“Sit back and breathe,” Susan Ballenger told the dozens of people sitting in the pews at Grace Brethren Church. The citizens had gathered for the latest meeting regarding the status of Southern Memorial Garden in Dunkirk. The cemetery has been the subject of a bankruptcy case in federal court.

Unlike a three-hour meeting held back in early March, the late August session was over quickly. Ballenger told the crowd she had received a phone message that a federal trustee could make a decision soon about new ownership for the facility, which has been clouded by controversy since 2006. That was the year a Maryland State Police investigation yielded allegations of fraud by the cemetery’s prior owner, the Lee Group. The facility’s owner at the time, Badtec Inc., subsequently filed for bankruptcy last year. M&T Bank put a lien on the property and moved to foreclose.

Ballenger said she could not reveal the name of the potential buyer but indicated they are not local. “These people own 15 cemeteries,” said Ballenger. “The state has approved them.”

The Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, which includes the state’s Office of Cemetery Oversight (OCO), is the agency which has given approval for the transaction to be completed.

The potential new ownership could mean the lifting of angst among clients who purchased plots along with services at Southern Memorial Gardens. “They are going to honor all the contracts, I was told,” said Ballenger. “That was part of the deal.”

Ballenger said the federal bankruptcy trustee, attorney Gary Rosen, would be placing an ad in at least one local newspaper regarding the proposed transaction.

Attempts to contact Rosen by phone were unsuccessful. An e-mail has been sent to him seeking comment on the matter but no response had been received as this story was being filed.

Doug Lodge of Dunkirk and Terry Wood of the Raymond Wood Funeral Home, had announced in March that they were hoping to take over ownership of the cemetery.

“We have been made aware by Gary Rosen, the trustee for Southern Memorial Gardens, that another offer has been made for the purchase of the cemetery,” said Lodge in a statement issued Thursday, Aug. 30. “This offer is presently under review, a process that will take some time. No final decision has been made by Mr. Rosen or M&T Bank. If this other company does not complete the purchase, then we hope our offer will be reconsidered, as we remain very invested in the future