March 12, 2015
An important part of Nanango’s heritage is getting a makeover ahead of its centenary celebrations in 2017.
The Our Lady Help Of Christians Catholic Church in Gipps Street is currently surrounded with scaffolding as a team of workers sands, washes downs and repaints the exterior.
Kingaroy painter Heath Kassulke said 100 litres of brick sealer and about 160 litres of paint were being used on the job.
On Wednesday, Parish Priest Fr Nigel Sequeira conducted a small ceremony with the tradesmen, blessing them and their equipment and praying for their safety during the project.
Present were representatives from Heritage Nanango Community Funding, who provided $42,339 towards the project, as well as one of the parish’s oldest parishioners, Pearl Walters, whose husband’s grandfather, Benjamin Walters, is the first name recorded in the parish’s baptism register.
Parishioners have been busy raising funds to put towards the project, with more than $24,300 collected so far.
Fr Nigel said this fund-raising would be ongoing as the parish also hoped to raise enough – an estimated $150,000 – to paint and repair the interior of the building.
One of the popular strategies has been parishioners selling low-cost fruit and veges from their gardens before Mass.
“It is also helping battling families and well as putting profits into the restoration,” Fr Nigel said.
Fr Nigel said there was a lot of history in the Our Lady Help Of Christians building.
More than 3000 baptisms and 710 marriages had been performed in the church.
“It is our goal to have celebrations in the lead-up to the centenary to invite back couples that were married in this church to come back and renew their vows – bringing back to Nanango many who have moved away,” he said.
“A similar celebration will be planned for those baptised in the church.”
Related articles:
|
|
|
