Contributed photo
Laurie Lizotte, Child Care Administrator for the Vassalboro Community School Child Care Program, was recently recognized at the staff luncheon at the school on Tuesday, June 19. The recognition is for her past 20 years of service for administering a licensed, nationally-accredited, Quality Level 4 child care program.
Jim, left, and Rachel Kilbride. (Photos by Eric Austin)
Looking at Rachel Kilbride, you wouldn’t think she’s the type to hear voices, but that’s exactly what prompted her to buy the St. Bridget Catholic Church, in Vassalboro, and turn it into a local community center.
“I wasn’t planning to retire in Vassalboro,” Rachel told me. A Winslow native, she was living in Wells with her husband, Jim, when, in the summer of 2014, she responded to an inner urging to look into what was being done with the shuttered Catholic church.
“This building was closed in 2011,” she explained at the recent open house for the new community center, “and in 2014, I was driving by and this little voice said, ‘Buy me!’”
Jim Kilbride said it was a voice that wouldn’t go away. “Every time she went by it, she’d get another nudge,” he continued. “So, Rachel finally said, ‘The heck with this, I’ve gotta check it out.’”
That nudge eventually pushed them to contact Corpus Christi Parish, which owned the rectory, church and accompanying grounds, to find out about buying the property. The parish was amenable to selling, and in January 2015, the couple put their house in Wells up for sale and moved into the old church rectory. It was the beginning of a long, three-year journey to restore the two buildings and surrounding grounds.
“We slept in the rectory in sleeping bags for about six months,” she recalls with a laugh. The couple set about renovating the rectory and making it habitable before turning their attention to the main church building.
The interior of the renovated church. Photos by Eric Austin)
Was it worth it? The results are impressive. With high, cathedral ceilings, gleaming wood floors, and big, wavy-glass windows that let in plenty of light, the interior of the old church is undeniably beautiful. “A hundred and sixty gallons of paint later,” Rachel confides, with the air of someone who has just climbed a mountain and is now enjoying the view.
“I wanted to preserve the history,” she explains. Rachel and Jim have worked to retain many of the historic features of the building, such as the St. Bridget statue out front, the original doors, wood floors, and the old fashioned, wavy-glass windows.
The first church built on the site was destroyed by a fire in 1925, she said. The entire town of Vassalboro came together to rebuild it, a task they completed in only six months. It’s a feat that still astounds Rachel, who has spent the last three years just doing the restoration.
The response from the Vassalboro community has also been positive, with nearly 200 people showing up for the open house. Stewart, a resident of East Vassalboro, when asked how he felt about the Kilbrides’ initiative to restore the old church, replied, “I think it’s fantastic! Are you kidding me? Look at this! It was falling down before they took it over.”
The Kilbrides hope to rent the building for banquets, weddings, and other community and charity events. They have added a kitchen, installed new wiring, an entrance ramp, and a handicap-accessible bathroom to bring the building up to modern standards.
For more information, email them at StBridgetCenter@gmail.com, call 616-3148, or visit their blog at https://stbridgetwhispers.wordpress.com/.
Principal Dianna Gram is retiring from Vassalboro Community School this month with mixed feelings. She expects to miss people she’s worked with over more than two decades, especially the students. But she’s totally confident incoming principal Megan Allen is the right person to succeed her. “I have a great sense of relief and pride in her similar values,” Gram said, predicting a smooth transition […]
CHINA — Residents of China and nearby towns are invited to a retirement party for China Town Manager Daniel L’Heureux, scheduled for 5 p.m., Saturday, June 30, in the portable building behind the China town office on Lakeview Drive […]
Vassalboro — Vassalboro selectmen would appreciate residents’ opinions on two topics, preferably before the June 28 selectmen’s meeting. The first issue is whether townspeople want to try to restrict the number of storefront medical marijuana shops allowed in town […]
OAKLAND — Donna Pullen, a 51-year veteran school bus driver for RSU #18 Messalonskee School Department was treated to a surprise retirement party by her fellow bus drivers and supervisors recently. She plans to retire at the end of this school year […]
