Parishioners of St. Irenaeus Church in Cypress gathered in their new covered patio on Sunday, Sept. 29 to celebrate the dedication and blessing of it and new restrooms by Fr. Patrick Moses.
Parishioners of St. Irenaeus Church in Cypress gathered in their new covered patio on Sunday, Sept. 29 to celebrate the dedication and blessing of it and new restrooms by Fr. Patrick Moses.
St. Irenaeus Parish was founded in 1961, and celebrated their 50th anniversary in 2011. They currently have 4,206 registered families and many more unregistered families who come to the eight masses at the church each weekend. With all these families in attendance, there were only two restrooms, one for each gender, attached to the church. Parishioners felt for many years that additional facilities and patio were needed.
According to Karen Nerrie, Director of Stewardship at St. Irenaeus, “It was Fr. Patrick’s vision that got the project off the ground.” The Strategic Planning Committee undertook the planning and approvals process for the new restrooms and patio renovation project, and the Advancement Committee assumed the task of raising the funds needed.
The name of the fund raising project was “Campaign 2012,” and is not to be confused with the For Christ Forever campaign that started after the purchase of Christ Cathedral. All parishioners were asked to make a one-year pledge starting in January of 2012. St. Irenaeus parishioners pledged more than $600,000 for the patio renovation and new restrooms. The Campaign 2012 Committee hopes that parishioners will continue to fulfill the remainder their pledges in order to complete some of Campaign 2012’s deferred work, which include a remodel of the first floor of the rectory, fencing, and curbing around the south field of the grounds.
According to Fr. Patrick’s Campaign 2012 Success Report in the St. Irenaeus Bulletin of Sept. 29, more than 1,340 parish families (32 percent) donated to this parish campaign. Fr. Patrick thanked parishioners profusely at the dedication. Because of the generosity of parishioners, Fr. Patrick said that present and future generations will enjoy beautiful restrooms, a lovely landscaped and covered patio with an outdoor kitchen, lighting, benches and retractable awnings.
Fr. Patrick introduced and thanked the Advancement Committee, the Strategic Planning Committee (chaired by Mike McGill), and the Memorial Brick Committee (chaired by Brian Black). Black presented Fr. Patrick with a framed miniature of his own patio brick.
McGill introduced and commended Ed Buitrago, the parishioner and architect who donated his expertise in the design of both patio and restrooms.
Fr. Patrick then said prayers and blessed the restrooms and patio with holy water, along with the Commemorative Plaque that was installed above the flyer display case on the new information kiosk. The plaque has the inscription: “In Appreciation To All The Parishioners of St. Irenaeus who supported Campaign 2012 with your time, talent, treasure, and prayers.”
After showering everything and everyone with holy water, Fr. Patrick also blessed and thanked the people who were present and invited everyone to enjoy the cakes, coffee and punch. Parishioners stayed to enjoy the refreshments and are looking forward to making good use of the new patio for both daytime and evening gatherings.
