KERNERSVILLE — A quiet corner on the grounds of Holy Cross Church has been transformed into a peaceful place of remembrance for the dead featuring a combined cemetery and columbarium. The project is the result of the talents and labor of many in the parish community.
Oblates of St. Francis De Sales Father Paul Dechant, pastor, blessed the new cemetery and columbarium on All Souls' Day Nov. 2 – celebrating the culmination of three years' effort by the parish council, finance committee, the Knights of Columbus Council 8509, local firms and many other parishioners in collaboration with officials from the Diocese of Charlotte.
Designed as a final resting place for parishioners and their families, clergy and friends of the church, the cemetery and columbarium encircle a large statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. A stone cross stands nearby.
It has a total of 1,200 plots and niches with room to expand in the future.
The niches of the columbarium, a circular brick structure, are arranged in groupings which feature the names of 20 saints: St. Juan Diego, St. Clare, St. Martin de Porres, St. Joan of Arc, St. Francis de Sales, St. Jane de Chantal, St. Patrick, St. Rose of Lima, St. Stanislaus, St. Thérèse, St. Michael, St. Leonie Aviat, St. Felipe de Jesus, St. Josephine Bakhita, St. Andrew Dung-Lac, St. Bernadette, Blessed Carlos Rodriguez Santiago, St. Kateri Tekakwitha, St. George and St. Katharine Drexel.
Once the concept was approved by the parish council and finance committee, Father Dechant asked parishioner and architect Matt O'Brien to lead the design effort. He assigned Worth Yonts, at that time an intern in his office, to produce the conceptual drawings of the design for parish and diocesan leaders.
"I drew from my construction background, each rendering involving light versus shadow," Yonts said. "It was a fairly successful project."
So successful, in fact, that not only did the project get the green light but Yonts was named a partner at O'Brien's architectural firm.
Parishioners Sharon Ladd, Rosemary Vasko and Dottie Saffer, members of the parish's cemetery committee and self-described gardeners, worked out many of the details about how the cemetery and columbarium would be landscaped.
"There were a lot of details you wouldn't consider," Ladd noted.
The parish held a pre-sale for the new cemetery and columbarium in July, she added, with discounts offered off the prices of the plots and niches (normally $1,500 each or $2,500 for a double). "I was astonished at the number of people who purchased," she said.
Fellow committee member Rosemary Vasko, who co-designed and assisted in the landscaping work for the cemetery and columbiarium, took a special personal interest in the project.
Earlier this month, she had her husband Tom Vasko Jr., who had passed away on Aug. 21, 2014, interred there.
"It was like having 10,000 pounds lifted off of my shoulders to have my husband laid to rest," Vasko said.
About the cemetery project in general, she commented, "It was a beautiful thing that we accomplished – physically and spiritually an accomplishment. It was a lot of hard work."
Since its completion by Beta Builders, LLC of Winston-Salem, several other parish members whose families have patiently awaited or labored for a place to inter their loved ones have been laid to rest at the new cemetery and columbarium.
—Paul S. Doizé, Correspondent
CHARLOTTE — More than 1,000 people packed St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte to capacity Nov. 21 during the Vigil Mass to pay tribute to their beloved pastor, Father Frank O'Rourke, who celebrated his 40th anniversary of priestly ordination Nov. 23.
Father O'Rourke was ordained by the late Bishop Michael J. Begley, the first bishop of the Diocese of Charlotte, at St. Ann Church for the Feast of Christ the King Sunday, Nov. 23, 1975. Father O'Rourke is one of the first 10 priests ordained to serve the Charlotte diocese since it was established Jan. 12, 1972.
Father O'Rourke began his homily with words of gratitude to God for his priestly vocation: "I do feel called, chosen by the Lord. As the Scriptures said, 'set apart to proclaim God's greatness.' I'm grateful today to say that I've experienced that being called and chosen, as I recognized that this call is for all of us, (and) that we are humbled to be called in joining Jesus in proclaiming the
Pictured: Father Frank O'Rourke, (center) is pictured with (from left) Deacons Michael Goad and Mark King; Father Fidel Melo, Vicar for Hispanic Ministry and priest in residence at St. Gabriel Church; Deacon Mark Diener; Monsignor John McSweeney, pastor of St. Matthew Church in Charlotte; Father Ed Sheridan, retired; Father Gabriel Carvajal-Salazar, parochial vicar; and Deacons Larry O'Toole and Ben Wenning. (Photos by Cesar Hurtado, Catholic News Herald)
greatness of Our Heavenly Father."
Father O'Rourke invited people present during his ordination at St. Ann Church 40 years ago, and St. Gabriel parishioners since 1976, to bring up the offertory gifts during a Nov. 21 Mass celebrating his 40th anniversary of ordination.Father O'Rourke did a little "show and tell" using the church's wall projector, showing pictures from his parents' wedding. "For it's out of marriage and love that I've been nurtured... and our family was created," he said, his voice breaking a bit and fighting grateful tears.
Concelebrating the Mass were Father Edward Sheridan, former long-time St. Gabriel pastor; Monsignor John McSweeney, pastor of St. Matthew Church in Charlotte; Father Fidel Melo, Vicar of Hispanic Ministry, and priest in residence at St. Gabriel Church; and Father Gabriel Carvajal-Salazar, St. Gabriel's parochial vicar.
During his homily, Father O'Rourke also acknowledged his long-time friendship with Father Sheridan and Monsignor McSweeney, and he showed some pictures of them through the years. Then at the end of the homily, Monsignor McSweeney put an ordination stole on Father O'Rourke as s a symbolic moment from his ordination 40 years ago. A St. Ann's parishioner had made the stole for Father O'Rourke's ordination in 1975.
Originally from Philadelphia, Pa., Father O'Rourke attended seminary at Holy Apostles Seminary College in Cromwell, Conn., and earned his Master in Divinity from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. His first priestly assignment was at St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte in January 1976. Then he was appointed pastor of St. Benedict the Moor Church in Winston-Salem, where he served from 1979 to 1981. He subsequently served at five other parishes in the diocese before returning to St. Gabriel Church in 2007.
"I can honestly say that I have been greatly blessed by all the parishes I have served: St. Ann, St. Gabriel, St. Benedict the Moor (in) Winston-Salem, St. John Neumann, St. Patrick, Holy Family (in) Clemmons, Our Lady of Grace (in) Greensboro – and returning full circle to St. Gabriel," he said during a recent interview. "Going full circle and returning to St. Gabriel has been a blessing, as I find myself being pastor of people I have baptized, given First Communion, married, etc., who are now, like me, 40 years older! St. Gabriel at this time in my life blesses me abundantly. This is a parish alive with people of faith who know, love and serve the Lord in celebrating the sacraments of the Church and putting faith into action through reaching out to others in many generous and gracious ways."
In his priestly ministry, Father O'Rourke most enjoys passing on the faith, which he considers a privilege. "This is lived out in the celebration of the sacraments and in the many ways I share the journey with people. For sure, celebrating the Eucharist is both a humbling and enriching experience. Partaking of the Bread of Life and sharing it with others keeps faith alive."
He said one of the biggest lessons he has learned over the past 40 years as a priest is, "No one tiptoes through the tulips of life. Our humanity has us sharing joys and sorrows, successes and failures, pleasures and pain, darkness and light. As a priest, I share the journey of life in faith with others in a most unique relationship that calls for a trust that God is with us. What a privilege.
"How blessed I am to be a priest, to be a pastor, for it puts me in a very unique and intimate relationship with brothers and sisters who, like me, hope to find ways to keep the flame of faith alive."
— Rico De Silva, Hispanic Communications Reporter