CHINA — China’s TIF (Tax Increment Finance) Committee members had little progress to report at their June 18 meeting. The committee’s main focus is on the head of China Lake’s east basin, where the first phase of a multi-year project involves replacing the bridge across the inlet stream […]
CHINA — John Cote, of China, was recently sworn in as Chief of the Maine State Police. Cote, a 29-year veteran, has served as deputy chief for the past two years and is the former commanding officer for Troop F, in Houlton […]
[democracy id=”97″]
The Erskine Leo officers for 2018-19 have been announced: Alex Mahon, Parker King, and Tori Grasse, all executive committee. Also, Alana York, Samantha Heath, vice president, Liz Sugg, president, Lucy Allen, secretary. Not pictured: Olivia Kunesh, treasurer, and Matt Veilleux, executive committee […]
Seven Juniors from Winslow High School will be attending the 71st annual American Legion Dirigo Boys State Program, at Thomas College, in Waterville, during the week of June 17-21, 2018 […]
On Friday, June 8, Erskine Academy students and staff attended a Renaissance Assembly to honor their peers with Renaissance Awards […]
SIDNEY — Becker College’s Commencement ceremony was held on May 5, in Worcester, Massachusetts. Ashley Carver, of Sidney, graduated with honors with an associates degree in veterinary science […]
WINSLOW — Cody Lambert, of Winslow, was recognized for earning a spot on the Spring 2018 dean’s list at Tufts University, in Medford/Somerville, Massachusetts […]
SOMERVILLE — I’ve heard concerns expressed about a new comprehensive plan (Plan) being considered in the Town of Somerville. Some worry that passing the Plan gives selectmen the right to change regulations for things suggested in the Plan, or to vote whatever they want to do if the Plan isn’t specific enough […]
VASSALBORO — The Vassalboro Ministry Association Fuel Fund board is having a talent show fundraiser at the North Vassalboro Mill on Friday, June 22, from 6 – 8 p.m. There will be musicians, poets, and dncers, hot dogs and baked goods sales, as well as several raffles […]
WINSLOW – Elizabeth E. (DeRaps) Tuttle, 77, passed away Sunday, May 27, 2018, at MaineGeneral Medical Center, in Augusta. She was born December 21, 1940, in Waterville, the daughter of Leo E. Sr. and Martha L. (Muzzeroll) DeRaps… and remembering 5 others…
SCORES & OUTDOORSby Roland D. Hallee | OK, let’s shift gears this week and talk about our roads. No, not the ruts, potholes and whoopsy-dos, nor the bevy of political signs that sprout along the roadway. I’m talking about the carnage on our highways […]
PAGES in TIMESt. Denis Church, originally spelled with two “n’s”, is the second oldest Catholic church in New England, predated only by St. Patrick Church in Newcastle […]
REVIEW POTPOURRIby Peter Cates | The 4th Violin Concerto of Bjarne Brustad, one of Norway’s leading 20th century composers, is a meandering exercise full of dramatic, pounding chords that go nowhere; the only Violin Concerto of Sir William Walton is an exciting example of perky, exotic rhythms and emotionally wistful poetry that, for me, gets better with every hearing […]
I’M JUST CURIOUSby Debbie Walker | Most of you know I am part of the Foster Grandparent Program and I volunteer in a first and second grade class. I think I have mentioned before how much I enjoy the kids and the teacher. Today I had an amazing experience […]
SOLON & BEYONDby Marilyn Rogers-Bull & Percy | The North Anson Methodist Church is holding it’s annual suppers on June 30, from 5 – 6 p.m. July 21 from 5 – 6 p.m., and July 28, from 5 – 6 p.m. Received the following e-mail on the way people in Solon voted on Question 1. 76 voted yes and 128 voted no […]
IF WALLS COULD TALKby Katie Ouilette | Whew, WALLS, thank goodness, the annual fishing trip is over. Nope, WALLS, I didn’t want any, but I am sure the boys (including Lew) had their fill of trout at Camp Wapiti, in Patton, (Aroostook County), even though they left on Sunday and returned on Wednesday. They had arranged their flights from Washington State so that they had time visiting family […]
FOR YOUR HEALTHThe next time you find yourself kicking your leg out of the side of your blankets to cool off or turning your pillow over because it’s too hot—you won’t be alone. Some 50 million Americans are affected by intermittent sleep problems, potentially created by bedding choices, according to the National Sleep Foundation—but you don’t have to be […]
(NAPSI)—The next time you find yourself kicking your leg out of the side of your blankets to cool off or turning your pillow over because it’s too hot—you won’t be alone. Some 50 million Americans are affected by intermittent sleep problems, potentially created by bedding choices, according to the National Sleep Foundation—but you don’t have to be.
