THE FENNIMORE COINCIDENCE

Early on in the renovation process, a sub team from the Project 2017 committee decided to research other restorations by actually going to visit other churches.   Why?  We had 3 presentations from 3 different design firms and needed to make a decision.  They were checking quality, form, materials and talking to the pastors that had worked with the different vendors.  It was also a great opportunity to gather ideas for our own project.  We knew this would be valuable research, but to our surprise a few extra things came out of this adventure!

One we called the "Fennimore Coincidence".  Katie Alder came across a church located in Fennimore, Wisconsin while doing internet research that had strikingly similar architecture to St. Francis de Sales.  Called St. Mary's, the renovation there was completed in 2013 by Conrad Schmitt Studios and it was really interesting to see some of the things that they had done. Because it was a recent renovation, the people that were involved were still there and were able to tell our group what worked and what didn't work.  Our team traveled up there (a 2.5 hour drive!) and talked to the staff and volunteers involved in the project.  They told of their experiences with the design work and material choices.

No this is not SFDS but St. Mary's in Fennimore, Wisconsin!

Needless to say, it was really exciting to actually see a similar renovation and not just a rendering on a piece of paper.  We were very encouraged at that point that our project could actually happen and that it would be stunning.  It really helped to validate and solidify our vision.  This was a turning point for our group and we took it as a sign that we were definitely on the right track!

St. Peter's in Volo, St. Patrick's in McHenry, St. Hyacinth in Chicago, St. Gregory the Great in Chicago, St. Raphael the Archangel in Antioch, and St. Josephat in Milwaukee were just some of the other churches that this group took the time to visit.  

The other major thing that came out of these "field trips" was the realization that many churches had a quiet devotional area where people could go to pray.  This was on our "wish" list, and when we decided to take out the glass doors to open up the back of the church, a new space for a shrine became apparent. But that's another chapter!  Check our next blog for the story of our beautiful "Our Lady of Guadalupe" shrine.

It's been said before but it's worth repeating to again say that this could not have happened so efficiently and beautifully without the passion, dedication, and talent of the Project 2017 committee! Thank you!