Parish/Church

St. John the Baptist – Howard

http://www.sjbh.org

Date and Mass time

October 3, 2015 – 4:30PM Mass

Celebrant

Fr. John Bergstadt

Deacon Manny Torres

The trip there and back

Our trip this month was predicated on the wedding of my cousin’s old son Jason Nelsen.  The wedding was on the west side of Green Bay so I started looking there and found St. John’s.  We had been there once for a wake but never for Mass.  This is also the parish that our niece Tara teaches at.

As is usual, getting ready for a wedding can take some time, so we weren’t there as early as usual, and we also got behind some slow traffic on Tower Drive bridge cause more slight delays.  Not a big deal but we didn’t get all the outside pictures we normal would.  But the grounds there are HUGE so we would not have been able to anyway unless we got there an hour ahead.  Maybe we will take another trip to do that.

We got to the wedding in plenty of time and have a good dinner.  Congrats to Jason and Jennifer!

Weather

Another gray fall day.  The temps have gone down over the last week, and although it IS October, it still has been a shock.  I would guess we maybe got up to 60 degrees today, but just barely if we did due to the clouds.  But it was a very nice day for a ride.

Parish History

The website has a timeline of the parish history.  On the way out we wondered what the “old” stone church was used for as it was still up.  The timeline answers that as a Youth Ministry center.

Timeline of St. John the Baptist Parish/School

1849       Log church built under direction of Rev. Father Bonduel, near Duck Creek, 3.5 miles northwest of Fort Howard, old cemetery established

1853       Fr. Turcotte was appointed the parish's first pastor.

1860       Fr. Goey was our pastor. He was the first postmaster of the settlement.

1877       Large brick veneer church built on present property -- church entrance on west side

1881       Rev. Edward F. Van Hootegem, Pastor, St. John the Baptist, 1881 - 1892

1887       Three bells for the church were purchased for $252.82.

1888       St. Leo's school was built with four rooms. The Sisters of St. Francis of Bay Settlement led the school.

1889       St. Leo's school dedicated, October 1st, 1889

1894       New pastor's house constructed after fire destroyed the old one

1913-1915            Corner church constructed using stone from Duck Creek quarry

1949       New eight room school built to replace the original school of 1888 (this is now the middle section of the present school)

1953       The parish celebrates it's 100th year anniversary (centennial). Fr. Hennessey was the pastor at the time.

1956       Fr. Goetz was appointed pastor and served our parish for 19 years.

1957       1894 rectory razed and the present rectory built

1958       Four room addition to the school on the east side built

1958       Twenty room convent constructed to replace the 70 year old structure

1964       Addition to the school on the west side, consisting of five classrooms, cafeteria, kitchen, large meeting room, and a tunnel connecting the church and the school constructed

1975       Basement of corner church converted to a chapel

1988       Frs John Penzenstadler and David Plier, both diocesan priests, were appointed co-pastors.

1988       Centennial year for the school.

1989       Rededication of St. John the Baptist School, October 1st, 1989 and appointment of Fr. William Swichtenberg as co-pastor.

1995       Dedication of new addition, gym, pre-school, library-media center, and commons. Fr. Greg Smith was appointed co-pastor.

2000       Mortgage burning celebration. It took five years to pay off the Activity Center loan of $1,010,000.

2003       St. John the Baptist celebrates it's 150 year anniversary (sesquicentennial).

2005       Fr. John Bergstadt was appointed pastor of our parish, and Deacon Manny Torres was appointed shortly thereafter.

2006-2007            Construction of existing church and dedication on Oct 7, 2007.

2008       Convert old stone church to Youth Ministry

2009       1957 rectory razed for safety and cost-savings and new rectory was built.

2009       St. John the Baptist School becomes part of the GRACE school system.

2011       GRACE took over complete operation of St. John the Baptist School.

2013       Six years after the dedication of the new church, the parish continues to grow at 100+ families per year. The parish has been around for 160 years!

Reflections

St. Johns is a new church building (see the timeline) and is setup in the newer semicircle design, but it has a lot of the older architectural church stuff included so it appears new and old.  It’s really a nice looking church.

As we walked in it was really nice to be greeted by Father John on the way in.  Priests are very busy men these days and often don’t have time for those basics, but it sure was nice to get such a friendly greeting.

Deacon Manny staffed with an announcement before Mass that their Capitol Campaign had collected enough to pay off their mortgage AND pay for the new parking lot.  Woohoo!

Father John is a very pronounced priest and reverently goes through Mass.  The readings and Gospel were on marriage this weekend and Deacon Manny had a really GREAT homily.  True and in depth, yet at a common man level that could apply to all our lives.  I also noted a lack of “judgment” on those in our culture that have failed at marriage and a real sense of mercy for them.  I thought it was wonderful.

