Renovations to St. Martin of Tours Church building, Millinocket, Maine

The Lenten Season

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CHRIST THE DIVINE MERCY BULLETIN

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"Divine" renovations

National "Make a Difference Day" lasted only one day in October, but a group of parishioner volunteers―mostly retirees―spent most of October and part of November making a big difference at St. Martin of Tours Church in Millinocket and, in the process, saving the Divine Mercy parish many thousands of dollars in renovation costs. Now the gift shop, office, and conference room are open in the former lobby.

Why renovate St. Martin's? Because only a small part of the large, 3-story parish center at 112 Maine St.―the former convent―was being used, but the building had to be heated and maintained. So the offices and ministries housed there have now moved into the section of the Church building circled in the picture on the right, and the parish center is for sale.

The changes

The main floor of the Church now houses:

the parish secretary's office
a conference room for meetings and ministries such as weekly Scripture studies
an enlarged gift shop

The food pantry is now in the Church building, lower level, but the Thrift Shop will remain in the Parish Center.

A new main entry with an airlock, a new confessional, and a new staircase to the lower level complete the renovations. Energy conservation work is also underway: the windows are being weatherized and a more modern heating system is planned.

Kudos to the crew

Pastor Fr. Joël Cyr describes the volunteers as "Outstanding people devoted to the church above and beyond the call of duty." They are: Dick Berry, Raymond Bosse, Romeo Bosse, Peter Cesare, Don Cyr, Charles Davis, Eldon Doody, Norman Dubois, Ben Fiske, Carrol Freeman, Frank Howard, Barry McLeod, Jeff Raymond, Maynard Robinson, Bill Rush, and lead John Levesque.

"These men are hard workers and multi-taskers with experience in all phases of construction work," Levesque said. "They know what they are doing." Little outside help was needed, he noted. "Our main objective is to keep the parish going," Levesque said of the attitude of the crew and its work. "We are the Church."


Eldon Doody prepares the church's interior windows for weatherization	Ben Fiske running heavy equipment to pulverize the concrete at the old entrance	Don Cyr paints the walls of the new stairway to the lower floor	John Levesque eyes one of the projects	Bill Rush and Romeo Bosse prepare to saw planking for the new entrance to the church

A big thank-you to our benefactors

The members of Christ the Divine Mercy parish extend their heartfelt thanks and appreciation to the following generous benefactors. May the Lord bless you and all of your works.

Eldon Doody, PE, President of D&S Engineering Inc. for his donation of the design plans for the project
The Towns of Millinocket and East Millinocket for the loan of equipment such as compressors
Millinocket Foundry & Machine Company for the loan of the fork lift used to reposition the handicap ramp.
Frank Stratton, Superintendent of the East Millinocket Public Utilities for the loan of equipment
Elliot Michaud for the loan of his backhoe and other construction equipment
Sunrise Materials of Medway for their donation of new paving for the areas surrounding the old and new entrances
Peter Cesare for donating many of the materials used in the renovation
Harold St. Peter for the loan of his chipping gun
Gerald Pelletier, Inc., a Millinocket trucking company