New Church Dedicated!

This past week marked the dedication of the new Church in Rincon, Dominican Republic built by donations from St. Odilia Parish members in Shoreview, MN and through the hard work of the local Knights of Columbus Council #9598.  The new Church's patron is Our Lady of Carmen (Nuestra Senora del Carmen).   

Above, Earl Diekmann of Holy Redeemer Parish in Marshall, MN puts the final touches on one wall of the Church.

Past Grand Knight of the St. Odilia Knights of Columbus climbs above the Church Entrance to get a few hard to reach spots.

The inside of the New Church is about 90% complete with the need of some electrical work and fans and flooring.

A statue or Our Lady was donated to the Church by another Church in the Parish.

The outside of the Church is almost complete with just the need of some additional landscaping.

It was standing room only for many of the Masses held throughout the week to dedicate the new Church.

Deacons Juanito and Jose welcomes members of the Community to one of the services held throughout the week to dedicate the Church.

The Community thanks St. Odilia Church and Past Grand Knight of the St. Odilia Council for building the Church in Rincon.

The Church now serves the communities of Rincon and La Lometa who did not have a Church before.  Because of this many teen-agers were baptized during the week as they had not had easy access to a Church in the past.  Above Deacon Juanito baptizes a teenager from Rincon.

Music by the Diocese was provided during the week and it was truly a spiritual experience with great particpation and involvement my the entire community.

The closing evening of festivities the Church was filled with members of the Catholic Faith from Boca de Yasica, Rincon, La Lometa, and La Pina.

On the final night of the celebration Father Rafael baptizes a small child.

This has been a very spiritually rewarding project for the members of the St. Odilia Knights of Columbus and great appreciation and thanks go out to the very giving and gracious members of St. Odilia Parish and others for allowing this Catholic Church to be built in an area of great need.  A plaque with those who donated is in the process of being put together and will be placed in the Church to thank all those who participated from throughout the state of Minnesota. 

Muchos Gracias and blessings to you all!!!

St. Odilia K of C Members work on Rincon Chuch

The Rincon Church now has a new cement floor as well as smooth coating of the cinder blocks on the inside and out.

Above a local worker applies the smooth coat to the interior of the Church.

Workers mix sand and cement and carry the skim coating in wheelbarrows to place the smooth coat on the outside of the new Church in Rincon, Dominican Republic.

Grand Knight John Bowlin of the St. Odilia Knights of Columbus along with his wife Sally apply the first coat of paint to the interior of the new Church on a recent visit to the D.R.

Members of St. Odilia Knights of Columbus, Duane Theisen (left) and Jerry Franssen (Right), paint the interior of the Church Colonial White.

Past Grand Knight of St. Odilia Council #9598, Mark Diekmann, takes a break from the project.

John Bowlin and Debbie Diekmann pose with Children of Rincon and Boca de Yasica, D.R.

Jerry Franssen and Duane Theisen joke with the local kids.

Some of the local children "Supervise" the Knights.

Church Construction Continues

The construction of the new Catholic Church in Rincon, Dominican Republic continues.  Funds for the Church were raised by the Knights of Columbus at St. Odilia Church in Shoreview, MN.

The Church is complete enough that it is starting to be used for Masses.  Even in its current condition it is a big step up from the abandoned butcher shop that was being used.  Pictures of the construction as it continues is below.

Construction Continues

Construction on the new Church continues in Rincon, Dominican Republic.  The walls are up and the metal roof is on.  Work is now being done on the inside and out to put a smooth coating over the cinder blocks.  See photos below:

Construction Begins!!!

Thanks to all the contributions from members of St. Odilia, as well as others, the Knights of Columbus are now close to their goal of selling 1,300 Cinder Blocks to build the new Catholic Church in Rincon, Dominican Republic.  Close enough in fact to give funding to start the construction project.  The parishioners in Rincon and Father Beato promised to shop around and get the best prices on materials and labor to make the most efficient use of the donations.

See below initial pictures of the construction.  Check back or become a follower to watch as updated pictures of the Church are published.

Starting the Project:

             A member of our local Knights of Columbus Council has a home on the North Coast of the Dominican Republic.  Because of past mission work done on behalf of our Council in the area he was approached by Catholics in the small village of Rincon to see if he knew of any way to help them build a church in their community.  Masses were currently being held in an open-aired, abandoned butcher shop with a leaky roof.

