By S.L. Hansen
for the Register
St. Patrick Church in Utica recently completed an interior and exterior beautification project that is intended to glorify God and raise hearts and minds to heaven.
A little more than five years ago, the parish – which is a mission to Sacred Heart in Beaver Crossing – did some major structural repair to their 1915 building, including replacing the bell tower, updating interior flooring and re-plastering the interior walls, which were then painted a solid color.
“It was just plain for a while, which was fine,” said Jane Slawnyk, who has been a member of the parish for 79 years. “Slowly and surely, people donated and gave money to get it back to what it used to be.”
With the leadership of their pastor, Msgr. Mark Huber, art historian Mary Ellen Kudron and muralist David Reiser were hired. Both are members of St. Patrick Parish in Lincoln. Kudron and Reiser have collaborated on several different beautification projects for churches and chapels in the Lincoln Diocese. They recently assisted Father Troy Schweiger in creating the diocesan pilgrim cross for the jubilee year. The cross will be in the sanctuary of the Cathedral of the Risen Christ in Lincoln throughout the jubilee year.
As always, Kudron and Reiser began their work for St. Patrick Church in Utica with a personal visit.
“When we walked into that church, we knew it was well cared for,” Kudron recalled. “It’s such a beautiful church.”
Having been through a big change at their own home parish when a new church was built in 2015, Kudron and Reiser are sensitive to how some parishioners can be resistant to losing what looks familiar.
“A church is baptisms, it’s weddings, it’s funerals,” Kudron reasoned. “You’ve got that deep connection.”
“We listen to what [the parish’s] hopes and dreams are,” Reiser said, “and try to embrace all those considerations and develop something that’s beautiful that glorifies God.”
For her part, Slawnyk — who proudly states that she has received “every one” of her sacraments at St. Patrick — was eager to see the church returned to something like its original interior.
She remembers when the original interior was getting chipped and shabby. Something had to be done.
“One day we walked into the church, and it was all repainted,” she remembered. The new paint was clean and fresh, but it was very plain.
“It was kind of a modern thing at that time,” Slawnyk said.
As they toured the church, Kudron and Reiser spent some time examining the stained-glass windows, which provided the colors Reiser would ultimately use as a palette. They also looked for inspiration in the altar, pews and other decorative details, as well as a handful of old photographs that gave some clues as to what designs were originally painted on the walls.
“One thing we noticed was that there wasn’t anything about St. Patrick,” Kudron noted.
St. Patrick rather famously used the shamrock to teach people in Ireland about the Holy Trinity, so Kudron and Reiser decided shamrocks would be a logical motif to add to the decoration.
After the first visit, Kudron focused on researching the type of decoration that would have been common to the era and style of architecture of the church. She shared her research and ideas with Reiser, who built on her inspiration to create visual art.
After multiple meetings and fine-tuning, the pair presented their ideas to Msgr. Huber and a parish committee. To help the committee get a better idea of the final results, Reiser printed out samples and taped them around the interior windows of the church.
With the committee’s and Msgr. Huber’s blessings, the actual painting began. Reiser estimates it took between a month and a month and a half for him to complete the work, starting with framing the nine stained-glass windows with a motif of green shamrocks and gold crosses.
Over the sanctuary, ornate lettering forms a golden arch with the words “Holy Holy Holy.” The niche behind the beautiful wood high altar is decorated with chi-rho symbols and Greek crosses representing the Lord.
While Reiser was at work inside, Slawnyk’s grandson Devin Slawnyk was enhancing the exterior as his Eagle Scout project. He selected several white benches with Msgr. Huber’s help and installed them in various locations on the parish campus, to invite people to sit and pray, reflect, socialize or just enjoy the grounds.
Overall, the result of the beautification project has been as inspiring as it has been satisfying.
“It feels like the church I grew up in,” Slawnyk said. “It’s warm and welcoming.”
She said that if any other parish wanted some interior decoration added to their church, they should definitely consult Kudron and Reiser, who can produce a significant transformation with their artistry.
“I feel really blessed to be in this time in my life and to do this work as an artist,” Reiser said. “I always wanted to do something like this.”
“The beautification is a reflection of what our heavenly realm might look like,” Kudron added. “This artwork is to give glory and thanks to God.”
SNR photos | Natalie Bender
