Sidewalk repairs underway

Our painting crews used a tremendously heavy crane to reach the spires of the Cathedral. The wheels of the crane pushed through our sidewalks into cavities in the soil below. It was a very minor version of the infamous 8th street hole.

They removed the crumbled concrete yesterday. We should see new concrete soon.

The Rectory

For a short time from 1914 to 1919, Holy Family Parish and School operated on two campuses. The new Holy Family Church at 8th & Boulder was dedicated on April 1, 1914 (photo: right) and was used for Masses on Sundays and feast days. The School at 3rd & Elgin waited five years for the new school in its present location to be completed. The pastor, Father John Heiring, lived in a temporary wood frame rectory near the new church. He occasionally said daily Mass at the old Holy Family church.

In his diary, Father Heiring wrote that in 1919, "work was begun on moving the frame rectory to be replaced by a brick structure in keeping with the church and providing for the priest in charge a residence comfortable but not extravagant. On June 13, excavation work was begun and foundation completed by July 26th."

Soon afterwards, Father Heiring sold the old lot and used the proceeds to speed the construction of Holy Family School. It was completed in 1919.





In the same year, Father Heiring completed his "comfortable but not extravagant" rectory.

Recently, Monsignor Gier repaired the leaky roof and replaced the rotten hand rails on the west side of the rectory.

[You may click on the photo to the left to see the details of the carved wood that makes up the hand rails.]

Eighth Street reopens

The saga of the Eighth Street hole is complete. The men who repaired the hole decided that the new patch of asphalt is ready for traffic and removed the cones and signs that protected it.

Help with our Habitat for Humanity house

Holy Family Cathedral parish and school are working with several other Catholic parishes in the Tulsa area to build a house for Habitat for Humanity.

Please consider volunteering some time to help this worthy project. The house is under construction now. The staff at Habitat for Humanity sent us an overview of the project. If you wish to help, you must complete the waiver and read the Safety Policy.

As the project progresses, the builders will post photos of the house.

Tulsa's Habitat for Humanity site

Repairs to 8th Street are nearly complete

The concrete dried overnight. This morning, the city laid asphalt and smoothed it.

Exterior Painting is Done!

The painters have finished their high-altitude task of painting the Cathedral's louvers.






It's time for a side by side comparison of the previous roof and paint choice vs. the new.

Second day of rain halts painting

Our painters remain one sunny day away from finishing their work. Since it rained again last night, the humidity is too high for the paint to stick properly.

Here's the view from my office window.



On the upside, today marks the 110th Anniversary of the first Mass in the original Holy Family church. Father Charles Van Hulse said Mass for his little parish on Sunday, September 10, 1899.

After Mass, the school staff made frantic preparations to use the church as a temporary schoolhouse. The original school building was a few weeks from being completed, so the Sisters made due in the church. On Monday, September 11, 1899 the school began classes. Saint Katharine Drexel, the "millionaire nun" from Philadelphia, lent the parish $1500 to build the school building provided that it was named the Saint Therese Institute for Creek Indian Girls.

The parish gladly accepted Saint Katharine's investment in the school, but worked quickly to repay the loan. By 1903, the $1500 was repaid and the school was promptly renamed Holy Family School.

Painters need one more DRY day

The painters are down to their last day of work, but that day is not today. Last night's rains soaked the ground and coated the louvers, making painting impossible. The crews plan to return on Thursday for the final day of work.

The 8th Street hole is filled

City workers gathered on Eighth Street to cut out the damaged part of the street.
They removed a large section of asphault, then they inspected the dirt below for more voids.
They brought dirt and gravel on trucks...
...and filled in the hole.

A Noisy Day at the Cathedral

It's noisy! The painters are back at work on the north side of the Cathedral. Meanwhile, the city of Tulsa is repairing a hole in Eighth street.

You can enjoy the sights and sounds in the video below.