Not many people realize it, but surrounding yourself with breathable fabrics while you sleep is essential for a restful night. Airflow matters because it lets heat naturally dissipate away from your body and helps keep your temperature regulated. Overheating can lead to a night of tossing and turning, leaving you groggy the next day because you didn’t recover properly the night before.
So what’s the solution? It’s possible to get more out of each day by enhancing your sleep environment. There are options that can cater to your individual sleep position, body frame and temperature to help you maximize recovery at night.
Consider these facts and tips for a better night’s sleep:
Personalization, coupled with fabric technologies that are engineered to promote airflow and assist with temperature regulation, can ensure that your sleep environment is optimized for the best rest.
For further information on how to upgrade your sleep, visit www.bedgear.com.
This Red Sox pitcher became a verbal punching bag when he said, “What can I say? I just tip my hat and call the Yankees my daddy.”
Pedro Martinez.
by Roland D. HalleeOK, let’s shift gears this week and talk about our roads. No, not the ruts, potholes and whoopsy dos, nor the bevy of political signs that sprout along the roadway. I’m talking about the carnage on our highways.
Over the last week, I have seen, laying dead, either on the shoulder or squished in the travel lanes, skunks, porcupines, an occasional opossum, and a plethora of gray squirrels.
Is there an abundance of wildlife out there, are they widening their range in search of food, or is the change in their habitat forcing them to seek shelter elsewhere?
It is an interesting thought.
Of the many animals I’ve seen as road kill, gray squirrels are by far in the majority.
It might be because they are scatter hoarders. They hoard foods in numerous caches for later recovery. Some caches are temporary, especially those made near the site of a sudden abundance of food which can be retrieved within hours or days for reburial in a more secure site. Others are more permanent and are not retrieved until months later. Each squirrel is estimated to make several thousand caches each season. This would include a large range of territory for them to cover in order to have all these caches.
Skunks and porcupines are nocturnal creatures that generally only make appearance following night fall.
Although skunks have excellent senses of smell and hearing, they have poor vision, being unable to see objects more than about 10 feet away, making them vulnerable to death by road traffic. They already have a short lifespan, up to seven years, but most will live only up to a year.
Porcupines, which are mostly nocturnal, will forage during the day. They are slow-moving mammals that once exposed to the dangers of crossing a strip of asphalt, become susceptible to road collisions with autos.
Both the skunks and porcupines are dark in color, making them difficult to see in the dark, especially with some of today’s new cars. Older cars, with the standard types of headlights, illuminate the sides of the road at a longer distance, while the newer LED projection-type headlamps light up the roads in a more direct, straight-forward path, leaving the shoulders and aprons to the road a little darker.
All in all, for these denizens of the woods, when they venture out at night, they are no match for a 3,000-pound hunk of steel barreling down at them at 55 mph.
Now, here is a challenge for readers.
In the 20-plus years that I have been writing this column, I have come across a lot of creatures of nature that I have not been able to identify. Through the help of my contacts at the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, and doing countless hours of research, I have been able to bring to you many descriptions of these critters. But, in that time, I have come across two that even experts have not been able to help me. One was in 2013, and the other was just last weekend.
So, I am presenting to you, amateur entomologists and wannabes, these two for your perusal. Does anyone out there in The Town Line nation, know what these are? (Send us an email at townline@fairpoint.net or via our Contact page.)
This Red Sox pitcher became a verbal punching bag when he said, “What can I say? I just tip my hat and call the Yankees my daddy.”
The following Personal Representatives have been appointed in the estates noted. The first publication date of this notice June 21, 2018.
If you are a creditor of an estate listed below, you must present your claim within four months of the first publication date of this Notice to Creditors by filing a written statement of your claim on a proper form with the Register of Probate of this Court or by delivering or mailing to the Personal Representative listed below at the address published by his name, a written statement of the claim indicating the basis therefore, the name and address of the claimant and the amount claimed or in such other manner as the law may provide. See 18-A MRSA 3-804.
