Tulare County Supervisors vote to take over Tulare Public Cemetery District

The Tulare County Board of Supervisors took the extraordinary move on July 1 to take over the Tulare Public Cemetery District, naming themselves as district trustees and terminating the existing cemetery trustees.

Supervisor Pete Vander Poel said the board “had a gun to their head” to seat themselves because the cemetery district would lose its insurance if there was not a change in governance. Without insurance, the cemetery would have to shut its gates.

Only two cemetery district trustees were left: Xavier Avila and Steve Presant. The other three resigned over Memorial Day weekend.

Though most of the supervisors expressed reluctance to take on the beleaguered cemetery district, the supervisors voted unanimously to perform the takeover.

Jennifer Fawkes, Public Information Officer for the Board, said that a date has not been set for the supervisors’ first meeting as cemetery trustees.

“Once the meeting has been agendized, it will be published at https://tularecounty.ca.gov/board/board-of-supervisors-meetings/ and physically posted at the [cemetery] office and the Board of Supervisors office,” she said.

Fawkes added, “meetings will take place the same day shortly after the Board of Supervisors meeting.”

Community hopes for change

Through all the turmoil, blaming, and dysfunction at the Tulare Cemetery, one issue has brought cemetery advocates together: the community and trustees want the Tulare County Board of Supervisors to take over governance – and they’ve wanted them to for a long time.

In 2020, the Tulare County Grand Jury had recommended a takeover as a potential solution for dysfunction at the cemetery in its 2019-2020 report.

“The [Board of Supervisors should] consider exercising its authority under the applicable sections of the [California Health and Safety Code] 9026 with a view toward bringing the governance of the [Tulare Public Cemetery District] into compliance with generally accepted practices and State requirement,” the report recommended.

On June 10, 2025, the supervisors voted unanimously to begin the process of taking over governance of the Tulare Public Cemetery District, and on July 1 the supervisors held a public hearing to get feedback on the plan and take a final vote to seat themselves as the new cemetery board.

Community members who live in the jurisdiction could file a written protest of the proposed action to be taken at the hearing. No one filed a protest and all factions in the cemetery debate appear to be relieved.

“You are going to inherit a fantastic group of employees many, I consider friends, actually work very hard and they feel that their job is not just mowing grass,” Presant told the supervisors.

Anna Limon, a community member, said during her public comment “I have to disagree with Mr. Presant.”

Limon, who has expressed multiple issues with the cemetery district, claimed the cemetery’s manager, Clara Bernardo, treated her unprofessionally and lied to her face.

“I disagree. She needs to be removed. They are cheating the public,” Limon said.

Mary Sepeda, also a community member, agreed with Limon.

She said that once the supervisors take over, they need to look at the financials.

“Where is the money going? Where is it being spent? They are robbing one account to pay the bills of another,” Sepeda said.

Sepeda also commented on interactions she’d had regarding her parents’ headstone.

“She (Bernardo) has personally lied to me. I am being misled. Ms. Limon is being misled. How many other people are being misled,” Sepeda asked.

Sepeda finished her comments saying that the bad management policies from the manager have passed on to the groundskeepers.

Alberto Aguilar, former TPCD Trustee, concurred with the critics’ comments.

“You cannot trust and respect a manger who deliberately and intentionally falsifies financial records and is not held accountable,” said Aguilar.

Avila told the board that if they think the problem will be solved by appointing a new board they are wrong.

“King Solomon did not split the baby in half. He figured out who was the real mother. So do what’s right for the public,” he said.

Avila said the supervisors are going to have to do their research and investigate.

“Some people describe this as the Hatfields and McCoys implying that you can’t tell who is right and who is wrong, but it’s real simple,” he said.

In terms of the dysfunction, Avila pointed out the continuing blame game happened right in front of the supervisors.

“You have an ugly looking cemetery and board members blaming the public. It just happened in front of you. Charlie Ramos just attacked the public,” Avila said.

Former Trustee Ramos’ comments during the public hearing and past comments during the cemetery meetings have placed much blame for the problems with the cemetery on the community.

Ramos spoke during his public comments about the two Facebook pages concerning the cemetery, Caring Cause and Political Perspective on the Tulare Cemetery, saying they created turmoil.

