Tucson Citizen from Tucson, Arizona • 8

Tucson Citizen Saturday May 16 1993 Diocese cuts debt will add 4 parishes school Confirmed from 1A 1 i i i 6A pus ways Annual donations to the Appeal a small portion of mhich goes to pay off the debt increased by $450000 over the past five years we will survive We will live through this I was happy to bear words like that" from parishioners Moreno said Now Moreno and local Catholic officials are looking to the future think been a parish in the diocese in which I have not met very simple" people doing what they could in order for our church our household to be -Robert Heslinga dhnector of dewlopmenl santcas tar to Roman Catfnlc Dtaan of Tuck I The diocese: Reacquired its local cemeteries which it sold to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles for $4 million in 1989 Under a contract signed in March a Canada-based firm will pianage the cemeteries Hopes to build as many as four more local parishes to deal with growth in the northwest northeast jpid southeast The church has 26 parishes in Pima County the most accent established in 1984 Aims to open a Catholic high at East 22nd Street and amino Seco The church has two cher local high schools: Salpointe JIatholic in central Tucson and the Jfcuch smaller Immaculate Heart gn the Northwest Side Plans structural and cosmetic pairs to the St Augustine Cathedral and Chancery complex 192 Stone Ave which houses the and administrative offices of T3ie diocese The cathedral itself Juilt in 1897 already has been re-tored Moreno said he knows the plans Hire ambitious think I have to challenge my-Self I think I have to challenge the people leave it in the hands of the Lord as to whether to become a pebt In January 1985 the diocese also had reason to be optimistic with its new television station KDTU-TV Channel 18 which provided family-oriented entertainment and religious programming had the best intentions It was a good idea of bringing family entertainment to television giving good programs that teach about the church that teach about morality about right Moreno said were not in it for the money We were in it for the But the waters were rough The costs were much higher than expected and the market had changed since the station was first proposed and was no longer favorable was painfully Mo-tjeno said but in a just a few years -the endeavor had the diocese drowning in debt The station was unloaded for a loss in 1989 At the same time there was resentment among some of the rank and file in the nine counties the diocese encompasses was ery surprising that anything like that could happen to a diocese that all that money could be said Bernard Minetti a deacon at St John the Evangelist Catholic Church on the South Side 1 The anger from the congregation at St John was reflected in how people responded to the annual Appeal fund Minetti said 1998 was the first year St John surpassed its donation goal after a passionate appeal by Pastor Raul Trevizo who explained the other charitable uses of the- money Larry Schnebly active in St Church in central Tucson said the debt was unfortunate think it was pretty traumatic for everyone involved in he said just groaned for the bishop and for the hours of hard work of pain and praying he had to be putting in- pained me to hear people 4 vf tie V- was very surprising that anything like that could happen to a diocese that all that money could be -Bernard Minetti I deacon it SI John tw EvanoeSst Catholic Church on tw Souhi Stde priests included who were damned disgruntled about the whole Schnebly said about one-third of parishioners provide most of the financial support to the church and their support never wavered The recovery If the diocese were purely a corporation it would have been dead in the water Heslinga said fact of the matter is that we faced death and from that arises new life new hope new vision and new he said As part of the recovery excess land was sold and the diocese paid off high-interest bank loans with no- or low-interest loans from other dioceses across the country as well as from the Catholic Order of Foresters in Illinois Individual Catholics helped in ways large and small Some offered their professional expertise and advice Donations to the Appeal over the past five years increased from $185 million to $23 million A person in Yuma gave $500000 to the diocese One parish pledged and paid $1 million think been a parish in the diocese in which I have not met very simple people doing what they could in order for our church our household! to be Heslinga said Heslinga likes to tell of the old woman who sat down beside the bishop during a church carnival to raise funds a few years ago The bishop asked estis ma-dre? How are She explained she was tired because she had been up since 3 am ft I try giant the church has sold out its people The Holy Family Society headed by Thomas and Sheila Parkhill of Tucson alleges that Loewen raises prices wherever it goes and charges more than independently run operations Moreno said prices and policies will be set in consultation with a cemetery board that he will appoint This board is to make sure cemeteries continue as an unmistakable expression of our Catholic faith and Loewen is the second-largest funeral company in North America Bishop Manuel Moreno inside the Regina Clerl Center chapel says Catholics had a right to be angry about the debt think everything that I went through they must have gone through themselves: disappointment frustration anger disillusionment Photo by MARY CHINDTucson Citizen ago and already is full for the ma-- jority of Masses It has 3060 fami- lies registered they thought they had built big enough for future said Debbie Bahrychuk the chief financial officer More priests needed The first step to growth is for the Council