2018-156 – Estate of EDMUND F. WEBB, late of West Forks Plantation, Me. Gerald F. Stackpole, PO Box 136, West Forks, Me 04985 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-159 – Estate of McKINLEY DOODY, late of Fairfield, Me deceased. Debra Doody, 272 Upper Main Street, Fairfield, Me 04937 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-162 – Estate of MICHAEL DAVID LANGE, late of Saint Albans, Me deceased. Leslie D. Obiri, 2520 Walters Way #24, Concord, CA 94520 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-163 – Estate of ALMA L. FRENCH, late of Solon, Me deceased. James Abbott Withers, 433 Reids Road Extension, Echo Bay ON P0S 1C0 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-164 – Estate of LEONA A. SMITH, late of Pittsfield, Me deceased. Grayln S. Smith, PO Box 128, Greenville, Me 04441 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-165 – Estate of BRADLEY M. KING, late of Madison, Me deceased. Kerryann Davis, 37 Lakewood Road, Madison, Me 04950 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-169 – Estate of VIOLA M. HUTCHINS, late of Fairfield, Me deceased. Renee Reynolds, 23 Hutchins Road, Fairfield, Me 04937 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-170 – Estate of LINWOOD S. DUNPHY, late of Pittsfield, Me deceased. Colleen D. Martin, 223 Hamilton Terrace, Pittsfield, Me 04967 and James D. Dunphy, 122 Lincoln Street, Pittsfield, Me 04967 appointed Co-Personal Representatives.
2018-171 – Estate of CLARENCE T. LIVINGSTONE, late of Moxie Gore Township, Me deceased. Clarence Ayotte, 456 Campground Road, North Anson, Me 04958 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-172 – Estate of MARYANN SHAW, late of Skowhegan, Me deceased. Robert Shaw, 23 Dominic Street, Skowhegan, Me 04976 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-173 – Estate of TROY G. CORMIER, late of Jackman, Me deceased. Tracy H. Cormier, 40 Donovan Road, No. Brookfield, MA 01535 and Todd R. Cormier, 111 Waite Corner Road, No. Brookfield, MA 01535 appointed Co-Personal Representatives.
2018-174 – Estate of IRENE F. TUTTLE, late of Canaan, Me deceased. Trudy Tuttle Hart, 74 Main Street, Canaan, Me 04976 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-175 – Estate of THEODORE W. WEBB III, late of Madison, Me deceased. Gannet N. White, 118 North Street, Waterville, Me 04901 appointed Personal Representative.
2018-047 – Estate of ROMONA MAE BROWN, late of Hartland, Me deceased. Todd Brown, 351 Nokomis Road, St. Albans, Me 04971 and Troy Chipman, 1107 Canaan Road, Hartland, Me 04943 appointed Co-Personal Representative.
2018-180 – Estate of ROLAND J. LEARY, late of Fairfield, Me deceased. Travis C. Leary, 241 Hill Road, Clinton, Me 04927 appointed Personal Representative.
To be published on June 21, 2018 & June 28, 2018.
Dated: June 19, 2018 /s/ Victoria Hatch,
Register of Probate
(6/28)
It appearing that the following heir of THEODORE W. WEBER III, as listed in an Application for Informal Probate of Will and Appointment of Personal Representative is of unknown address as listed below:
George Weber, address unknown
THEREFORE, notice is hereby given as heir of the above named estate, pursuant to Maine Rules of Probate Procedure Rule 4(d) (1) (a), and Rule 4 (e) a.
This notice shall be published once a week for two successive weeks in The Town Line, with the first publication date to be June 21, 2018.
Names and address of Personal Representative: Gannet N. White, 118 North Street, Waterville, Me 04901.
Dated: June 21, 2018
/s/ Victoria Hatch,
Register of Probate
(6/28)
by Debbie WalkerWe will get to the “Mother” part of this story but first we’ll do the background.
Most of you know I am part of the Foster Grandparent Program and I volunteer in a first and second grade class. I think I have mentioned before how much I enjoy the kids and the teacher. Today I had an amazing experience.
I walked in the classroom to find a gift bag on my table. I opened up the card to find a note from the mother and a note from her child, one of our students.
The mother spoke of her child and that she knew her child enjoyed spending time with me. I believe the sentence that really got to me was she said he always has a smile on his face when he talks about me. She thanked me for all I do. His note was thanking me for being there in his class.
Tears were building up in the corners of my eyes as I finished reading. It got worse when I opened the gifts. There were two gifts in that bag. One was a beautiful little fairy sitting and holding a gem in her hand. The other gift was a fairy cottage that even lights up. They are beautiful. Then I really had to work at holding back the tears. I was hoping the kids would all go outside without seeing me break down in tears!
My main reason for telling this story is because, without their names for privacy, I would like to honor both mother and child with this writing.
Maybe I shared with you about how I read these kids a couple of the fairy stories I’ve written. My stories do not have illustrations yet. I told them to close their eyes and use their imagination to “see” the story. That’s a lot to ask of kids in this age bracket. They did wonderful! Their teacher looked in on us because the kids were all so quiet. After the story they asked to have time to draw the things they “saw.”