At the end of Mass Father also pointed out the 62nd Anniversary that day of a couple in front. How awesome!  I would also be remiss if I failed to mention the young man Joe in the pew in front of us that kept me entertained during Mass.  Joe was perhaps 3 and had his miniature
 John Deere tractors along to keep him occupied.  He was very good during Mass.

Again, we found ourselves in the splendor and grace of God in our visit.  I know each of these churches is the house of God, but seeing them for the first time really shows how spectacular they all really are.  What a great trip!

Pictures

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
•  

Parish/Church

St. Anne – Francis Creek

http://www.hcsaparish.com/

Date and Mass time

September 19, 2015 – 6:00PM Mass

Celebrant

Fr. John Becker

The trip there and back

Francis Creek is pretty close so the trip was quick (as was the plan) but very nice.  Took old Hwy 141 (Hwy R now) on the old “lime pickup” run.  They were having an old car show across from the church.  The days are getting shorter so it was getting dark on the way home, so the seasons are changing.  We stopped at Kay’s moms on the way home.

Weather

It was a gorgeous fall-ish day today!  It is getting a little cool so short sleeves barely cut it and Kay wore a sweater, but the sun was shining and it was quite wonderful.

Parish History

The parish has a short but sweet history on their website, and it is copied here:

St. Anne Parish was originally organized Father Joseph Brenner, who also organized the parishes of St. Luke's in Two Rivers, St. Isidore in Osman, and St. James in Cooperstown. A church wasn't built until later, though, when his successor, Rev. Joseph Steinbrecher, became pastor in 1877. He served the parish until 1885. He was succeeded by Rev. William Haan, who was succeeded by Rev. Lakoney.

By 1904, when Rev. Vorlichek was pastor, the parish numbered about 70 families. The church, which was victim of a renovation in the 1960s, was left unrestored until an initiative was taken by Father Paul Paider, who overlooked the restoration of the church.

In the mid 2000s, St. Anne school closed, just a few years before Holy Cross school also shut its doors. Today, the parish is under the direction of Father John Becker.

Just a note that St. Anne’s is linked (or at least associated) with Holy Cross in Mishicot and is served by the same pastor and shares things like the bulletin.  Nice relationship!

Reflections

Another visit, planned kind of at the last minute to a parish close by, but what a wonderful visit it turned out to be!

We arrived a little early as usual to take some pictures and the grounds are pretty basic there, but we find a smiling and very welcoming Father John in front of church to say hello.  We chatted for a little bit and told him our story and also mentioned that we had seen him that week at Uncle Gerhardt’s funeral.  What a nice man!

To top it off, just before we were going into church there was our friend from CEW Joyce Cisler!  What a blessing!  We got a hug from her and also an update on her husband Wayne who just had surgery and is doing well.

It’s an older style church which we tend to prefer and old fashioned and beautiful.  It’s larger inside than it would appear from the outside as there’s very little wasted space.  Nice crowd and Father John is a very sincere and energetic priest.  His homily focused on the Gospel issue of the Apostle’s talking about “who was greatest” in the midst of Jesus telling them of his destiny and how we see so much of that in today’s life and how everyone wants to be first. He challenged us to put others first in our lives.  What a great message.

At the end of Mass Father talked about a capitol campaign they are starting for repairs and renovations and at first I kind of wondered about that but as he talked he had such enthusiasm I could see how something like this would really lead to bringing life and energy and vibrancy to the parish.  Great stuff.

After Mass we got to talk to Mike V. who is also part of the CEW family.  He was communion minister and acknowledged that it would be hard to tell where he would be if it wasn’t for CEW, but he probably would not be in front of church.  What a great message!

ANOTHER great trip for us!

Pictures

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
•  

Parish/Church

St. John the Evangelist – Green Bay

http://www.stjohngb.org

Date and Mass time

August 15, 2015 – 5:30PM Mass

Celebrant

Reverend Joseph E. Dorner

Deacon Tom Mahoney

The trip there and back

This was a last minute trip to say the least!  We missed out trip in July due to the holiday stuff and in early August we missed our planned trip due to family camping issues.  I was on call this weekend so we didn’t have a lot of wiggle room if I got paged, but we found this Mass and decided to make the trip.

Kay’s mom made the trip with us and on the way we were a little early on the way there so we drove past Bay Beach to check it out.  Parking was much better than expected with the lot right across the street.

On the way home we stopped at a couple stores and took the new Hwy R (it was recently repaved) home.  We stopped at Subway to take home subs for dinner.

Weather

HOT! One of the ideas was to find an air conditioned church as Kay and her mother do not care for the heat.  The church was not air conditioned, and it was warm, but not too bad.  It IS summer, even though it sure is flying by!

