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Madeline Grimes

Honoring Our Past, Part 2

Dear Parishioners,

I previously wrote in this column about some of our past with regards to standing on the shoulders of giants such as Fr. Kelly and Madeline Grimes.  I also shared history about some of the remodeling that had been done in our current church.  Without our past, we would have no orientation about our present or future.  Yet, at the same time, if we stay in the past, we run the risk of being paralyzed into doing nothing about the needs of the present or future.  This time around, I would like to focus on one individual whom I had the privilege to speak to at length regarding the history of our parish, Bob Busch.

St. Anne Floor Plan ca. 1960

St. Anne Floor Plan ca. 1960

As I asked Bob some questions about the history and changes that have happened and the remodeling that has taken place in our church, he jokingly shared, “We’ve remodeled that church a hundred times.”  As you might remember, I have shared that in the process of analyzing the current church building, the first thing that was noted was that the stress on the roof was great due to the sheer weight of the ceramic tiles. What I didn’t know, but Bob shared, was that he personally delivered all those red tiles from Portland to Grants Pass and assisted in installing them. He shared that they were incredibly heavy, and the work to put them on the roof was difficult. He reminisced about how the original building had no wood anywhere, just cinder block and steel.  After Fr. Kelly moved on, his successor, Fr. Singleton, hired an architect to bring some beauty into the church, thus the steel ribs in the ceiling were covered in redwood paneling and the back of the sanctuary was ribbed with oak paneling.  One can still see the remnants of the wood from the sanctuary just above the walkway entrance behind the sanctuary.  Also, (this one is mostly for us men), did you know that the door to the men’s bathroom had to be custom made, for the doorway was smaller than a standard doorway? Bob also shared with me that the parish had two altars installed at the present church, one out front, which is the one we see today, and another one behind (located behind our current work sacristy behind the previously mentioned walkway. It was raised up to make a high altar which could be seen through sliding glass doors.  Daily Mass was originally offered in there with the congregation located in what is now the Reconciliation Chapel.  In those days, he reported, few attended daily Mass.

Stay tuned for some more tidbits and treasures of our past in a coming bulletin.

Blessings,

Fr. William Holtzinger
Pastor

Honoring Our Past Pt. 1

Honoring Our Past Pt. 1

Dear Parishioners,

This past week, I received a great question via Facebook about our “Honoring Our Past ~ Building Our Future” capital campaign.  The question was framed by recognizing how we have been putting a lot of energy in describing the future building, but what about honoring the past?  This parishioner offered this question with the spirit that continues to show our faith, hope, and love for our Lord and the due respect that our forbears deserve.  Thank you for the important question.

First of all, it is reasonable that we spend so much focus on the future at this juncture, lest we fail due to paralysis about the past.  With everything, there is a season and time.  That being said, I’d like to honor our past and encourage us all to do the same in our own particular ways.

Honoring our past begins with recognizing that we are standing on the shoulders of those who went before us and some who are still here today. In my time, I think of Madeline Grimes who was our liturgy coordinator for so many years and who passed on 2013.  She shared with me many stories about the parish’s previous church on C street and Fr. Kelly and the priests who came after. She brought up several times the events of our past as well as the desire to “fix” the church. She told me about the gatherings about remodeling our current church, the plans that were drawn up in 1994 which moved the pews into a sweeping fan around the altar (a viable option), and the unfortunate yelling, arguing, and lack of charity that the project brought out.  Hey!  With the good comes some bad at times. The result was a retrofit of the sanctuary which we gratefully have today. Did you know that the Ambo where the Scriptures are proclaimed was constructed by cutting the main alter shorter and using that piece for the vertical support of the Ambo?  Notice, today, the top of the altar (aka mesa) is the same green marble as the vertical part of the Ambo?  Give yourself a pat on the back if you already knew that. I’m just so grateful that the three years our Core Building Committee met to pray, think, and plan for a new church were so life-giving, diverse with ideas and discussion, and thankfully without any divisive fireworks. Our Core building Committee revisited the plans of 1994 and discerned that the community would prefer a more traditional than modern approach to the new church.

In the coming weeks, I will offer more thoughts and history of our parish and how we can be honor our past while also building our future.

Blessings,

Fr. William Holtzinger
Pastor