The pictures they drew were so cute! One of them, this boy, drew a picture of the house, a sun and the tree of “Apple Tree Notch,” home of the Bailey family fairies from my series. He gave his drawing to me and said, “Will you draw in the fairies and their friends.” So we finished it and he took the original home to show Mom.
The thing that truly inspired me to write this is the thoughtfulness and understanding of this Mom. It was months ago that we did the activity and yet Mom had not forgotten.
Mom understood that her son has a “connection” over something to me. “Connection” is a term they learned this year to connect them to different aspects of a story. To me this Mom is amazing and will help her son travel miles over the educational highways of his life. With Mothers like this there is hope for all of our futures.
I’m just curious the “trip” this boy will have with the obvious understanding of his Mom. I love questions and comments!! Contact me at dwdaffy@yahoo.com. Thanks for reading!! Don’t forget we are also on line.
by Peter CatesViolin Concerto No. 4
Violin Concerto
Bjarne Brustad
Camilla Wicks, violin, with Herbert Blomstedt and Yuri Somonov conducting the Oslo Philharmonic, Simax PSC 1185, CD, live broadcasts.
Sir William Walton
The 4th Violin Concerto of Bjarne Brustad (1895-1978), one of Norway’s leading 20th century composers, is a meandering exercise full of dramatic, pounding chords that go nowhere; the only Violin Concerto of Sir William Walton (1901-1983) is an exciting example of perky, exotic rhythms and emotionally wistful poetry that, for me, gets better with every hearing. Both performances are as fine as is usually the case with the wonderful violinist, Camilla Wicks, and conductors Herbert Blomstedt in the 1968 broadcast of Brustad and Yuri Simonov in a 1985 one of Walton.
Wicks, now 89 and retired since 2005, made her debut playing a Mozart Concerto at 7.
Country Boy
MCA, MCAC-37232, cassette, released 1977.
Don Williams
I first encountered Don Williams (1939-2017) as part of Pozo Seco, an exquisitely accomplished duo that included another singer, Susan Taylor, and in 1969, when I was a high school senior . They released an LP, Shades of Time, consisting of a folk/country assortment of very fine songs that were finely performed – I have owned a few copies over the last 50 years because I kept letting them go to others.
When he became a purely country singer, I still liked the smoothly soothing voice and delivery but thought the songs were mainly so-so or, at best, okay, thus losing interest in him.
Country Boy, a 1977 studio album was the usual assortment of his trademark love ballads and did not sustain my interest. However, his integrity and personality were of the highest calibre throughout his phenomenally successful career. He was a model husband to his wife of 57 years and wonderful father to two sons!
starring Spencer Tracy, Phil Silvers, Mickey Rooney, Jonathan Winters, Jimmy Durante, Three Stooges and almost every other comedian and numerous actors and actresses alive in 1963; directed by Stanley Kramer; approximately 3 hours, DVD.
This is the funniest, longest, most expensive and most profitable comedy ever produced in cinema history. I have seen it at least 20 times and still laugh myself into a strait jacket.
A few examples of its humor – Buddy Hackett and Rooney in an airplane with the drunk pilot, Jim Backus, knocked out; Jonathan Winters single-handedly destroying a garage; Jimmy Durante driving 1 mph around hairpin curves with no railings and weaving on both sides and several dozen greedheads on a rickety ten-story fire ladder! One final funny – arch con man Phil Silvers licking his smiling cobra chops and spewing, “Try me – I’m gullible!”
Best watched in two or three installments or you will be laughed out!
Peter Taylor, from the town of Washington, has attended St. Denis Church, in Whitefield, for 40 years, and for him, there is no place like it.
“I just feel the Holy Spirit in this building,” he said. “It’s the community that brings that feeling to me.”
Al Parker, who has attended the church for more than a quarter century feels similarly. He said he used to travel around the country and the world for his work, but none of the churches he found compared to St. Denis.
“St. Denis is very, very unique. The people there are unbelievable. The community that we have is second to none,” he said.
Taylor and Parker were among the many parishioners who filled St. Denis Church on Sunday, June 10, to commemorate the church’s 200th anniversary. Bishop Robert Deeley celebrated the anniversary Mass (20 pictures below).
