Newspaper Page Text
Thursday, May 18, 2000 N©W§ The Southern Cross, Page 3
A parish school is horn in the late 1940's
in the Diocese of Savannah
O ne day, in the late 1940’s, a
young parish priest in a
small Georgia town sat down
to write the vicar general of
the Savannah Diocese. The
priest, who was pastor of
the Catholic church in the
town, was enthusiastic about
a floor plan, his “dream plan’'
really, for a new school. He
wrote in great detail of what
the proposed school would
be like: the number of rooms, the
facilities available, the latest style
desks and blackboards. He also men
tioned in his letter the cost of the new
parish school—somewhere around
$45,000. Then he went about his
usual parochial chores, his heart a lit
tle lighter because now his ministry
might be more fruitful, with scores of
children happily receiving their early
education and religious training in
their own parish school.
To his chagrin, a reply from the
vicar general of the diocese, the bish
op’s right hand man, arrived a few
days later, saying that his plan would
call for the expenditure of about fifty
thousand dollars, a large sum to
spend on a parish of about thirty
members. The letter went on to aver
that “the tragedy of the entire situa
tion is that howsoever much we
might like to realize dream plans,
they have to be spun out of bricks or
concrete blocks, not out of idle
fancy.” Quite a put-down for the
young pastor, who must now abandon
his dream!
A few days later, however, his
hopes must have risen tentatively
again when the vicar general, having
studied the matter more carefully,
wrote that the diocese was “still inter
ested” in building a school for the
parish but that several others would
have to take priority. The vicar gener
al then went into a discussion of the
plans the pastor had submitted in his
earlier letter and how they might be
revised to be affordable. Several
months later, dialogue between the
pastor and vicar general concerning
the building of a school resumed. An
available site mentioned previously
might be purchased. The amended
plans could be implemented.
Permission was given for bids to be
taken, though the vicar general, who
had been through all of this before,
warned the pastor that he would
probably “be greatly shocked” by the
costs of construction.
Forewarned and with the blessing
of the bishop, the pastor let out con
struction bids for the school. He pro-
ceded to contact an order of teaching
sisters who were said to be interested
in serving in the area. He knew that,
if this order of nuns agreed to teach at
the new school, arrangements
would have to be made for a
place for them to live, which
could prove a real chal
lenge. A busy time ensued.
Owners of the property
being considered were hav
ing their lawyer trace its
title. The attorney for the dio
cese was to draw up papers.
Once the property planned
as the building site was
closed on, copies of the transaction
were to be sent back and forth to be
signed by both parties involved.
When bids for the building started
coming in, they were as eyebrow-ele
vating as the vicar general had pre
dicted. Finally, a construction compa
ny was chosen and a contractor was
signed up for the job.
The enthusiastic pastor corre
sponded further with the order of sis
ters who were interested in working
in his parish. The contractor was duly
bonded as the vicar general had sug
gested. The busy pastor noted in a
follow-up letter that the contractor’s
interest was one per cent. Next, both
a contract and bond were forwarded
by mail to the vicar and the pastor
also relayed news that four sisters of
the order he had contacted would
soon arrive in town. The sisters
would be staying temporarily in an
apartment lent to them. A devoted
parishioner had helpfully offered to
buy a house and rent it to the sisters
for use as a convent, since—said the
priest—“it is impossible to rent a
house big enough for a convent in
this town.” Later, the pastor of the lit
tle parish wrote the vicar general that
the parishioner/owner of the house
was willing to sell it. Was there any
chance the diocese would be willing
to buy it? The owner would repair the
place and finish putting in a heating
system, so no additional repair work
would be necessary. Also, classes
would be conducted in a local build
ing available to the church until the
school was completed on the date
promised by the contractor—about
mid-October.
In the matter of finances, the dio
cese agreed to advance funds for the
school and the convent building, this
amount to be repaid over a period of
time as a loan to the parish. Work on
the school progressed. Insurance cov
erage was obtained. Now a looming
reality, the mid-October opening
would be followed by dedication of
the school building on a designated
Sunday in December at 3:00 p.m.
The ladies of the parish would pro
vide a buffet for the priests and sis
ters following the dedication.
Finishing touches and furnishings
were added to both school and con
Rita H. DeLorme
Father Michael J. O'Keeffe with the children of Saint Joseph
Academy, Waycross, in the early 1970s.
vent; the pastor requested and
obtained permission to have Stations
of the Cross erected in the Sisters’
chapel. Papers relative to transfer of
the convent property to the diocese
were being sent. A survey had been
made and a copy was on the way.
Then, on what must have been a
bright Sunday in December sometime
in the late 1940’s, a new parish
school in a small Georgia town
opened its doors. The proud pastor
stood nearby, shaking hands with
well-wishers, and looking up occa
sionally at the completed building
almost in disbelief. Though the origi
nal “dream” plan for the school had
been supplanted by another, more
achievable “dream” plan, the pastor,
the sisters and members of the parish
were all pleased. The bishop of the
diocese and his vicar general were,
no doubt, pleased too.
The parish school described above
was Saint Joseph’s Academy,
Waycross. It had the distinction of
being one of a handful of parishes,
which, though without a resident pas
tor, boasted a parish school. Saint
Joseph’s continued in operation for
close to three decades, educating
Catholics and non-C^holics alike.
When the Sisters of SSffit Francis
were no longer able to operate the
school in 1972 because of a shortage
of sisters and the need to staff other
elementary schools, Saint Joseph’s
Academy went under lay control.
Though a new wing was added to the
school in 1970, its doors closed for
the last time in June 1976. Father
John Hillman, SM, and Monsignor
Joseph E. Moylan, Vicar General,
were the priests who spearheaded
Saint Joseph Academy’s construction
late in 1948.
A commemorative web site honor
ing faculty and alumni of Saint
Joseph’s has been established and
may be located at: http://www.
geocities.com/sjawaycross.
Rita H. DeLorme is a volunteer in the
Diocesan Archives.
Vandals damage cross
By Ann Stifter
Savannah
andals may be wishing they
wore gloves May 6 as they tried
to yank a gold-leaf cross from atop
the Cathedral of Saint John the
Baptist.
Fingerprints they left behind, mar
ring the metallic coating and forcing
workers to reapply more gold, may
be used to prove who was behind the
$30,000 prank.
The cost will be absorbed by the
contractor’s insurance rather than
Catholics who are paying for the
cathedral’s $10-million restoration.
“It’s not going to delay the job, but
it’s upsetting that someone would do
this to such a historic building and to
a building of this nature,” said Chris
Goldsmith, project manager for gen
eral contractor Rives E. Worrell Co.
“We’re doing this project to beauti
fy Savannah and to restore the
church. It’s 100 years old and the dio
cese was trying to bring the building
to its original beauty and luster. Some
people want to try to ruin that.”
The cathedral has been closed since
late May 1999 and is scheduled to be
rededicated in November.
The vandalism was detected after
workers found beer cans on the
ground on the Abercom Street side
about 8:00 a.m. Saturday. The work
ers also found tools, buckets and rolls
of copper wire that had been thrown
from the scaffolding.
(Continued on page 11)
Photo courtesy of Diocesan Archives