Celebrating peace, and mom at the same time
JASON ELLIOTT/Press St. Stanislaus Church altar boys Gabriel Rasmus, Andrew Lopez, Michael Johnson and Cody Visenheimer, back, carry the Blessed Virgin Mary into the church during a procession on Sunday morning in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima.
JASON ELLIOTT/Press Gutarist Ian Lowe plays a selection during the St. Stanilaus' Our Lady of Fatima procession on Sunday morning in Rathdrum.
JASON ELLIOTT/Press Toby Guatamini, left, and Thomas Perry, attempt to fight off the rain and keep their candles lit during the St. Stanislaus' Catholic Churches Our Lady of Fatima procession on Sunday in Rathdrum.
LISA JAMES/PressBishop Emeritus William Skylstad, right, and Deacon Erik Schirmer, begin the holy communion at St. Stanislaus Church in Rathdrum during a special mass for Mother's Day and the anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima.
LISA JAMES/Press Members of St. Stanislaus Church in Rathdrum greet each other during a special mass for Mother’s Day and the anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima. Mothers were recognized with roses and the special breakfast, cooked by the men of the Knights of Columbus. Pictured clockwise from left: Vince and Amy Perry, Elizabeth and Gary Alkire, Daniel Thompson and his son Daniel.
LISA JAMES/PressThe Perry family, front row, from right: Christopher, Catherine, Amy and Vince Perry, pray with other families during St. Stanislaus Church's mass on Sunday. The church celebrated both Mother's Day and the anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima with a special mass and their annual Mother's Day breakfast.
LISA JAMES/PressPatricia Garcia, a mother of three and a grandmother, as well as a devout Catholic, was recognized as Mother of the year at St. Stanislaus Church's annual Mother's Day Breakfast on Sunday. The celebration coincided with the anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima, which they celebrated in tandem with a special mass.
LISA JAMES/PressVince Perry hands out roses to the mothers of St. Stanislaus Church in Rathdrum during their annual Mother's Day service and breakfast on Sunday. A special mass was also held for the anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima.
LISA JAMES/PressCarol Heitzman receives a rose during St. Stanislaus Church's annual Mother's Day service and breakfast on Sunday. A special mass was also held for the anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima.
LISA JAMES/PressPatricia Garcia, a mother of three and a grandmother, as well as a devout Catholic, reacts to being named Mother of the year at St. Stanislaus Church's annual Mother's Day Breakfast on Sunday, following a mass celebrating the anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima.
LISA JAMES/Press Patricia Garcia-Lopez, a mother of three and a grandmother, as well as a devout Catholic, is congratulated after being named Mother of the Year at St. Stanislaus Church’s annual Mother’s Day breakfast on Sunday.
LISA JAMES/PressMembers of the Knights of Columbus from left: Paul Franz, Brian Roccapalumbo and Matthew Schueller serve the annual Mother's Day Breakfast they prepared for the mothers of St. Stanislaus Church in Rathdrum on Sunday.
RATHDRUM — Parishioners of the St. Stanislaus Kostka Catholic Church came together on Sunday morning to celebrate, as well as remember, as the centennial of Our Lady of Fatima was celebrated worldwide over the weekend.
St. Stanislaus, located on Second and McCarthy in Rathdrum, is a chapel, with its parish located at St. George’s in Post Falls.
“It’s a small community,” longtime parishioner Josephine Myers said. “We all know each other and people are very close to each other and work together really well. We’ve got a lot of different activities ongoing at the parish.”
Josephine and her husband, longtime Rathdrum resident Tony Myers, have been married nearly 48 years.
“Tony was born here, so he’s been a member of this church for 79 years,” Josephine Myers said. “After we got married, he moved me to Rathdrum and we’ve been together for almost 48 years.”
And in that time, the couple has seen growth from a parish with few male members to one with 150 members.
“I’m kind of awestruck by it all really,” Tony Myers said. “A few years ago, there were few men in the parish. This was back during the war, and it’s gradually growing, much like North Idaho is. We’ve really seen a huge growth in the church. The fact that the church is so old and has history to it tends to bring people back. And we’ve seemed to collect a good variety of people here, and it’s impressive to see.
“From the time I came, when I came here, it was quite sparse,” Myers said. “It was mothers and children, and a few men. But then through the years, Father Mike Scarcello came in the 1980s with a purpose to build this hall. He was born and raised here, and from that time, it was like the natives came out of the woodworks. The church has really grown. I’d say since 1980, it’s caused us to have more fellowship and more things. It’s really grown since then.”
In addition, the group awarded Patricia Garcia-Lopez — a mother of three — as the Catholic Mother of the Year on Sunday.
“My heart is filled with so many things, but I see my mom,” Garcia-Lopez said of the award. “When they said I am the Mother of the Year, I remember my mom and the love she had for us and all the work she did to raise 11 kids. She always taught us to love God, pray, and listen to your heart. So if I do good, it’s because I follow her and always have gratitude with all people.”
Fatima — known as the Angel of Peace — appeared to three children in the town of Fatima, Portugal, on May 13, 1917. It has since became one of the major pilgrimage sites in the world, with up to four million visitors to the Basilica of Our Lady of Fatima, built on the site of the apparitions.
“We’re a small parish with 100 to 150 parishioners that attend,” St. Stanislaus parishioner Yvonne Schmitt said. “We’re the last of the country churches in the area. We were wanting, since this is the centennial of the apparition of Our Lady of Fatima, we were wanting to do in gratitude to her for being such a great mother. Also promoting peace in the world through prayer of the rosary. She told them the angel appeared to them first and talked to them. They were just holy place children out in the field taking care of the sheep and an angel appeared to them and told them how important it is to pray for peace in the world. Our blessed mother appeared and wanted them to continuously pray for peace in the world and to the rosary.”
The church was founded in 1900, with a meeting hall behind the chapel.
“It’s one of the oldest brick churches in the state of Idaho,” Schmitt said. “It’s also on the historical buildings site and is recognized for that. I’ve been a member at St. Stanislaus for about eight years. I very much fell in love with the church for its size and the size of the chapel. Just people are more united because it’s a smaller chapel and everyone knows each other very well. We support each other in the good times and bad. For being such a small chapel, everyone helps each other and believe in doing things for the community. The Knights of Columbus raised 1,000 pounds of food around Easter and the Altar Society is very active with the food bank in Rathdrum. We’re constantly collecting food for the food bank and also making donations.”
The parish will be appointed a new priest this summer, its third in the last 50 years.
“Our priest, Father Arnie Miller, passed away suddenly in his sleep in November,” Schmitt said. “So we’ve been without a priest since then. So we’ve had visiting priests come over from Gonzaga. Because of that relationship, we always know they’ll always come assist and that’s what been happening at this time. And we know our Bishop Christensen will provide us with a priest come July. We’re very excited because we’ve been praying for them to give us a priest. Even though there’s a shortage of them.”