Dear Parish Family,
These past few months have been a time of hard work for the building campaign members as they set out to put together an exciting plan for the new church building. Four months ago, the bishop asked us to present to him a more detailed conceptual idea of what the new church would look like and get a contractor and architect on board to bring a vision into framework. The team came together and made it happen! I am so proud of this group who have persevered through so many changes, including a new Pastor. Father Bob did such an amazing job of setting the groundwork over the years as Pastor at Sacred Heart. In 2019 the building committee members hit the ground running as they started to raise money, and now the push for the finish line is underway. It is an honor to work with each of them and to serve this parish family as we bring about something that few communities are doing these days: growing and building. All praise and Glory to God!
There are a few changes that you will notice right off the bat, like the positioning of the building itself. Once again, I am so grateful to the team for having re-evaluated and come up with this new plan since it brings about some major advantages.
First, it gives us the ability to go directly from the church building into the existing building. That also allows for easy access to the large parish hall from the Church.
Second, it allows us to have new bathrooms which are easily accessible from the Church.
Third, it increases our capacity significantly while keeping a small church feel for daily Mass and adoration.
Fourth, it preserves the same architectural feel as the original church and other churches built in the missionary times of Northern Michigan.
Fifth, it allows us to continue using our current church during the construction of the new building! This is an amazing blessing!
There are many other great advantages to this exciting plan which we will share with you in the days and weeks to come. The bishop was very excited, the building committee is very excited, and we want this whole parish family to get excited with us! I cannot wait to move forward with you all as we work hard to make this vision come about. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask me directly. More will be coming as we work hard on the final details.
Thank you all for your support so far. To see such a generous community is a bright light of hope in our Catholic Church today! May the Lord bless you and reward you for your generosity.
In the Heart of Jesus,
Fr. Jarvis