and the bishop to set the boundaries of the new parishes The next step freeing up the priests to head the parishes is thelf biggest challenge Moreno said even more important than the finances short' scarce of priests going to have to pray an awful lot for vocations" he said Once a priest is in place he can flood neighborhoods with fliers make contacts and speak in the ex- isting parish from which his parish will split Eventually he and his parishioners start raising funds for house of worship Meanwhile plans for the East Side Catholic high school at the Regina Cleri Center are' in the early stage of development A committee that will discuss curriculum fund raising and a site plan is being formed No cost egti-mates are available yet The 42-acre site at East '22nd Street and Camino Seco is a former high school seminary and houses the department of parish life and ministry counseling offices a charter school and a preschool Every five years bishops must travel to the Vatican to report to the pope bn their dioceses Moreno said he can report that the financial recovery plan has been successful I also can he said we have continued on with the work of the church and our vision for the Also the annex is not accessible to the disabled Allison said because the entrance has metal stairs have that not1 what the church is -he said As for the chancery termite problem Allison said not just the termites the conditions that made the termites possible instance there is no venti-1 lation in the foundation And the drain spout (from the roof) goes di- rectly to the ground It gets wet and it stays wet The termites like the Allison said no cost estimates' are available yet for the work Vol-i unteers are putting together a mas- ter plan for die buildings he said The diocesan staff hopes to work with the State Historic Preservation Office to place the buildings on a list of historic sites Staff members also will explore grants and civic partnerships to help fund the restoration which likely will begin with the annex the largest of the three buildings Plans for an East Side Catholic high school at the Regina Clerl Center 8800 22nd St are in the early stage of development making tortillas for the fiesta I did this for you and the church because I have money to give you but I have my ability to make she told him getting up a few hours early is no big Cemetery deal criticized But this story of financial recovery is not without controversy which involves the recent deal with Canada-based Loewen Group Inc which allowed the Tucson diocese to reacquire its cemeteries Some diocese Catholics say in aligning itself with a funeral indus It took over management of Holy Hope Cemetery Mausoleum and Our Lady of the Desert Cemetery MausoleumDesert Vista Cemetery Mausoleum in March dealing with them personally I am impressed with their professionalism and the respect they they have for the Moreno said see them trying to gouge the people as you said somebody Growth drives expansion To keep up with population surge the diocese has plans for four new parishes The sites: Ten acres at East Prince Road and Catalina Highway Fifteen acres at East Broadway at Tanque Verde Loop Ten acres at East Valencia and South Houghton roads Ten acres are being sought in Oro Valley Heslinga said the diocese hopes to proceed with at least two of the parishes on the East Side in the coming year There are no cost estimates yet he said The last time a new parish was established was 1984 St Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church 5150 Valley View Road now has 2100 families registered Heslinga said the average parish is 1000 to 1500 families But many parishes have more than 2000 registered you come to Mass and you are always standing not good he said St Pius Church 1800 Camino Pio Decimo the last Catholic church before Mount Lemmon has 3200 families St Francis de Sales 1375 Camino Seco the last Catholic church before Vail has 2400 families registered St Elizabeth Ann Seton Church 8650- Shannon Road finished construction just two or three years back to 1897 The chancery which houses the and administrative offices of die diocese was built in the ear-1 ly 1900s as was Cathedral Hall Allison said During the 1930s the annex was a college run by the Mar-ist religious order Then it was a parochial school Today the annex houses Catholic development services community relations and other offices It dates to 1915 Allison said All need more than fresh paint In Cathedral Hall and annex age and water damage have led to long vertical wall cracks and peeling stucco On the perimeter wall of the cathedral complex some of the stucco has disintegrated and the adobe wall underneath is falling away in chunks a good thing nobody was walking by at the Allison said pointing to one large spot where the wall collapsed Catholic Chancery damage starts to have some fallout By ANNE DENOGEAN Dozen Staff Writer Thick beams supporting the high ceilings and roof of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Chancery are not as solid as they appear to be Look a little closer and you can see the telltale evidence long brown hanging from the plaster-covered beams ugly against the pristine white expanse of ceiling It known how much damage termites have done said Fred Allison community relations director for the diocese The chancery the chancery annex and Cathedral Hall all downtown at the St Augustine Cathedral and Chancery complex 192 Stone Ave are the focus of a planned rehabilitation project The cathedral itself at the site since 1897 is not part of the renovation plan The cathedral was completely redone in the 1960s Only its facade and towers date Cathedral and Chancery complex 192 Stone Ave tarry McGrath checks water damage to the atucco on the side of a perimeter wall at St i I.