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Nikki Tundel
St. Paul, Minn.

Photos: Preparing graves for Memorial Day

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Grave grooming
John Peterson washes a monument in Calvary Cemetery in St. Paul, Minn., on May 7, 2011. Peterson started Grave Groomers, a cemetery maintenance and beatification service, in 1999. His customers hire him to do everything from polish the headstones of their loved ones to lay flowers on their graves.
MPR Photo/Nikki Tundel
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Grave grooming
John Peterson smiles as he admires a freshly cleaned monument at Calvary Cemetery in St. Paul, Minn., on May 7, 2011. "When I first starting doing this work, the initial reaction from people was, 'You're nuts.' They thought I was crazy to want to work in a cemetery," says Peterson. "But I think it's great. It's peaceful out here."
MPR Photo/Nikki Tundel
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Grave grooming
John Peterson washes a monument in Calvary Cemetery in St. Paul, Minn., on May 7, 2011. Peterson started Grave Groomers, a cemetery maintenance and beatification service, in 1999. His customers hire him to do everything from polish the headstones of their loved ones to lay flowers on their graves.
MPR Photo/Nikki Tundel
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Grave grooming
John Peterson arrives at Crystal Lake Cemetery in Minneapolis, Minn., on May 27, 2011, with bouquets of red, white and blue flowers. Heading into Memorial Day, a large number of customers hire Peterson to simply place flowers on the graves of their loved ones.
MPR Photo/Nikki Tundel