SUTTON – St. Mary Parish in Sutton recently celebrated the blessing and dedication of a grotto on the parish grounds, achieved by parishioner Megan Fehr, as her Diamond Clover project for 4-H.
The project, including a grotto, benches, cement sidewalk and “Regina Coeli” (Queen of Heaven) statue, was completed by Fehr in honor of Regina Leininger, the parish organist for more than 70 years. Fehr began singing in the choir in the fourth grade and was a faithful member until she graduated.
Leininger began playing the organ when she was a fifth-grader. She was taught by the pastor’s housekeeper, on an old pump organ in the choir loft. A new electric organ was later donated by her father-in-law, Fred Leininger, where it is still located in the back of the church. It is still used by Regina at the age of 91, where she is the parish’s full-time organist, and where Megan sings with her in the choir when she is back from college.
Fehr graduated from Sutton High School in 2019, is a current student at UNL and an active member of the St. Thomas Aquinas Newman Center and an officer in the Nebraska FFA (Future Farmers of America). She also has her own meat business, Fehr’s Farm to Fork.
Over the years, Fehr and Leininger developed a special bond, one that Fehr attributes to Regina’s love for the Blessed Mother. Leininger returned the sentiments with great praise.
“(Megan) has had many years of dance, performing with grace and beauty all across the country, gaining many awards,” she said. “With all her talents, one thing that stands out is Megan’s deep love of the Holy Catholic Church and the Blessed Sacrament.”
The grotto project was completed over five years. The donor for the project wanted a Marian grotto and a place to honor mothers. Next spring, parishioners will have the opportunity to donate bricks in honor of their mothers for the foundation of the sign entitled, “Regina Coeli Prayer Garden.”
Father Michael Zimmer is pastor of St. Mary Parish in Sutton, which serves approximately 115 families in Clay County. Its mission is St. Helena Parish in Grafton.