Parish History

The parish has a REALLY nice history on their website, and it is copied here:

The congregation of St. John the Evangelist is the the oldest Catholic organization in Green Bay, and it can be safely added, of Northern Wisconsin, as it was attended by regular pastors as early as 1831.  St. John's can also claim to be the first organized attempt to perpetuate the labors of the early missionaries, Fathers Allouez and Marquette.  It is, in fact, the mother church of the City of Green Bay, as from it had branched out the German church, in 1853; the Hollandish, about 1860; the St. Patrick's congregation across the Fox River, in 1862; and the SS. Peter and Paul's church, in 1893.

St. John's Church at Shantytown was the place of worship for the Catholics of the Green Bay area from 1831 until December, 1847.  The following article from the Green Bay Advocate describes what happened at the end of December:

"Destructive fire-- The Catholic church, situated two and half miles above this place, was discovered to be on fire about half past nine o'clock on Sunday morning and entirely consumed with most of its content.  The main body of the church was built in 1830, and two large wings, designed for a seminary of learning, were added in 1839.  The cost of the whole structure, with fixtures, is estimated to have (been) $20,000.  The loss falls heavily upon a congregation entirely unable to build another.  We trust the appeal they are now making to our citizens will be generously answered.  Over $1000 has been already subscribed."

After the little church burned down the French Catholics sought a new place to worship at the lowest possible cost.  At that time the Methodist Society of Green Bay was deep in debt;  their church, the first Protestant church in Green Bay, had been built by Mr. Edwin Hart in 1836-37.  It was a simple building, about 34' x 38', erected on Milwaukee Street (now St. John Street) in the town of Astor on the present site of St. John's church.  When financial woes forces the Methodists to abandon their property in April, 1848, they sold it to Bishop John M. Henni, Catholic Bishop of Milwaukee, for St. John's Congregation.

After moving into their "new" church, the parishioners assisted in furnishing it with whatever they were able to donate.  Things such as alter cloths, pieces of lace, vestments, sacred vessels, furniture, etc., are shown in the "Livre des Bienfaitures" (Book of Benefactors).  In these still early days, with only one Catholic church in the area, priests of St. John's performed baptisms, marriages, and burials on almost a daily basis.  Services were conducted in the outlying areas as well as in the little church in Astor.  

By the mid-1800's the area was growing in size and population and Astor and Navarino were merged to form the City of Green Bay.  People of all ethic groups began to settle here, changing the character of the area.  St. John's, originally comprised of French-Canadians and Indians, was no different, and the people, though together, where seperated by language and culture.  The German group was the first to seperate from the "mother church," and a German-speaking priest served them until their own church was built in 1854.  They called it St. Mary's Congregation, and it later became St. Francis Xavier, the Cathedral of the Diocese of Green Bay.

In 1854 the Dutch and Flemish parishioners left St. John's to join the German group, however they returned to St. John's until 1864 when 47 families formed St. Willebrord's Congregation a few blocks away.  In 1865 the Irish left to found St. Patrick's Parish on the corner of Ashland and Elmore Streets in the Villiage of Fort Howard.  Gradually, other parishes were formed in the city, and the original nickname, "the French Church", remained with St. John's through the years, and it was still called that by some of the older citizens of the area well into the latter half of the 20th century.

Through the years, many additions were made to the little church purchased from the Methodists.  In 1862, the church was painted and a new door stoop and sidewalk were provided.  In 1970 Reverend Phillip Crud came to serve at St John's and it was his desire to build a new church for the Parish.  The foundation of the new (third) church was laid in the Fall of 1871, but before the construction could begin in the Spring, the second St. John's church was destroyed by fire.  This article appeared in the March 28, 1872 edition of the Green Bay Advocate:

"Church Burned-- At about 6 o'clock on Wednesday afternoon of last week, the French Catholic church in this city, known as St. John's church, took fire in some manner from the heating apparatus, and although an alarm was promptly given, it was entirely destroyed.  The building was old and dry, and located so far away from the engine-house that the flames were too far advanced when the fire department arrived to stay their progress.  However, there was ample opportunity to remove the valuable pictures and ornaments, which was successfully accomplished.  This church was completed for the the Methodist Society by the brothers Asahel Hart, of this city, and Edwin Hart, now of Oconto, in 1838, and it was used by them for a house of worship.  Then years afterward, it was sold to the French Catholic Society who have occupied it ever since.  It was, we believe, the oldest church in the city.  Severr as the loss is to the society, it will not be felt as much as it otherwise would from the fact that the foundation for a new and beautiful church ediface to take its place was laid last fall and the superstructure was to be commenced this spring as soon as the frost was out of the ground.  The building was insured for $2000.  The residence of the Priest and that of Mr. C. A. Lawton were at one time in danger, but were saved without a scratch.  Some valuable fruit trees in the yardof the latter were destroyed."

