Local man one of only a few in U.S. to do it
He makes dead people in cemeteries ‘come to life’
by Jean-Bernard Hyppolite and Len Lear

Eugene Hough, of Heritage Guild Works of Bryn Mawr, Pa., discusses his restoration and preservation work in the cemetery at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Whitemarsh/Fort Washington, which was founded in the late 1600s. (Photos by Len Lear)

In the 1999 movie, “The Sixth Sense,” a monster hit which was made in Philadelphia by Main Line director M. Night Shyamalan, actor Joel Osment played a boy who “sees dead people.” Well, you might say (taking some poetic license) that Eugene P. Hough, a resident of Evergreen Avenue in Chestnut Hill from 1988 to 2000 who now lives in Bryn Mawr, helps dead people come to life.

Hough, 51, who grew up in Plymouth Whitemarsh, is the sparkplug behind Heritage Guild Works, a company he founded in 1998. Although he studied education, urban planning and health care in college and graduate school, Hough is now one of a miniscule number of people in the U.S. who work full-time at restoring gravestones and cemeteries and in so doing, unlocking secrets of those who have been long dead, in some cases for centuries.

Over the past 11 years, Hough has performed this back-breaking work for 30 cemeteries in the Delaware Valley, other parts of the U.S. and as far away as France and East Africa. Each stone must be meticulously cleaned to bring out the letters that faded many years ago. In many cases the stones themselves have been buried beneath the ground for countless decades. And this work is extremely time-consuming. In fact, Hough recently finished working in cemeteries in South Carolina and Georgia that took him away from Philadelphia for the better part of two years. “Silent cemeteries are the classrooms of the world,” said Hough. “The stories they have to tell us are fascinating.”

Local couple’s new BYOB, Avril, off to great start
By LEN LEAR

There’s no doubt that first impressions are lasting impressions, and our first impression of Avril, the Italian/French BYOB that opened August 5 at 134 Bala Ave., directly across the street from the Bala movie theater in Bala Cynwyd (the previous occupant was Cafe Shira, a kosher restaurant), was very favorable, indeed.

At the previous restaurant we visited a few days earlier in center city, we were greeted with a frown by a guy dressed in worn-out jeans with holes in the knees. He looked like the guy who tells you that the bridge has just been washed out, and you have no choice but to spend the night in his “guest room.” I thought he was about to say, “Let me crash open a fresh box of wine for you,” but instead we felt like giving him a big box of “scram.”

At Avril (“April” in French), however, we were greeted by a beautiful woman with a big smile and a slinky, long black dress who welcomed us as if we were about to deliver a big check for winning the lottery. “She looks very classy,” said my wife. “Already I like this place.”

Mt. Airy author’s ‘Lighthouse’ a beacon for the poor
by PAULA M. RILEY

“Be part of the positive change”.  This is what first time author Maurine McFarlane, 48, inscribed on the cover of her book that she presented when being interviewed for this column. 

“Release the Prophetic Destiny in Philadelphia, A City Under Reconstruction” focuses upon creating positive change in a city which is full of blight and desolation. This book takes a deep look at the history of the demise of Philadelphia and offers ways to improve the lives of the disenfranchised in a positive manner through the collaborative efforts of public and private sector and the church community.