Celebration day at Trinity Heights

By KATIE LEFEBVRE, Globe staff reporter
July 10, 2003

The 12th annual Celebration Day at Trinity Heights was a day filled with a dedication, banquet and bringing people together.

June 28 and 29 were days for people to visit Trinity Heights and celebrate what it brings to the Diocese of Sioux City and beyond. Approximately 1,900 people visited Trinity Heights between the two days.

The main event on the Trinity Heights campus was the dedication of the Holy Family statue that was donated by Dr. David Mack in memory of Elaine Mack. Mack and his children were present at the ceremony.

"Your generosity, doctor, over the years has helped to inspire many people," said Larry Walsh, chairman of the spiritual committee at Trinity Heights. "They come to this place of prayer, of reflection, to the feet of the Queen of Peace, whose purpose to the family is to lead us to her son."

The ceremony began with a procession from the front of the St. Joseph Center to the new statue. Bishop Daniel N. DiNardo led the ceremony and blessing of the statue. The Gospel that was read was from the Gospel of St. Luke 2:43-52 in which Jesus gets lost in the temple. The basis of the ceremony was to celebrate the Holy Family and to remember to honor your father and mother.

"If the Lord Jesus had not grown up, humanly speaking, in a family of mutuality, then in one sense, psychologically he would have been messed up," said Bishop DiNardo in his homily. "So we have the contemplative Virgin Mary active and yet totally energetic in her 'yes' to all God asks. We have the protective, silent Joseph, the only person in the new testament who never says one word.

"And then the Christ child who says mysterious things. 'Didn't you know I was supposed to be in my father's house?' They didn't know exactly what he meant, yet he went down and was obedient."

The statue brings an additional spiritual aspect to Trinity Heights. It brings Mary, Joseph and Jesus together in one location.

"The fact that so many of us are not individual people, we are part of a family, and it's the family that's the core of the success of Christ's work in the world," said Walsh. "Between the statue of Mary and the statue of Jesus is the Holy Family that unites it all and keeps us going in the direction that Jesus planned for us in the first place."

After the ceremony, people were encouraged to finish looking around and to start getting ready for the banquet at the Sioux City Convention Center at 5:30 p.m.

Beanie Cooper recognized Mack with a plaque for all of his donations to and support of Trinity Heights.

Cooper also gave his executive director's report letting the audience know how Trinity Heights is doing and what is to come for the Trinity Heights campus.

"We have three projects on the burner at once, which isn't great planning but it's going to all work out," said Cooper. "One is the Way of the Saints. We are also in the process of trying to do justice to the Old Testament and get that worked in there. My forever project, the stream and the pond, we want to get that done. We are going to feature in that water the statue of St. Francis of Assisi."

The statue of St. Francis of Assisi was unveiled at the banquet by Dale Lamphere, the artist. The statue stands six feet high. To help in his creation of St. Francis, Lamphere took two trips to Assisi to walk where St. Francis walked and to find a vision for the statue.

"I think some of the early morning walks that I took were the greatest inspiration," said Lamphere of his time in Assisi. "The streets were usually real silent and few people were out. It felt like it might have felt back centuries ago when he lived. I could sense his presence in the gardens."

Lamphere is also the artist of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the St. Michael the Archangel statues.

"They've talked to me already about doing a Moses piece, which I am really excited about," said Lamphere about his next creation for Trinity Heights. "There is such power to Moses, such energy."

Kevin Keane and Claudia Hardy entertained the audience of about 550 people with songs such as "Bridge Over Troubled Water," "Lord I Lift Your Name on High," "Ave Maria" and "In This Very Room." They were accompanied by Jan Miller on the piano.

At the end of the evening, Bishop DiNardo had a few words to say including a blessing. The banquet came to an end with all gathered singing "God Bless America."