                                                                                 

Abandoned Butcher Shop currently being used for Mass

Padre Beato Rosario and some of the Parishioners
of Rincon, Dominican Republic

                                                                                                                                                                                                                        
     Our Council Member did some investigation and found out that the Diocese actually owned a parcel of property near where the current Masses were being held.  It even had a basic foundation in place but certainly had been neglected for quite a while.  A lot of work would be needed just to get the lot in shape.  Material costs and construction labor would also need to be accounted for.  Our member had some preliminary talks with the local Parish Father, Padre Beato Rosario about this project.  We asked that the Diocese come up with an estimate of costs for labor and materials so that the K of C member could ask our Council for assistance.  The members of the village and Padre Beato came back with an estimate of total building costs.  Request from:

DIOCESIS DE PUERTO PLATA

Parroquia Nuestra Sra. De Fatima

Villa Progresso, Veragua, Gaspar Hernandez

Capilla de la communidad de Rincon

Dioc. Juan Gonzalez

Pad. Beato Rosario

Lot and foundation owned

by the Diocese where the

new Church will be built.

Foundation in place but lot needs a lot of clearing

The Diocese came back with an estimate of 225,000 Dominican Pesos for Labor and Materials, roughly $6,500 USD.  Our local K of C Council started brainstorming on ways we could raise that money.

Our Council felt that building a Church in the country that our Patron, Christopher Columbus, first landed in the New World in 1492 would be a great project for our Council as well as the Catholic Church itself.  We subsequently also learned that Pope Benedict XVI was planning a trip to the Dominican Republic to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the founding of the first Diocese in the New World.  We now had a great goal in mind.  Our Council would build the newest Church in the Western Hemisphere while the Pope celebrated the oldest Diocese in the Western Hemisphere.  Our Council voted to take on this project of raising enough funds to build a Church for the people of Rincon, Dominican Republic.

 



According to the bishops of the Dominican Republic, the Pope will travel to the island in 2011.  It

will be the second time Pope Benedict XVI has visited Latin America, in 2007 he visited Brazil. The

main reason for the visit is the 500th anniversary of the founding of the first diocese in America.  The Pope declared 2011 the Jubilee Year. Dominican Republic President Leonel Fernandez, visited Benedict XVI in May and invited him to visit the country.  If confirmed, it will be the fourth time the Pope has visited the island.  John Paul II visited on three occasions.  The was in  1992 when it celebrated the 500th anniversary of the discovery of America.

*Article from www.therealdr.com



Collecting Donations

Since our estimate showed that we needed about 1,300 Cinder Blocks (along with other materials and the total cost of the project was $6,500 we decided that we would “sell” honorary cinder blocks at $5 a piece and if were able to sell 1,300 of them we could fully fund the project.  By purchasing one or more cinder blocks for the Church each person who donated would receive a certificate of their participation as well as their name on a plaque in the new Church building and their name on our Knights of Columbus bulletin board at our home Parish of St. Odilia.  The Knights of our Council first contacted friends and relatives to garner donations.  We then set up in the Courtyard of St. Odilia after all the Masses on the weekends of March 6/7 and March 12/13 to sell our cinder blocks.  We had announcements for our event in the bulletin as well as pulpit announcements.

BULLETIN ANNOUNCEMENT

KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS CINDER BLOCK PROJECT

The Knights of Columbus are working to build a Church in the Dominican Republic to coincide with the Pope’s proposed visit to the country in August.  The goal is to have the newest Church in the Western Hemisphere as the Pope celebrates the oldest Parish in the New World.  1,300 cinder blocks (as well as other materials) are needed to build this Church for a total cost of $6,500 for materials and labor.  The Knights will be “selling” cinder blocks at $5 a piece in the Courtyard to build this Church.  For your contribution you will receive a certificate of participation in this project, your name on a plaque in the new Church and your name on the K of C of St. Odilia Bulletin Board.  Blocks will be on sale in the Courtyard after Masses on March 5/6 and March 12/13 - or to purchase a block or several blocks email mark@paragon.us.com or call Mark at 612.524.5482.

For our weekend sales we bought a cinder block for show, got a banner created for our table, created informational flyers that were put on all the tables in the Courtyard during the coffee and donuts held after each Mass, and had Knights circulating through the Courtyard explaining the project and collecting donations.  We were very impressed with the numbers of parishioners that wanted to help out and the number of blocks we sold.  Many parishioners took the opportunity to pledge a block in memory of a loved one.  Others pledged a block to commemorate their families.  As of today we are very close to our goal of 1,300 blocks so our building project is a go!  However, we are certainly still looking for additional contributions.

Members of St. Odilia Council #9598 Jerry Franssen, Bill Thelen, Reuben Winter, John Bowlin, and Steve Fellner assist in collecting donations at St. Odilia.



Brother Knights John Cundy, Tony Munroe, Jerry Franssen, Bob Corbey, Reuben Winter, John Bowlin and Steve Fellner collect donations in the St. Odilia Courtyard.



Grand Knight, Mark Diekmann, of St. Odilia Knights of Columbus Council #9598 presents funds to build the new Church in Rincon Dominican Republic to Father Beato Rosario and some of the members of the Parish in Rincon.

Continue to watch this blog as the Church Construction in Rincon Begins