From a distance, Bethany Cemetery may look like an ordinary graveyard, but upon closer inspection, the headstones are true reminders of the past.

"You can see the history of a lot of old military soldiers from War World I and World War II," David McCullough said. “My grandfather was in World War II.

McCullough said until recently he wouldn't have even been able to show us his grandfather's final resting place.

"The grass was so tall, you couldn't even walk in here," he said.

Now volunteers are clearing the overgrown brush and trash and this time there are more helping hands.

Travis County Sheriff Greg Hamilton says that's thanks to the Sheriff's Weekend Alternative Program or SWAP.

"The SWAP program is a program where individuals are sentenced to community service," Sheriff Hamilton said.

These nonviolent offenders get a chance to get outside and help at the same time.

"We ought to take care of our ancestors and things, somebody who laid something down for us for our country," McCullough said.

As part of the cleanup, the local NAACP is pledging money to help completely fence in the historic cemetery which dates back to the 1800s.