merion and i…
Philly Goat Project Community Goat Walks
Wednesday, October 14 - 5pm
West Laurel Hill has once again partnered with the Philly Goat Project to offer socially distanced community walks on our beautiful grounds for people of all ages! Walks will happen the second Wedne…
VIRTUAL Pints and Plots
Thursday, October 15 - 7pm
Philadelphia is known as one of the best beer drinking cities in the country and earned this reputation for many reasons. Grab a beer and join us on October 15 at 7 pm as we talk about the notable bee…
SOLD OUT True Colors: Fall Arbor Tour
Sunday, October 25 - 10am
Join our Arboretum Manager, Aaron Greenberg, on a brisk autumn walk through the peak fall colors of some of the great trees of West Laurel Hill Cemetery. From the dazzling reds of our sugar maple allÃ…
Their Legacies: The Women of Laurel Hill & West Laurel Hill Cemeteries
All of 2020
On August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment was passed in the United States. On that day, women gained the right to vote. Now, 100 years later, organizations across the nation celebrate this Centennial yea…
The Great Backyard Bird Count
Friday, February 12th - Monday, February 15th
The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC), originally launched in 1998, is now a worldwide community science initiative in which thousands of people participate each year. It has become the world’s large…
Death Loves A Shining Mark
Virtual Program on Wednesday, February 17, 2021 at 6:00 pm
In Victorian America, formal bereavement was an accepted cultural institution. Mourning was observed through many non-spoken rituals to commemorate the dead, dictate social behavior, and demonstrate t…
Boneyard Bookworms February Bookclub
Virtual Program on Wednesday, February 24, 2021 at 6:00 pm
The February Boneyard Bookworm selection is Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson. From Amazon.com: In this brilliant book, Isabel Wilkerson gives us a masterful portrait of an u…
Sacred Spaces and Storied Places
Walking Tour at West Laurel Hill on Saturday, February 27, 2021 at 1:00 pm
The expansion of Fairmount Park in the 1860s prevented further growth of Laurel Hill, and in 1869 our sister cemetery, West Laurel Hill, was established just across the river in Bala Cynwyd. This gene…
Death Café
Virtual Program on Wednesday, March 3, 2021 at 6:00 pm
Death Café is a unique opportunity for the public to meet and discuss death. For this installment, we are meeting virtually on Zoom! This group-led discussion has no specific agenda and serves as a w…
SOLD OUT - Black Trailblazers of Philadelphia
RESCHEDULED Walking Tour at West Laurel Hill on Saturday, March 6, 2021 at 1:00 pm
This program is sold out Due to inclement weather on Saturday, February 20, 2021, this tour has been rescheduled to Saturday, March 6, 2021 at 1:00 pm. In honor of Black History Month, West Laurel H…
Virtual Duffy’s Cut Memorial Service
Sunday, March 7 - 2:30PM
Registration for this event has now ended. This year marks the 9th anniversary of the Duffy’s Cut Memorial Service - but this year will be VIRTUAL. The virtual event will be led by William Watson…
Bark, Buds and Berries
RESCHEDULED Winter Walking Tour at West Laurel Hill on Sunday, March 7, 2021 at 1:00 pm
Due to inclement weather on Sunday, February 21, 2021, this tour has been rescheduled to Sunday, March 7, 2021 at 1:00 pm. Bark, Buds and Berries, a walking tour through West Laurel Hill Cemetery, wi…
Deer-resistant Native Plants for the Northeast
Virtual Book Talk on Thursday, March 18, 2021 at 6:00 pm
Learn how to fill your garden with native plants, not deer! Join horticulturists Gregg Tepper and Ruth Rogers Clausen for an entertaining and informative lecture inspired by their recent book Deer-Re…
Sacred Spaces and Storied Places
Walking Tour at West Laurel Hill on Saturday, March 20, 2021 at 1:00 pm
The expansion of Fairmount Park in the 1860s prevented further growth of Laurel Hill, and in 1869 our sister cemetery, West Laurel Hill, was established just across the river in Bala Cynwyd. This gene…
Boneyard Bookworms March Book Club
Virtual Program on Wednesday, March 31, 2021 at 6:00 pm
The March Boneyard Bookworm selection is Long Bright River by Liz Moore. From Amazon.com: Two sisters travel the same streets, though their lives couldn’t be more different. Then one of them goes …
Beautiful Blooms: Spring Arboretum Tour
Sunday, April 18 - 11am
Take in the beautiful trees and gardens of West Laurel Hill’s certified arboretum in our spring tree tour. Aaron Greenberg, Board Certified Master Arborist and Arboretum Manager will discuss som…
Language of the Stones
Wednesday, April 21 - 6pm
Virtual Funerary Symbolism Program on Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 6:00 pm Laurel Hill and West Laurel Hill Cemeteries feature hundreds of examples of beautifully carved funerary symbols. In Victoria…
Sacred Spaces and Storied Places
Saturday, April 24 - 11am
This event is sold out. Walking Tour at West Laurel Hill on Saturday, April 24, 2021 at 11:00 am The expansion of Fairmount Park in the 1860s prevented further growth of Laurel Hill, and in 1869 our…
Boneyard Bookworms April Book Club
Thursday, April 29 - 6pm
Virtual Book Club on Thursday, April 29, 2021 at 6:00 pm The April Boneyard Bookworm selection is The Great Pretender by Susannah Cahalan From Amazon.com: Doctors have struggled for centuries to de…
Arbor Day Scavenger Hunt
Friday, April 30 - Sunday, May 2
Laurel Hill and West Laurel Hill Cemeteries together form a 265-acre Level II Accredited Arboretum with over 4,000 trees of over 500 different species and cultivars! On Arbor Day weekend, you can comp…
Death Cafe
Wednesday, May 12 - 6pm
Virtual Program on Wednesday, May 12, 2021 at 6:00 pm Death Café is a unique opportunity for the public to meet and discuss death. For this installment, we are meeting virtually on Zoom! This group-…
Philadelphia Trees with Paul Meyer
Wednesday, May 12 - 5pm
Walking Tour, Book Signing and Reception at West Laurel Hill on Wednesday, May 12, 2021, at 5:00 pm Join Paul Meyer, retired F. Otto Haas executive director of Morris Arboretum, and Aaron Greenberg, …
Boneyard Bookworms May Book Club
Thursday, May 27 - 6pm
Virtual Program on Thursday, May 27, 2021 at 6:00 pm The May Boneyard Bookworm selection is The Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man’s Love Affair with Nature by J. Drew Lanham. This edition of Bo…
Sacred Spaces and Storied Places
Saturday, May 29 - 11am
Walking Tour at West Laurel Hill on Saturday, May 29, 2021 at 11:00 am The expansion of Fairmount Park in the 1860s prevented further growth of Laurel Hill, and in 1869 our sister cemetery, West Laur…
Cinema in the Cemetery
Multiple Dates
SAVE THE DATE BY SIGNING UP FOR THE TICKET WAITING LIST Pack a picnic, gather some friends or a date, and enjoy an evening or two under the stars. As the sun sets over the historic tombs, the grainy …
Read MoreWaiting list for The Philadelphia Story at West Laurel Hill on June 26, 2021Waiting list for Little Shop of Horrors at Laurel Hill on July 17, 2021Waiting list for Wall-E at West Laurel Hill on August 14, 2021Waiting list for Phantom of the Opera at Laurel Hill on August 28, 2021