Parish News
Renovation project update #1 - Dec. 2019
Dear Holy Family Parishioners,
Over the course of the past weeks and months, I have been made increasingly aware that there a number of questions and concerns in the parish, ranging from maintenance issues, to finances and ongoing parish projects, to liturgical and theological concerns. Many of these are very valid concerns. I’ve tried in my own way to communicate many of these things, but it is apparent that I have not succeeded in being always clear, as to everything going on in the parish and the rationale behind it. For that, I ask for your forgiveness. So, to that end, I want to take the opportunity, as we begin a new liturgical year this weekend, to answer as many of those questions as I reasonably can. I hope that you will take the time to read through this letter and help dispel any gossip or rumor that might exist in the parish. I thank you in advance for your valuable time.
In reading through copies of letters and emails recently sent to the diocese, I see (other than the feeling that you do not feel you have been communicated with) three areas of concern:
Those concerns that strike me as the most immediate to address have to do with the sacramental life of the parish, because without the sacraments we are not availing ourselves of God’s grace, and without His grace there is not salvation. Stated simply, God’s grace is why we are here; why the parish exists at all.
Why did we move the Waterloo tabernacle to the center of the sanctuary?
As you know, four years ago all parishes in the diocese were asked to make sure that the tabernacle be preeminently placed in the center of the sanctuary, if it were not there already. The main reason being that if we believe our Churches are the House of God, His very presence in the Blessed Sacrament should be front and center – Jesus Christ must be the center of everything we do as Church. Once that is the case, everything else will fall into its rightful place. Additionally, when moving the tabernacle to its proper place at his last parish in Milwaukee, Bishop Hying explained that the centrality of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament, in the tabernacle, will only serve to focus us on the mysteries of the faith and can never be a distraction. We carefully planned the movement of the tabernacle for about three years. Generous benefactors donated more than enough to cover the expenses, with the balance of those donations going to the renovation fund. I want to take this opportunity to thank you again for making this important renovation possible. To the best of my knowledge, every parish in the Diocese of Madison has either now moved the tabernacle to the center of the sanctuary, or its movement is imminent.
Why do we need a new crucifix? Every Mass is a remembrance of the loving sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. He died for love of his Father and for us. When the priest rises up the cup he reminds the congregation that Jesus instituted this sacrifice and that he wants us to remember it always. The priest says at the end: “Do this in memory of me.” A crucifix is a reminder of the greatest act of love ever done for humanity, namely, the salvation of souls through the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross. The church requires a crucifix in church to remind us that God sent his only Son to save the word. The crucifix also reminds us that true love is sacrificial, that true love hurts and that in order to be true, love has to be willing to sacrifice for the good of other even if it hurts. As Jesus said in John 15:13: “Greater love has no one than to lay down his life for his friends.” In this way, we are reminded that we are united to the sacrificial suffering of the cross of Jesus every time a parent has to get up in the middle of the night to tend to a sick child, or when a wife or husband have to take care of a sick or dying spouse or a young man renouncing his dreams to marry a woman in order to become a priest.
Why do we not have Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion at Mass?
As I communicated to you last year, Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion’s purpose is to help Father in EXTRAORDINARY circumstances rather than in an ordinarily way at every Mass. What constitutes an extraordinary circumstance? When there are so many people at Mass that Father is unable to handle it alone. When Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are scheduled on a regular basis, i.e. every Sunday, without the need for it, then the line between an Ordinary Ministry of Holy Communion and Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion disappears. The only Ordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are priests and deacons or an installed acolyte such as a seminarian who has been installed as such. Mass attendance at our parish is such that the distribution of Holy Communion can be done by one Ordinary Minister, that is, Father. There are occasions when we have requested help during Christmas time or Easter through sign-up sheets and we have found ourselves not having enough Extraordinary Ministers signing up as volunteers.
I also want to thank those Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion that assist with bringing communion to the sick and homebound. A great point was made in a recent communication reminding me that taking communion to people also gives them the opportunity to receive other sacraments as well. So, in addition to the sick calls and reconciliation requests I presently get, I will make it a point to take communion to those who cannot attend mass a couple of times a month.
