However, after sending out an SOS to the diocese and to volunteers, the parish was able to move back into the church the following March.
“People from all over the country helped clan up – kids, adults and elderly,” Father Barras said. “It was marvelous.”
The church’s north wing, which once housed a mechanical room, sacristy and the choir, has been converted into office and meeting space. Also added were a sacristy and restroom. Future plans include construction of a parish life center. However, Father Barras said construction of a new rectory is “a distant possibility.”
“We have to be really good stewards of our money. (Building a new rectory) is really not necessary,” said Father Barras, who currently resides at the cathedral rectory.
As he stands in the newly refurbished sanctuary and thinks about what he discovered when he arrived on the scene in 2006, Father Barras is truly awed by the transformation.
“It’s a wonderful experience of community and a wonderful experience of faith – people responding, people determined and tapping into the creativity and determination that’s here,” he said.
“It’s what church is about – dealing with life and finding God’s presence in the midst of it. No easy answers, no easy solutions, but a determination. And it’s centered on the Eucharist. That is a constant source of focusing, hope and grace.”
Printed with permission from Gulf Pine Catholic, newspaper for the Diocese of Biloxi.