ALLEGAN, Mich. — When the weather's nice, you can find Navene Town in a local cemetery, hard at work.
"I like cleaning headstones because I get to see the dirty become clean," he says.
The Otsego eighth grader started Navene Cleans Headstones a few years ago, when he was working on a family tree project in elementary school and visited his five-times great uncle's headstone.
"I saw his headstone and I thought no one should have that dirty of a headstone," Town says.
Since then, he's cleaned nearly 150 headstones, charging $20 each. The families of veterans get these services for free.
"I've taken classes and I've got certified so that I know I'm cleaning a headstone correctly and that I won't damage the headstone," Town says.
He's put away some of his earnings and donated some of it, too. He says he has many satisfied customers.
"The people that asked me to clean it can be very happy," Town says.
The incoming freshman plans to keep the gig going through high school, and he urges other kids to pursue their passions.
"Anyone can start a business whenever they want to. You just need to have a good idea," Town says.
His cleaning season is from mid-May through September. You can contact him through his Facebook page here.
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