Maybe they put up the memorial bench after he died?
It reminds me of a deli I visited. Every sign had at least one spelling error (in one case, the word "soup"). The owner was aware, but the terms of his lease said he had to use the property developer's brother for all signs. And he had to pay for any re-dos, which just contained new errors.
Maybe it's not the entire village, just the sign makers who are idiots?