Sacred Heart Catholic Community

During the festivities surrounding the dedication of the Brother Michael Catholic Center, it was made public that the Brothers of Saint Pius X donated a hand-carved statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Sacred Heart Parish, Spring Valley.  In the 1950s the wooden statue had been given to the Brothers by an older man from Germany who had sought to enter their community.  Even though his application was rejected, this man was grateful that the Brothers for considering him.  As an expression of his thanks, he sent them this magnificent statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary from his native land.  The statue graced the chapel of the Brothers for many years.  The Brothers of Saint Pius X now give the statue to Sacred Heart Parish as a token of their gratitude for honoring Brother Michael Mandernach and their religious community.  The magnificent statue is currently on display in the church but will eventually be moved to a prominent place in the Brother Michael Catholic Center.

Father Amir had a rather unique experience at the Ken and Barb Cepek farm. Heavy snow & wind caused Ken & Barb's large barn to fall down creating a huge mess. John Crownheart, having experience in dealing with this, offered to clean it up. During part of the process, John was going to knock down 2 cement silos. Barb thought of Fr. Amir, & called him to see if he wanted to watch the demolition process. While he was here, John was digging a large hole to put it in, & asked Father if he would like to operate the large backhoe.  With Father at the controls, John initially rode along instructing Father how to use the joy stick plus other levers & safety features. He then allowed Father to run it alone, & believe it or not, he did a great job digging a full bucket of dirt & also dumping it. It turned out to be a very memorable moment, thanks to John.