Tri-County News

St. Anthony Parish Center dedicated Sunday


w-IMG 3605It?Äôs been four years in the making, but the new Parish Center at the Church of St. Anthony is finally complete. 

It began in January 2013 with the formation of a Building Committee. They were tasked with the conception of the project as well as fundraising and implementation. The Building Committee includes 
Fr. Richard Gross, Fr. Jack Brunner, Fr. Jerome Naduvathaniyil, Derek Becker, Kevin Donnay, Tony Faber, Andy Hesse, Ronald Kramer, Joe Kuechle, Adam Teicher, Jessica Teicher, Dan Winter, Tammy Winter, and Ron Yanish.

The capital campaign began April 1, 2014, to raise the needed funds.

Of course, the St. Anthony School first needed to be removed. The school had stood there since 1928, but it had been closed several years prior. The basement of the school had served as the church?Äôs fellowship hall for bingo, funeral dinners, and so much more. The demolition of the school Nov. 3, 2014, was a big step for the community. The removal of this landmark with links to so many people (including former Senator Eugene McCarthy, a native son of Watkins) was received with mixed feelings: moving toward the future with a new parish center, while still cherishing the memories of the school.

May 11, 2015, Bishop LeVoir performed a special Mass to bless the cornerstone of the new parish center. Several of the former pastors of St. Anthony came for this special Mass. All of the pastors and the bishop went outside to the building site that had been marked off and the bishop sprinkled a blessing overe the site.

Later that month, May 31, the church held a unique fundraiser: the Lumberjack Challenge. Three large pine trees had to be removed before the groundbreaking. Every-one who was there that lovely afternoon will remember Fr. Jerome in his bib overalls, swinging away at that tree as the crowd cheered. They will also remember him sitting up in the excavator at the groundbreaking July 19, 2015.

Construction began soon thereafter. Except for a snag with a buried cistern under the school, and the extra work and cost required to deal with it, the project moved forward smoothly. A crew of bricklayers meticulously set the parish center?Äôs brick fa?ßade to match that of the original church building. The sides and back of the parish center have brick-colored siding. A sneak peek for parishioners was held May 22,
so they could see the progress inside.

Even the July 11 tornado didn?Äôt stop progress on the parish center. The twister ripped through town, along the street right in back of the church and the nearly completed parish center. There was minimal fascia damage, but the new building was relatively unscathed.

There will be a number of firsts to be recorded for the new parish center. The first Faith Formation classes were held Sept. 21. The first funeral lunch served there was for Robert Donnay Nov. 23. And now, the dedication of the building can be recorded as Sunday, Feb. 5.

Many of the same people have been involved along this path. Bishop John LeVoir has been a part of this and other memorable events at the Church of St. Anthony.
Fr. Virgil Braun was the parish priest when this all began; he is now deceased. Fr. Jerome was the parish priest during the most active time of the project; he is in India. Fr. Robert Rolfes was assigned to St. Anthony for about six months before the current pastor, Fr. Aaron Nett, arrived. Retired priests Fr. Richard Gross and Fr. John Brunner have attended all of these important events as well as the Building Committee.

It seems fitting that the Building Committee served the lunch meal (roast beef sandwiches, beans, coleslaw and chips) to about 200 or so who came for the dedication Sunday. One donor (who shall remain unnamed) noted with a glint in her eye how nice it was to see the men serving lunch for a change; most of the Building Committee are male.

When the dust settled, the project totalled just over $1.8 million. This included $1,493,858 for the new building; $53,474 for the new parking lot; $101,006 to demolish the school; $123,124 for the architect; and $42,600 for soil corrections and boring testing. 

The list of donors toward this massive project is equally large. Parishioner businesses who generously contributed to the parish center were Kue Contractors Inc., Ron?Äôs Excavating Service Inc., Kramer Electric of Watkins Inc., Fire Trak Corp., and Faber Building & Supplies Inc. (It was Tony Faber?Äôs great-grandfather who helped to set the steeple all those years ago, with his team of horses.) There were numerous private donors as well.

The parish prepared a beautiful color booklet with lots of photos of the project at varying stages. Named donors are listed in this booklet. The parish office should have extra copies, if you?Äôd like one.

Let us welcome this beautiful addition to the St. Anthony parish and to Watkins community.

 

Bishop John LeVoir said a blessing for the new Parish Center at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Watkins Sunday morning, Feb. 5, following a special Mass concelebrated with Fr. Aaron Nett (behind Bishop LeVoir). Fr. Richard Gross (left) and Fr. Jack Brunner (behind him) also were able to be present for the long-awaited dedication. Staff photos by Jean Doran Matua.

 

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