- Contributed by Sacred ‘Heart ane

Parish
On ‘October 6th and 7th,
- Terrace’s Sacred Heart Parish will
’ celebrate its 75th anniversary.
Church records and responses to
inserts in B.C. Catholic. parish
bulletins inviting ex-parishioners.
and clergy to join in the

celebration reflect on the growthof |

the parish from 1915 to the
_ present.

The earliest known church
building was erected on Lakelse
Avenue, on land donated in 1916

_ by a Mr. Besner, in a location now
known as the west end of the
Skeena Mall parking lot. In 1930,
Mr. Besner donated five more
acres of land, and in 1936 a smail

school was built. next to the
. church. In the next few years, the

- parish quickly expanded.

‘An ‘ex-parishioner, "Jack" of.

Chemainus, was stationed here
during World War
reminisced in a letter: J was not a

Catholic and not at all religious,
and I resented being marched off

every Sunday to the Drill Hall.
Among us, there was a group of
Catholics, mostly French-

Canadians. Every Sunday, the

Sergeant-Major would use some
"aot nice remark" and fall them
out and march the rest of us off to

the. Drill Hall. 1 thought the ~

Catholics would.go back to bed,
but no, they walked down to
Sacred Heart Church. I could not
understand it... So one dark night
I knocked on his [Reverend Father
Fabre’s} door. Father asked me
what I wanted. My knees were
shaking and I blurted out, "I want
to become a Catholic.” His
_answer, "What do you want to do
— marry a Catholic girl?" I said
“Not" He invited me in. Later, I

‘was confirmed at Sacred Heart.
Father Fabre and I kept in touch
until he passed away.

Father Lawrence Turgeon was
assistant parish priest from 1955 to
1960, during the time Veritas
School came. into being. During
the first year of operation, Father
Turgeon taught Grades 5 and 6. In
1960 he was posted to Dawson
Creek, but returned in 1968, and
"with the help of a number of
good people in Terrace, some still
there today, I established the first
Parish Council with a Constitution
and the first School Board, both
also being the first in the [Prince
George] Diocese."

Father Bob Dalton, assistant to
Father Turgeon from 1968 to
1970, recalled "all the ladies of the
C.W.L. [Catholic Women’s
League] who did so much...[and]
the Knights of Columbus and what
great work they did for the parish."
~~ In 1972 the church property was
sold; Veritas School and the.

_ convent were moved away from

busy Lakelse Avenue to. an

undeveloped area of town on

Straume-Avenue, The convent was:

moved: "as is" on a truck flatbed,
"without: ‘the usiial packing up: of

was noted that "not even‘a.teacup

I, and

Secred Yeart:

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Art by Marianne Brorup-Weston

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was broken." The new church was
dedicated on December 15, 1974
by Bishop Fergus O’Grady.

Bill Sweeney wrote of his years
as Sacred Heart: "...among my
memories, however, I would have
to include the relocation of the
Parish school and complex, the
building of the church and
auditorium — and how the
memories flood into my mind. The
day we had the roof fail in on us,
the time the city cut our water off,
my fight with city council after
which they invited me to run for
office because they were so
impressed with my performance.
The smoke-filled hotel rooms with
the developers who thought they
could ply me with liquor but ended
up under the table themselves... I
don’t believe there was ever a
parish that had more fun socials
than were experienced during those
years. I will never forget Ann
being dared to lift up one of the
Pipe Band members’ kilt just to
check. She did, and her face is
probably still red to this day.

"But most of all it was the
celebrations of. life with people.
The marrying and burying and
baptizing, the love and the
laughter, the joys and the sorrow
and just being there for one
another. And the children,

"Yes, I have my share of
memories. People — how precious
they are, how unique, how very
special. And there were moments I
will cherish in my heart until the
day I die and beyond."

Newly-ordained Father Tim
Coonen” came to Terrace as
assistant to Father Jim Jordan in
1983 and "...thus began a pretty
special three years. ] have been
told that every priest. falls in love

with his first parish, and spends: | : a
the rest of his life comparing his -
‘present .assignment fo that first -

ideal situation, And Terrace was
ideal for me." He particularly
remembered "...working with
adults, . especially marriage
preparation, and the RCIA, with its
groups of people seriously seeking
a new way of life within the
Catholic Church... the Easter Vigil
celebrations... being invited into

‘someone’s life. in a deep and

meaningful way at important times
of celebration or tragedy is the
deepest form of affirmation.
Becoming the pastor and the. only
priest [in 1986] in such a busy and
vibrant parish, while also tooking
after Stewart and Hyder one
weekend a month was a challenge
that never Jeft me bored... It was
the best any young, newly-
ordained priest could ever want."
Today, the Sacred Heart Parish is
an integral part of the community,
yet it reaches out to others far
away. In Peru, the parish sponsors
a young man furthering his studies
as a Seminarian, and also the
training of people for lay-
leadership. They also support
Sister Maria Raposo in her work at
a Brazilian orphanage, and Sacred
Heast’s prayer group donates the
funds necessary to provide milk
for the children there. The convent
is now “Saint Joseph’s Centre for
Spiritual Growth", a muiti-

denominational retreat centre for

families

the northwest. Veritas School is a
thriving educational conte for
desiring quality
Christian education; from
kindergarten through Grade 7,

The anniversary weekend will
begin with an adult-only Wine and
Cheese Social in the Veritas
School Gym at 8:00 p.m. on
Saturday October 6th. Honoured
guests will be introduced at this
function, which is sponsored by
the Knights of Columbus.
Monsigneur Turgeon, Father Jim
Jordan, Father Tim Coonen and
Father Al Noonan will be among
the 10 concelebrants at the 1 p.m.
outdoor Mass on Sunday, October
7th. Bishop Hubert O’Connor will
be the main celebrant of the Mass,
and Bishop Fergus O’Grady will
give the homily.

Immediately following the mass
will be the unveiling and blessing
of a stained glass window, creaied
especially for the 75th anniversary
celebration. The window, which
took over 400 hours of dedicated
volunteer labour from design to
completion, is reputed to be the

largest of its kind north of
Vancouver. -

The afternoon “Tea at
approximately 3 p.m. Sunday will
be an opportunity for adults and
children, parishioners and visitors
to socialize and reminisce while
wandering through Veritas School
or looking over the memorabilia to
be on permanent display in the
church.

Transportation to and from all
events can be arranged for those
who require it. If you need
assistance, please phone Mrs. Pat
Palahicky at 635-2582.

Seating will be available in the
tent during Mass for seniors and
handicapped people. Please phone
the church at 635-2313 and let
someone know if you require a
seat, or if you know of somebody
whe does.

Souvenirs of this event such as
lapel pins, collector’s spoons and
notecards will be available during
the anniversary weekend. Sacred
Heart Parish hopes you wili be
able to join them in their 75th
anniversary celebration.

tr

of our parish on
October 6th

The Pastor and Parishioners ot
Sacred Heart Parish, Terrace, B.C.

invite you to join us
as we celebrate the

75th Anniversary

October 6th — 8 p.m. - Wine & Cheese Social
October 7th — ‘1 p.m. - Outdoor Mass
October 7th — 3 p.m. - Afternoon Tea