La Salle parish about $370,000 away from saving its iconic spires

Parishioners at St. Hyacinth Catholic Church in La Salle are short of their fundraising goal – by $372,029 at the end of March, but who’s counting? – and the pastor isn’t terribly worried about the shortfall.

The Very Rev. Thomas Otto figures once his flock sees the gleaming brickwork under sunny spring skies, parishioners will be eager to complete the renovation and push the Towers of Faith fundraiser to the finish line.

Cranes have been perched around the iconic double spires as masons replace damaged bricks and tuckpoint sections where the mortar was beginning to fail. It’s the first phase of a $1.8 million renovation of one of the area’s oldest Catholic churches.

“We’ve been very blessed by the very mild winter we’ve had,” Otto said. “That’s kept us on schedule and maybe a little ahead of schedule.”

The project is beginning to yield some tangible fruits. Jim Peters of La Salle said he’s noticed progress on the facade.

“It’s not the flashiest of the coming improvement – improvements to the interior are on their way – but is among the most important of them,” Peters said. “It will help St. Hyacinth to become a church in which my children, future grandchildren and great-grandchildren can get married in.”

Contractors have been amazed at the shape this building is in, given its age.”

—  The Very Rev. Tom Otto, pastor of the La Salle Catholic Parishes

“We’re very encouraged,” said Nikki Baer of La Salle, another parishioner, “but not all the parishioners know what’s going on because there’s work being done in the basement and in the rafters – things the average parishioner doesn’t know are happening.”

Workers have told Otto how impressed they are with the quality of the original masonry. Otto, for his part, is pleased with the church’s overall appearance as workers have nipped and tucked the facade.

“They built this church in the 1890s, and the detail of the brickwork is just unbelievable,” he said. “Contractors have been amazed at the shape this building is in, given its age.”

It’s made him increasingly confident in jumpstarting the fundraising, which has reached an expected plateau.

The $1.8 million campaign got off to a hot start. As recently as 2019, parishioners and clergy alike wondered if the church was nearing its shelf life. A 2020 feasibility study yielded the surprising news that the aging church was structurally sound and could be preserved for decades to come. Overjoyed parishioners poured money into the campaign, led by an anonymous gift of $600,000.

Once Christmas approached and the skies turned gray, however, parishioners made fewer and smaller pledges.

Otto didn’t panic. The campaign has drawn $1,427,971 in pledges at the end of March, and the nearly $1 million received was enough to bring in masons to replace failing stone and brick and to generally spruce up the facade. Within a few weeks, the results will be eye-catching.

“The building will look really sharp from the outside – really refreshed – and we hope that inspires people to see the rest of the project through,” Otto said.

He hopes to have the masonry and tuck-pointing finished by June, at which point contractors will turn to phase two: addressing roof repairs and reshingling of the twin spires. Otto hopes they’ll be as lucky with summer weather as they were in the winter.

Phase three brings much-needed interior improvements, including a new sound system, a segregated crying room for young families plus new confessionals and restrooms. The project concludes with painting, plastering and illuminating the spires, loosely targeted for late 2024.

The project hasn’t been without its headaches, but Otto has thrown himself into it with gusto. As a boy, he and his brother Joe spent hours playing with Legos, and the prospect of overseeing a real-life building project held an irresistible allure.

“My original plan was to be an architect, and God had different plans. I’m glad he did,” Otto said. “But God did plant that love of architecture in my heart, and I would say I have enjoyed it. It’s been good to dip my toes into this world.”