“The records of history show that there was only a small Catholic community here in Whitefield when Bishop Cheverus, then Bishop of Boston, of which Maine was a part, visited in 1812. There were perhaps five Catholics. Five years later, however, the reality was quite different. The rich farmland of the Sheepscot River Valley, available for a reasonable price, had drawn many Irish immigrants who had come to America seeking a new way of life, just as immigrants do today,” the bishop recounted in his homily.
St. Denis Church, originally spelled with two “n’s”, is the second oldest Catholic church in New England, predated only by St. Patrick Church in Newcastle. The church got its start when Father Dennis Ryan, who had been assigned pastor of St. Patrick by Bishop Jean-Louis Lefebvre de Cheverus in 1818, recognized the growing population in Whitefield and chose to move there.
Work on the first church began that same year, and it was consecrated by Bishop Cheverus in 1822. The original church was a white, wood-framed building with no pews. People would stand or kneel on the floor.
“The first settlers knew they needed their faith, and their faith was not their own. It needed a community and a place to celebrate Mass. They knew the meaning they derived from the love of God they experienced in their relationship with Jesus. They wanted to nurture that for themselves in the harshness of winter in a new place, and they wanted to hand it on to their children. It is the legacy they passed on to you. You and I are now the brothers and sisters of Jesus in this place,” the bishop said.
The church community continued to thrive, and in the 1830s, the Irish Catholic population of the parish had grown to nearly 1,200. Unfortunately, the church also wasn’t well maintained, which caught the attention of Bishop Benedict Fenwick, the second Bishop of Boston, who visited in 1832. He urged the community to build another church, and the following year, work on the current church began.
“The Irish Catholics wanted the new church to be on the same spot as the old church, so they put the bricks right over and around the wooden church, so they still had a place to go to church,” said Libby Harmon, a longtime parishioner who researched the history and was one of the organizers of the celebration. “When they got the walls and the roof of the new brick church done, they then disassembled the wooden church and took it out through the front doors.”
The new church was consecrated by Bishop Fenwick in 1838. At the time, it was Maine’s largest Catholic church building, as well as having the largest congregation.
The church was designed like a typical New England meetinghouse, an appearance it retains today. Among the changes along the way, however, was a new Italianate-style tower, which replaced the old belfry in 1862. Around 1890, stained-glass windows were added, the sanctuary was enlarged, and decorative work was added to the walls and ceiling.
In 1976, it was entered on the National Register of Historic Places. The church underwent a major restoration beginning in 1997.
“It’s quite a quaint building, very nostalgic, old, but very comforting. It’s a very nice place to worship,” said Parker.
St. Denis Church is now part of St. Michael Parish in Augusta, but it has maintained its rural character, as well as its loyal congregation.
“I think one of the things that maybe is special for us is that families come from surrounding communities. It’s not like being in the city where everybody is right here. People come from afar to come here,” said Mary Caswell, whose ties to the church span four generations, since her great grandparents immigrated from Ireland. “We’ve had, over the years, to be very independent.”
“My mother, she brought us up here, and I still live in this area. It’s just very special,” said Louise Reed, Caswell’s sister.
“It’s very nice. Wonderful, wonderful people,” said Anne Springer, age 102.
The church was full for the Mass, as was the parish hall for a celebratory brunch.
“I’m just very, very happy to be part of this 200th, because it is so significant in the history of the Church in Maine,” said Father Frank Morin, pastor of St. Michael Parish. “People really supported it, and I’m very happy that we gave them the opportunity to appreciate again their heritage, especially the descendants of the original families, several of whom are here and who have not forgotten their roots.”
Among those in attendance were several Sisters of Mercy. From 1871 to 1888, the Sisters of Mercy ran an orphanage at a convent across the street from the church and also taught schoolchildren. Several sisters are buried in the church’s historic cemetery.
Concelebrating the Mass with the bishop was Father Morin; Monsignor J. Joseph Ford, a native son of the parish; Father Ralph Boisvert, who formerly served there; and Father Roger Chabot. Father Arokiasamy Santhiyagu, HGN, a parochial vicar of St. Michael Parish, joined the gathering for the reception.
As the St. Denis community celebrates its 200th anniversary, the bishop stressed the importance of continuing to gather for the celebration of the Eucharist, which is why the church was first built.
“As we begin the third century of Catholic life in this valley, it is a good opportunity to ask God for the grace we need to be faithful to Jesus’ invitation to be part of his family, ‘whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.’ If we do that together as Church, the Lord will be with us, and we will bring the light of Jesus’ message into our world,” the bishop said.