Progress of the new church building was rapid following the fire of March 1872.  It was finished with a brick exterior and was about 45 ft. by 100 ft. in size.  Tall twin steeples graced the front corners of the church and a triple archway led to the entrance doors, and a rectory was built in the place of the old church.  It was thought to be one of the finest churches in the State of Wisconsin.  With Bishop Melcher presiding, the church was dedicated on November 24, 1872.

The first St. John's School in the city limits was organized and opened by (then) Father Joseph J. Fox.  The School Sisters of Notre Dame were placed in charge of the students in the old St. Mary's (Cathedral) building on Madison Street.  Father Fox also directed construction of the rectory on parish grounds.  It also interesting to note that so great was the feeling for Father Joseph Fox as their pastor, a petition was sent to Bishop Krautbauer in 1883 by members of the St. John's as follows:

"We, the undersigned members of the French Congregation of the City of Green Bay, feeling assured that your Right Reverend having the welfare of said Congregation at heart, hereby beg leave to petition to you as our Father in God, to allow our beloved pastorm the Rev. Jos. J. Fox, to whom we are endeared, to remain with us.  Your Right Rev. being aware of the fact that it is necessary to have a priest stationed there acquainted with the English language and the Rev. Jos. J. Fox having so well served us, we beg for the welfare of the said Congregation to allow him to remain."

In 1888 the Fathers of Mercy were put in charge of St. John's Congregation.  Under the direction of Rev. S. M. Wiest, rector, a school was built-- the first on church property.  The cornerstone was laid by Rt. Rev. Bishop F. X. Katzer on August 4, 1890.  The first teachers were Sisters of Notre Dame and the Fathers of Mercy.

On March 13, 1911, a third disastrous fire occurred at St. John’s, faulty wiring the cause.  The new church caught fire, gutting the building.  The parishioners again built a new church, on the opposite side of the rectory, completing the French Romanesque style structure in 1915.   Rev. Leo Ricklin, then pastor of St. John's Congregation, supervised the construction of the present church located on the corner of St John and South Madison Streets, which was the former site of for the C. A. Lawton House, The Convent of the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity, and the first St. Jospeph's Academy.  This church was designed by architect Henry Foeller with Jospeh Foeller as the gerneral contractor and Fabry Construction Company in charge of the masonry work.  Artist Charles Lorin of Chartres, France, created the stained-glass windows.  During the first half of the 20th century St. John's grew to be the largest congregation in the city, but by the 1970's and 1980's it became the smallest congregation in the city.

This fourth church, which was 100 years old in 2011, has stood the test of time, undergoing numerous renovations and imrpovements while maintaining the original Romanesque style architecture of the interior and exterior.  The recently restored stained-glass windows, created by Charles Lorin of Chartres, France, continue to reflect the original French influence.  The make-up of St. John's Congregation, originally founded to minister to the French-Canadians, the Menominee, the Chippewa, and the settlers of La Baie Verte, has changed, but the spirit of community and reaching out to the greater community continues today.

On Jan. 1, 2013, St. John the Evangelist Parish launched a one-year welcoming campaign it calls “Growing in Faith” with the goal of telling the story of this faith community and inviting those “shopping” for a parish to make St. John the Evangelist their home. Since its inception the “Growing in Faith” campaign has seen 77 new parishioners join the parish. "Come for the beauty, stay for the faith."

Reflections

Funny how God directs our actions…  He IS GREAT!

This being a last minute idea and trip, it certainly turned out great.  This is the oldest continuously running parish church in the diocese and has some fantastic history to it.  It is also a “grand” old church with lots of stone and marble, high ceilings, and a “big” feel to it.  It is very impressive.

Being a typical Saturday evening Mass, it wasn’t packed by any means and it was an elderly crowd.  The Mass was very beautiful and meaningful, and we especially liked Father Joe’s homily.  He started with how we often have people, good friends in life, that sometimes just fade into the past due to time and circumstances.  He related that to how if that happens between you and God, what a sad and terrible thing that can be.  It can happen almost in the same way as it does with old friends, if we let it, and despite God’s constant attempts to get us back into the relationship with Him, if we do not maintain that relationship, it can die.  What a great message.

The Gospel was on Jesus being the living bread and the True Food and True Drink.  What a difficult message that must have been for the early Christians, and if we REALLY think about it, how hard is it for us?

Through the Mass I did some reflections on Deacon Tom’s ministry…  I will need to pray some more on that…

At the end of Mass they had a small presentation on a program they will be offering this fall for the men of the parish called “That Man is You”. The program is about becoming a man after God’s own heart.  I took a minute after Mass to talk to Sean about it and grabbed a brochure.  Who knows, but maybe this is something for me.  I also offered to pray for his 8 year old son Seth, who after visiting the Carmelites in Denmark, wants to become a priest!  Wow!

What a GREAT trip!

Pictures

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
•