by Marc and Julie Anderson
mjanderson@theleaven.org
ALMA — There were 780 separate parts to the gift presented to Holy Family Parish here to mark the parish’s 150th anniversary.
But it was when the separate parts — inscribed with the names of all the families of the parish — were pieced together into one that the quilt could be displayed for all to enjoy.
Representing both the history and the future of the Alma parish, the quilt was put on permanent display in the parish hall just one week prior to the anniversary Mass celebrated Aug. 25 by Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann with the assistance of the parish’s pastor, Father Ratna Swamy Nannam, MSFS. A luncheon for nearly 175 followed.
The quilt was the idea of cousins Jan Brown and Mary Gehrt. One of them saw something similar in a magazine last spring. So, with the help of the parish Altar Society, among others, they set to work. From threading needles to cutting fabric pieces, girls as young as 7 to women in their 70s and 80s contributed their time and talents.
The quilt features the names of 89 families. Although there are nearly 100 families in the parish, some names appear only once because the parish is home to more than one branch or more than one generation of some families.
In his homily, Archbishop Naumann recounted some of the parish’s history, telling of how Father Joseph Rimmele, a Jesuit missionary, raised $400 at a picnic in 1870 to start construction on a stone church. Built in 1874, that first church cost $5,000.
On Aug. 27, 1899, after the first church was destroyed by fire, the cornerstone of the current church was laid. The $8,000 church was dedicated in December.
“Anniversaries are times to think about the past and give thanks for those who have gone before us,” the archbishop reminded the gathered parishioners. “And to recall all of the things that have happened in this sacred place.”
He encouraged current parishioners to live their Catholic faith with joy, so as to attract others to the Gospel message.
“Early on in my time here in the archdiocese, we were doing some pastoral planning,” recalled Archbishop Naumann. “We were doing it by regions, and I remember while we were doing it in this region, there was a delegation from the parish who came to visit me. They were afraid it (the pastoral planning) was going to lead to a closure of this church.
“I told them that it wasn’t really our plans, but a way to prevent that would be to keep the community vibrant and growing. That would make it difficult for any bishop to close it.”
Finally, he said, “an important sign of vibrancy is that new members are being drawn to the Catholic faith.”
Father Swamy said he has seen that firsthand since his arrival in Alma.
“It’s a wonderful community to serve. I feel it’s unique,” he said. “It’s a significantly welcoming community, good in faith.”
Also, he said last year the parish had someone go through the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA) and that this fall there will be another, Wrenn Pacheco.
Married for 17 years, Pacheco and her husband have two sons, Leo and Ross. When the younger of the two, Ross, was in religious education last year, teacher Rebecca Bloomfield invited parents to come and learn alongside their children.
“That was encouraging,” Pacheco said. Despite the fact that her husband had been raised Catholic, no one ever pressured her to become Catholic.
“My mother-in-law never pushed me or made me feel guilty for not feeling the urge and always knew it was something I would do when God pulled. God just kind of tugged at my heart this past spring, due to the community we have here, Father Swamy and the more hands-on teaching that Rebecca did in the classes with the little ones helped me feel that it’s my time.”
Besides adding new Catholics, Father Swamy said it seems as if nearly every weekend, or at the least, every other weekend, he sees new families, a lot of them with small children, at Mass.
That’s something Beulah Herbic has noticed, too.
At age 96, she might be the oldest parishioner. She and her late husband centered their family’s faith life around the parish.
“It’s just wonderful. It’s growing, and everybody is really friendly. . . . It’s just home,” she said.
Parishioner John Bloomfield agrees.
Having lived all over the world due to both his own and his father’s military careers, Alma, he said, is home.
“I love the people here,” he said. “They will do anything for anybody. There isn’t anybody who won’t pitch in to help — not just the church but the whole community has that attitude. We just felt welcome here, and we felt at home here.”
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