St. Joseph renovation

Florida — It’s amazing what some volunteers, lots of prayers and a very motivated general contractor can do in just six weeks. That was certainly the case at St. Joseph’s Church in Florida recently. As part of the Archdiocese of New York’s bicentennial celebration, Edward Cardinal Egan asked that each parish do something special to commemorate the milestone. Father Joseph Tokarczyk, who came to St. Joseph’s in 1996, saw this as an opportunity to renovate the church, a church that hadn’t had any modernizing in more than 50 years. “I have been here 10 years,” said Father Joseph. “I didn’t know what to do the first five years. The church had dark paneling and carpeting, bad lighting.” The parishioners answered the call. Not only did they donate $560,000 to the Bicentennial Campaign, which exceeded the $490,000 goal, they jumped on board with Father Joseph’s plan to remodel this little wooden church that was built over 100 years ago by the Polish immigrant black dirt farmers. And they did it all in just six weeks. During construction time, everything was removed from the church--pews, lighting fixtures, paneling, and carpeting. Six dumpsters were filled. During that time, masses were said across the street in the school gym. When First Holy Communion day rolled around in May, it was held at St. Edward’s on Main Street. Throughout the project, Father Joseph, who served as the general contractor on the project, said he had a vision of what he wanted the church to be. Prior to starting the construction, he traveled to other churches to see what would ‘fit’ here in Florida, not only in the building itself but with the church community. He saw what he liked in a beautiful North Adams, Massachusetts church, a French church called Notre Dame. When the church was closed, Father Joseph saw a new beginning for his church. He brought back to Florida with him the solid oak pews, the lighting fixtures, confessionals, and the finely crafted wood altar. He worked with many local contractors for a new heating system, updated air conditioning, professional sound system, new floor tiles and carpeting. The intricate paintings on the ceiling were touched up. When they pulled off the old paneling, they found there was no insulation, so that was remedied. The new walls were painted a subtle but brighter shade. The new pews were refinished; the new altar installed. And some of the old church remains. The old pews that held worshipers for over 100 years were used to make the wainscoting that hangs on the walls of the church. Through it all, it was Father Joseph’s dedicated congregation that heeded the call. “I cannot imagine doing it without the volunteers,” said Father Joseph. “The volunteers did an excellent job. They were here everyday, working in the dust.” The work was done just in time for a scheduled wedding. “I felt prayer the whole time,” said Father Joseph. “Nothing went wrong. I couldn’t believe we finished in six weeks.” There is still more work to do—Father’s plans include a new baptismal font and some work to the side altars, as well as a new altar table. A renovation of the downstairs hall is also underway. But the main work is done; work that Father Joseph and his parishioners are very proud of. “Now we have a beautiful gothic altar,” he said proudly. “This is like our little cathedral. It is beautiful, just beautiful.”