BOLIVAR — Parishioners of Port Bolivar’s Mother of Mercy Catholic Church say they are tired of waiting for help from the Galveston-Houston Archdiocese and are afraid their beloved building, which was battered by Hurricane Ike, might be torn down before they are allowed to repair it.
The archdiocese issued a statement Wednesday saying no decision had been made about the church’s future. But some parishioners said they have reason to suspect there are plans to demolish it.
Precinct 6 Constable William Comeaux said he confronted a pair of unidentified men in a Chevrolet Tahoe outside the church about 11 a.m. Feb. 19.
“They told me that they were with the diocese, that they were going to tear it down,” Comeaux said.
“They said that both the church and rectory would be demolished.”
Almost 50 parishioners gathered Monday night at Nancy Macon’s peninsula home to listen to such stories and to petition for the right to repair a church they built without outside help 50 years ago.
Terri Simplon said she told of a telephone conversation she had with Deacon Charlie Duck, who is listed as a parish administrator and business manager for the archdiocese.
“He told me that Mercy would be torn down,” she said. “He said that they might take the stained glass out, turn us into a mission church and use the church hall for services.”
The Daily News left messages for Duck and contacted the archdiocese for comment and received the following statement:
“Since Hurricane Ike hit the Gulf Coast region, officials from the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston have been in consultation with the leadership of the parishes on Galveston Island and the Bolivar Peninsula to gather information and monitor recovery developments in order to make decisions regarding the future plans for all the parishes.
“The consultation process is ongoing; therefore, no final decisions have been made regarding any of the affected parishes and buildings at this time.
“There is no question that the parishes on the Bolivar Peninsula have suffered varying levels of damage. When decisions are made, they will be rooted in the needs of the local Catholic community and based on the best match we can make between those needs and the available human and material resources.”
Macon was unhappy when she was read the statement.
“There are probably 75 families that call this their church home,” Macon said. “My reaction to this statement from the archdiocese is that they are backpedaling, that we have them on pause now.
“We got organized so that we could fight for our church. It’s a shame to say, but we can’t trust the archdiocese to be open with us.”
Parishioners at Monday’s meeting were reportedly worried Mercy would be torn down even though they insist local resources are available to repair damage to wallboard and flooring from the 2 or so feet of Ike storm surge, as well as the mold that has set in since the storm.
Mercy is one of two Bolivar churches listed by the archdiocese. The other is St. Therese of Lisieux Station in Crystal Beach.
Photographs provided by residents show extensive damage to St. Therese, including a collapsed wall, rippled roofline and many missing bricks.
Though not a construction expert, Bolivar resident and Mercy member Marcus Comeaux speculated that this kind of damage normally puts a building beyond repair. None of Mercy’s supporters suggested the Crystal Beach church was salvageable.
“But Mercy seems fine except for the Sheetrock, carpet and some roof work,” Comeaux said.
“There’s some mold, but it’s not falling down.”
The church building had been the only place to hold major funerals or other large public gatherings, he said.
Comeaux said he worried that failing to restore Mercy would leave Bolivar residents without any recourse for such events, and force local Catholics to make long drives or ferry rides to services in Winnie or Galveston.
“There’s been no remediation yet, all that’s happened is that they have removed the holy relics from the church,” he said.
Correspondent Rick Cousins can be reached at ourfaith(at)galvnews.com.
