If you have attended the Masses and other liturgical celebrations at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral in this Christmas Season, you probably noticed the strong paint smell permeating inside the Church.
This has caused inconvenience to many, I suppose, especially those who have allergy or sensitive to any strong smell. But this ‘inconvenience’ is also a sign of the continuous work in progress in the infrastructure of our Cathedral which began last year, as part of the recovery in the aftermath of Super Typhoon Yutu in October 2018.
Even though the Cathedral did not sustain any major damage from the typhoon as compared to other parishes, like Tinian, San Antonio or San Vicente, the aging structure of Mt. Carmel Church has been in need of serious major repair for years.
With the leadership of Mr. Juan Tenerio, Finance Council President of Mt. Carmel Cathedral Parish and thanks to the generous benefactors from local business and parishioners and families from all over the island, 4 major repairs were accomplished in 2019.
Last summer, the altar at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cemetery which was destroyed by Yutu was repaired and restored in anticipation of All Soul’s Day celebration in November. At the same time, the parking light poles around the Cathedral and the Curia Office were upgraded to LED lightings to conserve power consumption. The amount spent on these two projects was $39,461.68, with around $31,000.00 allocated for the cemetery.
In October 2019, another project was launched by Mr. Tenorio to address the leaks inside the Cathedral when it rains. Complete replacement of the roofs of the Cathedral will cost a lot and therefore, it was decided to first address the aging and ineffective gutters of the building.
At the same time, repairs were done also on the interior wall spot and damaged wood molding inside the church. The parish allocated $24,055.25 in these projects.
The last project that was completed before the end of the year was the repainting of the interior of the Cathedral with an estimated value of $6,000.00. Despite the challenge of working the projects around the regular schedule of the Cathedral (regular Masses, funerals, weddings etc) the projects were accomplished.
The estimated total amount of these major projects in the Cathedral in 2019 is $69,516.93.
As the Christmas Season comes to an end, Bishop Ryan and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral Parish wanted to acknowledge the members of the community, agencies, companies, individuals and others who in one way or another have contributed and assisted the cathedral. From air conditions for the church, vehicles for the clergy, maintenance and clean-up of the cathedral and cemetery, the weekly/monthly flower donations to the church, the volunteer cathedral collection counters, and other needs that the church, cemetery or rectory might be in need of:
Saipan Mayor’s Office, staff and management
CUC
Department of Public Works
SSHS JROTC Cadets
MHS JROTC Cadets
Saipan Shipping Company
Saipan Stevedore Company
HBR Construction
Kautz Glass
Jun Eslaban and Soudelor Construction
Cathedral Tuesday Collection Counters (Elsie Salas, Gil Muna, Lupe Hofschneider, Louise Hofschneider, Jocelyn DLGuerrero, Wilfred Hofschneider)
Saipan Simbang Gabi Group
Joeten & Daidai Family
Blossoms Floral Shop
Carmen Safeway Enterprises
J.E.T. Holdings
Tan Ana Castro
Greg Sablan
Juan “Santiago” & Becky K. Tenorio
Vern and Alice Abuen
Matilde DLG Fejeran
Children Maria Crispina Ada DLGuerrero
Doris S. Nuquie
Joseph & Carlyn Hofschneider
Jean Sablan
Envia tu Espiritu Choir
The CCD teachers
Mt. Carmel Cathedral Parish Council
Cathedral volunteer cleaners
We thank you all and may God bless you for your continuous support to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Cathedral.
