Mural paintings are rather uncommon in south-central Nebraska. However, Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Lawrence houses two murals, now for one hundred years. The murals (one over each side altar) suffered heavy smoke damage from the fire last October. However, both have been cleaned and restored to their former beauty. They await the completion of the church restoration so people can once again see their beauty.
A fixture of Sacred Heart Church in Lawrence for many years was the scene of the Last Supper displayed under the main altar in the church. The scene is shown above as it is being cleaned and repainted and ready for the reopening of the church.
Approximately 10 months have passed since the devastating fire damaged the entire inside of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Lawrence. And, if you drove by today, you probably couldn't see a whole lot of difference from ten months ago.
The reason being is that all of the fire damage was on the inside of the church, not evident from the outside views. We have printed reports every so often on the progress and the church released the latest update of the work last week. We pass on the information as it was reported.
A lot has happened in these 10 months! The hours spent just cleaning - there was smoke absolutely everywhere from the choir loft down to the basement. Inventory all had to be removed and either cleaned or thrown away.
Jean and Char Kriz, project managers, have dedicated their heart and soul to this project. Contractors have been so helpful in getting their work done in a timely manner.
At this stage of rebuilding, most of the church area has been repainted; the basement has almost all the dry wall put up. Heating and air conditioning is in progress.
Complete new wiring throughout the church is being done.
The main area scaffolding is scheduled to be removed in a couple of weeks. The large south stained-glass window is scheduled to be returned Monday.
We're now working on replacing the interior inventory – from the organ down to the chairs in the basement and everything in between! They noted: so many things are needed to be replaced to have the church in working conditions. Catholic Mutual Insurance is committed to getting whatever is needed to make it functional again.
There is still much to be done to complete the work and no timetable has been set for the completion date.
Parish officials have expressed their thanks to the two neighboring parishes: St. Stephen and Our Lady of Assumption for their assistance in so many things for the daily operation of the parish.
Keep looking, changes will continue on a daily basis. However, you will not see so many of them as they will be happening on the inside of the church.
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