Hamilton parishioners rejoice at Parish Life Center dedication

By Cathy Tilzey

After three years of planning, fundraising and building, St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Hamilton has a pastoral life center that will serve the parish in many ways for many years.
Bishop George Leo Thomas blessed and dedicated the building – and every room in it – on Sunday, Sept. 24.
Following a festive Mass in a crowded church, the parishioners and visitors walked to the center to watch the ceremony. The bishop and Father Jack Darragh, the pastor, stood outside the main doors for prayer and a blessing with holy water.
Father Darragh spoke about the years of work that made the building possible, and thanked all who served diligently on the project.
He also asked the people present to “remember all who are starving when we have plenty. They have to be in our hearts.”
They moved inside to a gathering area, and the bishop blessed it. Then he visited all the rooms built along the outside walls on the main floor, and in a lower level, and blessed them.
As Father Darragh, Bishop Thomas and an entourage of servers and photographers processed around the center, people working in the ministry designated for each room explained their programs.
In addition to the parish offices and a kitchen, rooms were set aside for “share and care,” health and wellness, outreach and 12-step programs, religious education, adult formation and the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults, and the Knights of Columbus meeting room. Even the restrooms were blessed.
The “quiet room” for prayer is most unique. A large icon of St. Francis of Assisi stands in one corner, and two stained glass windows depict the Bitterroot River flowing through the verdant valley. The art creates a peaceful atmosphere.
The icon and windows were donated by two local families. The icon was made in memory of a relative who died in World War II.
A “great room” in the center of the building was the last to be blessed.
It was set up for luncheon, and was full of people, mostly from the Hamilton area and the Bitterroot Valley. A group from St. Helena Cathedral was there to see their old friend, Father Darragh, as well as the new center. He was pastor and rector of the cathedral for 16 years before being assigned to Hamilton.

Published in The Montana Catholic, Vol. 22, No. 10, October 20, 2006.