20th Anniversary
Today on Good Shepherd Sunday we hear how sheep are gathered into the sheepfold and their shepherd knows them and they know their shepherd. And the shepherd is Jesus. That’s what a parish is, a faith community that follows Jesus as the Good Shepherd
Here at St. Victoria, as a parish we’ve been following Jesus our shepherd for the last 168 years. And this weekend we’re celebrating our 20th anniversary in the new church.
Back in 2005 we had 800 families. Today we’re over 1600 families. That means that about half of you weren’t here for the construction of the new church. So, I thought I’d give you just a little bit of the story of how we got where we are today.
When I first came here St. Victoria was like a parish where time had stood still. We were still picking up our mail at the post office. PO Box #8. There were 374 parishioner registration cards kept in a shoe b ox and an old rotary phone that sat on Fr. Elstaan’ desk in the parish office. Fr. Elstan was the former pastor. We had email, not even a computer in the office. Yep, St. Victoria was right out of Andy of Mayberry. If you’re familiar with Andy of Mayberry I was more Barney than I was Andy. If you know what I mean.
As housing developments sprung up Sunday mass became more crowded, at times almost to the point of people standing outside. Was that our first outdoor Sunday mass? Maybe?
In November of 1998 we held a series of all parish meetings where the consensus was to build a new church on the condition that the historic church would stay. No brainer on that one. As you can see the design masterfully connects the old church with the new church.
The task of raising the money needed for the new church was daunting. We were a small parish, building a big parish church. The diocese was skeptical we could do it. But we did it, thanks to the generosity of folks like you. We completed our capital campaign for the new church in May of 2001. We were lucky. If the capital campaign had been scheduled for the fall of that year the terrorist attack of Sept 11 would have delayed the project for years to come.
There were other challenges that followed. Just before we were about to begin the project a delay in the permits needed to break ground set us back another year and a half.
Then during construction when the parish office was torn down Holly Family Cathholic High School was good enough to let us use a wing of their building so we could continue our parish operations including our Faith Formation program. Meanwhile what is now our parking lot was a muddy mess. Then just to keep things interesting toward the end of the project the construction company we contracted with bellied up. That was complicated even further with the security company refused to pay our insurance claims. A few years later the case was settled in court. The jury decided unanimously in our favor. After that it was just a matter of paying down a debt service which we finally closed out two years ago this spring, again thanks to your generosity.
The dedication of the new church was Mother’s Day weekend 2005. With us today is the architect who is responsible for the design of the new church, Dan Gallagher. Could you please stand. Our liturgical consultant Jim Moudry, who is now 95 years old and not able to be with us today but sends his best.
So, here we are sitting in a sacred space that has become our spiritual home for the last 20 years. And on this Good Shepheard Sunday we remember Jesus the Good Shephard who has been there leading us all along. Who knows who will be with us twenty years from now. I’ll be going on 98 so I’m not so sure I’ll be here. But for those of you who will be here, keep following the Good Shepheard. He’ll be there, leading you to where you need to be.
