NATCHEZ — The Watkins Street Cemetery centennial celebration was like a homecoming for many of those in attendance.

The historic cemetery is the final resting place for many members of Natchez’s black community. And on Saturday, their family members came to celebrate the 100 years of history at the cemetery.

“Being born and raised right here in Natchez, this cemetery is part of our history,” Berthenia Rose Jackson said. “My aunt is buried right up there under that tree,” she said point to the top of a hill in the cemetery.

But that celebration would not have been possible without the many hours of sweat and labor put in by the Worthy Women of Watkins Street Cemetery Association and their volunteers.

The Worthy Women, spearheaded by Thelma White, who now serves as the groups president, took on the project of cleaning up the cemetery in 2005 after over 40 years of neglect.

White said when she originally started the clean up effort in 2002, she was working by herself. And she said it didn’t take long for her to realize she was going to need a lot of help.

“I started thinking, ‘What have I gotten myself into,’” she said. “I thought I couldn’t do this by myself so I had to figure something out.”

And she did. White formed the Worthy Women of Watkins Street Cemetery and started collecting funds and volunteers to help her restore the cemetery.

Jackson said she and her sorority sisters joined in the efforts because they wanted to be of service.

“Community service, that is what our group is about,” she said. “We wanted to come out and do what we could to help.”

But for many members of the group, it was more than just community service that made them want to help out. For many, it was about family.

“We were here cleaning up our portion of the cemetery one day when one of our members found the grave site of her mother,” Jackson said. “It was a very emotional moment for her and for us as sisters.”

Jackson wasn’t the only volunteer who came back Saturday to enjoy the celebration. Tremaine Lance Ford, a graduate of Natchez High School and now a freshman at Tugaloo College, helped clear debris out of the cemetery as part of the Sigma Beta Club, which is a branch of the Alpha Iota chapter at Alcorn State University.

Saturday, Ford’s experiences at the cemetery came full circle when he joined in the centennial celebration by singing “Didn’t my Lord deliver Daniel” during the rededication ceremony.

“Seeing what it looked like before and how different it looks now gives me a sense of pride,” Ford said.

White shares the same sense of pride about the cemetery that she has worked so hard to restore.

She said she was thankful for all the help she has received because she knows she couldn’t have done it alone.

“Little by little we have gotten it to this point,” White said. “I wondered if I would live long enough to see the cemetery like this. I’m proud.”