Stained Glass

After the stained glass had been removed from all the windows, (recall an earlier post describing numbering and marking all the pieces and boxes) they were shipped to a company in Manhattan for refitting and restoration. There the pieces are cleaned are reassembled with new lead taking up the spaces between the pieces of glass.

Pew Refinishing

Refinishing continues at one of the warehouse locations of Milan Restorations. They have taken the pews, serialized to mark their location in the Church, and stripped off fifty years of wear and tear. Chemical stripping to remove the existing finish, the pews are then washed and prepped for sanding. This sanding operation will remove any residual finish not removed by the chemical process. It also puts a smooth surface back on the wood to prepare it for staining and finishing. It's as if they were made from scratch! Hard to believe these are fifty years old. In this picture, you can see some of the pews that have not been stripped in the background, showing us the original color, with those in the foreground going through the chemical process. More of the cleaned and sanded ones can be seen in the slideshow. Thanks for following along! Ps 56:4 In God I put my trust.

The Corner Stone

The Corner Stone! October 14th... as I described in an earlier post, the 1962 cornerstone was removed from the front exterior wall to the right of doors at the main entrance. The cornerstone (or foundation stone) concept is derived from the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation, important since all other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.
Over time a cornerstone became a ceremonial masonry stone, or replica, set in a prominent location on the outside of a building, with an inscription on the stone indicating the construction dates of the building and perhaps the names of the architect, builder and other significant individuals. The rite of laying a cornerstone is an important cultural component of western architecture and metaphorically in sacred architecture generally. (Wikipedia) hhmm.
Some cornerstones include time capsules from the time a particular building was built. The origins of this tradition are vague but its presence in Judeo - Christian countries can be associated with one quotation from the Old Testament, in Psalm 118, verse 22, 23; The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner. This is Yahweh’s doing.
It is marvelous in our eyes.
Behind our cornerstone was in fact a time capsule or archive with artifacts from the time of the original building in August 1962! I got a chance to review the contents and some of the photo's should appear in the slideshow. Inside was a letter, written in Latin, more as a prayer, signifying the Pope (John XXIII), Bishop (George G. Ahr S.T.D.), President of the United States (John F. Kennedy), Governor of NJ (Richard Hughes) and other notable persons. The date was August 19, 1962! (I was five, then) As I recall, (and as his signature attests) his middle initial was 'W', not 'G' as typewritten in the document. In any event, it was signed by a number of people we assume were parishioners and were involved in the early formation of the parish. Also in the archive vessel, a newspaper from the 'Newark Evening News' from August 18, 1962; a copy of 'The Monitor' from August 17, 1962 and a series of 1962 coins (Dollar to Penny) with several denominations still in silver! We'll have to give some thought to what to include in the capsule as we seal it up for 2010!
Thanks for following along. This is the day the Lord has made! Let us rejoice and be glad! Ps.118:24

Sheet Rock!

October 13th... and boy does this look different! I've been away a couple weeks and look what has happened! We've gone from a darkened room full of wood to much more light coloring. Of course some of that is due to the stained glass being gone too! And speaking of light, LOOK, all the chandeliers have been removed for restoration! There are some temporary lights in place for the crew, but there is a lot of natural light coming through and bouncing off those walls. I've heard stories of the carpenters walking around on stilts while doing their work on the walls, but have not been there to capture them digitally (photo's). The final pieces of the organ sound system have been removed and I got a chance to get up in the 'attic' area above the sacristy. They are making room for new HVAC venting and I took a few shots from up there in the 'hole' in the front wall of this photo. See the slide show for some of those photos. Thanks for following along! God is our refuge and our strength. Ps. 46:1

foundation, framing, pew finishing

September 25 has continuing work on the foundation out front. Included in that is some demolition of the front walls to make way for the new construction. The cornerstone to the right of the main entrance was removed and stored for re-use when construction is near completion. More on that in another post. In the meantime, wood is being added to the interior framing to be used as nailing surfaces for the sheet rock, wainscoting and other wood trim work. As can be seen from this picture, the front walls on the reredos behind the altar area have had the wood facing removed. These will be re-finished with stonework in the near future. Milan Restorations is moving ahead with this interior work with good speed and Marko tells me they are within two weeks of completing the stripping and sanding of the pews to prepare them for final finishing. More on that in later posts, too.

Thanks for following along!