Why do we need other Church renovations? How will this be funded?
As it is the case, let’s say, with a house, buildings need to be often renovated. The church in Marshall is in dire need of painting. The old paint has begun to peel; some cracks are visible on the wall. In fact, some details on the wall are actually crumbling down. The Capitol Campaign/Renovation Committee along with the Building and Maintenance Committee has suggested that it is time to paint that church. I’ve been informed that the church was last painted maybe 25-30 years ago. At the same time we think that in order to keep the parish even more attractive to new generations, we could add even more beautiful furnishing. We truly believe that if we can add beautiful art to the church walls it will bring the new generations and the generations to come more into the sacredness and spirituality of the church. The altar, the ambo, the baptismal font, the presider’s and the server’s chairs are dated and obsolete and are not congruent with the space. The altar area walking space has been reduced by the altar’s and lectern’s sizes. We believe that by renovating the furniture, we will ensure a long lasting impression of the sacred for our generation and the generations to come and make it easier to walk around in the sacred space that is the sanctuary area.
Will the School Roof be repaired? Yes. We were told by the roofers that it would either be November or December. We have received a large unrestricted donation by a parishioner’s state that will be utilized for this purpose so there will be no need to raise funds.
Was the Marshall Rectory renovated? Yes. The outside of the rectory was renovated by 2012. The inside has been renovated as of late this year 2019.
How was this funded? It was funded through unrestricted parish donations, not from the regular offertory collection. A small group of parishioners have donated their time and talents to see this project through, saving us much in costs.
Are there other needed Marshall maintenance projects being addressed? If so which? Yes. The church basement is in the process of being cleaned. A couple people with expertise have suggested to us that there is no mold in the basement as it’s been feared in the past. There was a brand new donated boiler installed in September for the church and a brand new donated range installed in the kitchen. There is need to eventually replace the window frames in the entry way.
Are the meetings in the parish hall(s) all scheduled? Yes, to the best of my knowledge.
What about Parish Finances/Reporting to the Parish? I am asking that the Parish Finance Council make quarterly updates on the state of parish finances, so that there is full disclosure to all of you of where we stand financially. I thank them for their very able advice. They are all very trustworthy members of our community, and I ask them to assist me with this very important communication. These updates will be made through the parish bulletin and, if needed, at weekend masses.
What about other future parish projects? Similarly, when we have major parish projects or announcements, I will be asking members of the parish council to make announcement updates (through the parish bulletin and, if needed, at weekend masses). Like our finance council, our parish council is made up of faithful and talented individuals, who’s advice I welcome. And I thank them for their sacrifice of time and talent as well. Both councils will have regularly scheduled meetings, which will be made public. If a meeting is cancelled, ask a member the reasoning, or better yet ask me. They will never be cancelled, unless there is a justified reason. If there was ever suspicion that a meeting was cancelled without real cause, I am sorry. I assure that was not the case.
While I know this is a lot, but certainly not an exhaustive update of a number of your questions and concerns, I welcome your additional questions and will answer them in the bulletin each week. I want to be as clear and complete as possible. I will also have this information and updates on the parish, school, renovations, and ongoing projects posted on the parish website.
Renovation Campaign Letter #2 - March 2020
Building the Future Together
Dear Holy Family Parishioners,
Greetings to you all in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ!
As I write this letter, we are ready to enter into the sacred time of Lent. I pray you may have a fruitful and holy season of Lent, in fact I pray that you may have the best Lent ever!
I write this letter to inform you of the current status and scope of our parish renovation project. As I have stated before, the idea behind the renovation plan is to help our faith be renovated by the upgrade of our worship spaces. We also would be remiss not to keep in mind and heart our future generations that will fill our pews in years to come.
