Here is the story with a happy ending!
There was a need for additional classrooms at All Saints Catholic School, which is the parish school for Our Lady of the Mountains Parish. Fr. Brazaskas, pastor at the time, took out a mortgage for $486,000 to complete the school building project. It was a 13 year mortgage through Catholic Order of Foresters.
The last three years, Sr. Caro,l as principal and Fr.Ariel Lustan, as pastor, worked very hard to pay off the mortgage so that a new project could be started-the raising of funds for the building of a parish rectory. All these years Our Lady of the Mountains Parish had no permanent rectory for their priest. A house has been rented or the pastor owned his own home.
At last, seeing that the mortgage was paid off funds were raised to build a parish rectory and the rectory is almost neared completion. It was time to celebrate as a school and as a parish.
It was the third Sunday of the month so it was the school choir's turn to sing at the 9:30am Mass and do the Sunday's readings.
As the last song was announced, the altar servers led the procession followed by the school choir singing, Give Thanks to the Lord, as they processed out of church to the courtyard, where a small fire pit was set up to burn the school mortgage.
Giving the details of how the mortgage came about and how it was paid off in 5 years. 
We come today to celebrate the good works God has worked through all of us.
Little by little it burned away!
Smiles appeared as it turned to ashes!
Congratulations to Sr. Carol and all involved in being faithful stewards of God's gift of money. How wonderful to be debt free! I appreciate reading about the mortgage burning and the prayers of gratitude that went with that. Praise God! I am eager to visit you in January!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations Sister Carol, Fr. Brazaskas and the people of Our Lady of the Mountains parish! This is a wonderful accomplishment! The pictures are great, it is the next best thing to being there! Sister Mary Ann
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