During a TPCD meeting this year, Ramos was caught on a meeting recording referring to some cemetery advocates as a “cult” – and said during the public hearing that Avila “has a small group of followers.”

Who is the Common Denominator?

Avila contrasted his experience on the cemetery board with his time on the Tulare Local Healthcare District board.

“I was on Citizens for Accountability and am still on the hospital board. We went from $54 million in the hole to $19 million in the bank and are getting ready to announce plans to finish the hospital,” Avila said. “I have two boards I serve on, one is a good example and one is bad.”

Amy Shuklian, Vice Chair of the Board of Supervisors, called the situation a “shitshow” at a prior meeting, and didn’t mince her words on July 1.

“I think this is really shameful that this is going on. I’d be embarrassed if I were a member of this cemetery district. I don’t know what it is; ego or ignorance,” she said.

Shuklian insisted that the supervisors would “make sure things are done correctly.”

“We will seat a new board, maybe a board that doesn’t have a power trip, or ego trip or the ignorance to do the job,” said Shuklian.

She also pointed to Avila as a common denominator to the years of troubles at the Tulare Cemetery, and took a swipe at his record on the hospital board.

“Xavier, you come up here, but you’re a common denominator in a lot of this. You talked about the hospital board, you’re on the hospital board, there were issues. Now you say you have been on this board for seven years and this has been continuing on all these years,” Shuklian said.

Avila was initially appointed to the Tulare Local Healthcare District board – and later re-elected – well after the troubles at the district’s hospital, Tulare Regional Medical Center, began under the management of Healthcare Conglomerate Associates.

Avila’s tenure on the hospital board was part of the district’s turnaround from HCCA’s management – which led to felony charges for its CEO, Benny Benzeevi – to its current partnership with Adventist Health.

Though Avila has been at times a maddening part of the dysfunction at the Tulare Cemetery since being appointed in 2018, he is far from the common denominator.

According to Valley Voice reporting, the cemetery has had serious problems since 2006 and most likely before.

Supervisor Larry Micari started his comments by defending Supervisor Pete Vander Poel, elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2008. The cemetery is in Vander Poel’s district, and he appoints the cemetery trustees – approximately 15 during his tenure.

“You are being blamed for this and you have nothing to do with this. You made appointments and the people you chose behaved like children. So I apologize. You have done an amazing job,” said Micari.

One of those appointments was in January of 2021, when Vander Poel appointed Ramos to replace former trustee Vicki Gilson who had expected to be reappointed. But instead, Vander Poel thanked Gilson for her service and, due to misinformation, wished her well in her retirement to another state. But Gilson, whose forte is financials, had not moved to another state and regularly attends meetings.

Since the Caring Cause group was formed in 2016, founder Elaine Hollingsworth estimates that Vander Poel has been contacted by email, phone or personally about 200 to 300 times concerning the neglect, dysfunctional board and incompetent management. That number is consistent with Voice estimates.

In March of 2021, Tulare City Council member Jose Sigala addressed the Board of Supervisors, asking for an investigation.

“I would like to request, Supervisor Vander Poel, that you launch an investigation to look more closely into these concerns. As you, I was appalled to hear of the recent incidents at the cemetery regarding the placement of loved ones in the wrong burial plots and then their disinterment to rectify the horrible mistake.  It appears that the recent event is not the only case in which this has happened,” Sigala said.

At the time, Sigla was chastised by cemetery advocates for his interference into the business of the cemetery district, and told to stay in his lane. But since the Voice started reporting on the cemetery, the paper had learned of 12 misplaced bodies. A person with a long history with the cemetery claims there are many more.

Though Vander Poel was aware of the problems, it isn’t clear what he could have done about them, and Micari stands by his support for Vander Poel.

“People have communicated to me personally that they blame Pete and that’s not true,” he said. “Pete has done what he could all along. And now he has brought this forward to us.”

Before the final vote was taken Vander Poel echoed the sentiments of the rest of the board.

The supervisors did not want to set a precedent and take over a public board but felt obligated to do it for the community who need support in their time of grief and a peaceful place to lay their loved ones to rest.

“It is our duty as a board to not set this up for failure and seat ourselves as trustees, conduct meetings and see how the county runs the meetings. I do not want this to be a forever thing,” he said.