Parish gets facelift, thanks to volunteers

When summer comes and vacationers pour into the camps and lake houses around the Great Sacandaga Lake -- and into the pews of St. Francis of Assisi parish in Northville -- Terry Frank noted with a smile that they'll "be surprised."

They will see a re-visioning and renewal of the church's sanctuary, with a new altar, sanctuary furnishings, altar linens, reconciliation room and paintings handcrafted by volunteers who lent their talents to the work.

The centerpiece is a new altar built in oak by Dan Herchenroder. A carpenter and builder from Rotterdam, he and his wife, Marlene, moved to Northville a few years ago to retire.

Quality upgrade

The altar was one of the first things Rev. Thomas Morrette noticed when arriving as parish administrator a year ago. It was made of blonde-painted plywood and covered with a floor-length cloth for Mass.

"The liturgical guidelines read that the altar should be of 'admirable quality,'" he said. "I always thought that oak was the best in woods, and it would make it permanent."

He and Mr. Herchenroder met to talk about possible designs. "The hardest part of any job is to find out what [the client] wants," said Mr. Herchenroder, "and you have to have a picture in your mind."

Finished work

The craftsman fashioned the new altar to match a lectern that had been purchased elsewhere. He also created a matching podium to support the tabernacle at the back of the sanctuary, a credence table, and furniture for the new reconciliation room, including a chair and a small confessional.

Mrs. Frank cut and sewed the linens to fit the new altar, and continues to assist with tailoring vestments and taking care of the parish's other textile needs.

Older sanctuary elements made of intricate plaster tooling were hauled out of storage and restored to their previous places on the altar, including two ornate shelves now used to hold up the tabernacle and baptismal font.

In addition, a statue of St. Joseph was discovered and brought to the church to stand beside his matching Mary.

Discoveries

While her husband was working on the reconciliation room, Mrs. Herchenroder explored a back storeroom and discovered a forgotten statue of St. Francis.

"I was horrified" at the statue's condition, she said. The wooden piece had been exposed to the elements outside for years, and its paint was faded and peeling. Although she does not consider herself an artist, she took on the task of restoring and painting St. Francis, as well as the parish's statue of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha.

St. Francis was given a black robe instead of a brown one to honor the history of the Conventual Franciscans, who wore black at the time they served the parish, said Father Morrette.

Mrs. Herchenroder continued her efforts to bring color to the sanctuary area by painting angels with swirling blue and coral skirts in two areas on the sanctuary wall that were bare.

Transformation

"The whole area was transformed," said Deacon Joseph Pagano.

Dennis Poulin, president of the buildings and grounds council, said that renewal can even be felt in the air: He pushed to have air conditioning and heating installed in the parish.

And parish council president Chuck Swinton is proud that the cosmetic renewal is going hand-in-hand with an acceleration of parish life; new committees have been formed or restored over the past year to deal with prayer and worship, social justice, music, and ecumenism.

"Without the people, this stuff wouldn't be getting done," said Deacon Pagano. "You can't walk around without seeing their handiwork."

Cost savings

"We did this for practically nothing," said Father Morrette, crediting the parishioners for their donated services. "They all pitched in. What I felt was the eagerness to do this and to contribute from the beginning. All you do is let the people do their thing. It's one of the best parts of being a priest -- to see people come together and use their talents like that."

Mostly, members of the group said, they're proud of their parish, and they believe when people walk in that they'll see that Northville parishioners care.

"It looks beautiful," said Mrs. Herchenroder. "So neat and clean."

(Plans for St. Francis include the construction of a new set of shelves, cabinets and corkboards to make a parish information center in the vestibule, as well as a pro-life outdoor shrine to Mary, and an indoor shrine for the statue of Blessed Kateri -- all built by parishioners.)

(2/8/07) [[In-content Ad]]