As of today, we are waiting on diocesan approval to proceed with the project. The first part of this project is to paint the Marshall church. The contract with the contractor, T.H. Stempers from Milwaukee, has been revised once by the diocese and sent back to Stempers for changes. The changes have been made so we are sending it back to the diocese and our insurance company for final review as I write this letter.
We have set a date to start painting Marshall on March 30th of 2020. We will need to remove the pews and all movable items from the church beginning on March 16th, Monday. Then the scaffolding company will set up shop and then the painters will start doing the work.
The samples that you see in the upper right corner of the church were suggested by the painters. We have not yet select colors or tones. That will be set before we start the work.
The first stage of the project is to paint the churches. The first church to be painted will be Marshall. The start date, pending on diocesan approval, would be March 30th. The pews will need to come out first and then scaffolding will come second. The removal of the pews would begin Monday March 16th. If the project is approved by the diocese then we will move all the Masses and events to Waterloo beginning mid-March.
The cost of painting Marshall will be $270,070. This includes: scaffolding ($44,760), painting ($204,500), terrazzo finish in the sanctuary (altar) area ($10,810), concrete polishing for the pew area ($10,000). There is an option for carpeting for the pew area ($6,500) which will bring the price down by $3,500. If we let the painters lodge in the rectory, that will save us an extra $4,500.
As we mentioned before, we would use $220,000 from the Building Investment Fund to help pay for the whole project. The fund, as of 01/31/20, sits at $561,754.60. This fund is an investment fund created to supplement the cost of projects related to the buildings and grounds. These may include, but are not limited to, new construction, upkeep, updating and remodeling/beautification of the interior of our buildings and structures. People have donated to it in the past and it has increased also through investments. The rest of the money for the whole project will be fundraised beginning March 1st, 2020. Please see reverse of the page for a scope of the project costs and let us know if you have any questions. Thank you.
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Charles Kazmer Sr. |
920‐220‐9149 |
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Charles Crave |
920‐285‐3812 |
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Kurt Dornacker |
920‐253‐5703 |
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Joni Crave |
920‐285‐3545 |
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Kay Radloff |
920‐988‐6627 |
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Fr. Jorge Miramontes |
608‐358‐9882 |
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Kyle Brueckner |
608‐852‐4807 |
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Angela Skalizky (Design Consultant) |
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Revised Estimate (2‐5‐2020) |
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JS Paint & Lodging Marshall Quote |
$204,500 |
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Furnishings (Gunder Church Furniture) |
$82,780 |
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Ambo |
$5,206 |
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Baptismal Font |
$4,915 |
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Reredos |
$30,481 |
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Side Shrines |
$17,212 |
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Altar |
$6,219 |
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Communion Rail |
$15,461 |
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Delivery & Installation |
$3,286 |
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Badger Companies‐Scaffolding (Based on 12 Weeks) |
$44,760 |
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Terrazzo Refinish |
$10,810 |
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Concrete Polish (option A $10,000) (Carpet Option B $6,500) |
$10,000 |
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Marshall Total |
$352,850 |
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JS Paint & Lodging Waterloo Quote |
$79,500 |
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Furnishings (Gunder Church Furniture) |
$70,672 |
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Ambo |
$3,734 |
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Baptismal Font |
$4,898 |
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Reredos |
$20,238 |
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Side Shrines |
$14,144 |
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Altar |
$13,515 |
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Presiders Chair |
$2,104 |
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Deacon Chair |
$1,737 |
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Servers Chairs |
$1,070 |
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Communion Rail |
$6,078 |
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Delivery & Installation |
$3,154 |
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Tile (Budget) |
$21,000 |
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Carpet (Budget) |
$17,000 |
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No Scaffolding Needed |
$0 |
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Mass Construction ‐ Drywall Prep For Waterloo |
$6,800 |
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Waterloo Total |
$194,972 |
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Incidentals (10%) |
$54,782 |
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Grand Total |
$602,604 |
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Start Date: March 30th, 2020 (Remove pews starting Monday, March 16th 2020) End Date: Friday June 19th, 2020 |
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Holy Family Capital Campaign Committee and Renovation Project
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