tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post4436547201036190642..comments2024-02-22T23:23:48.792-05:00Comments on Jane Griswold Radocchia: St Jerome's Catholic Church, East Dorset, VermontJanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03960577578174018923noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post-34835825139228235652024-02-22T23:23:48.792-05:002024-02-22T23:23:48.792-05:00I didn't know until now, 2024. I lived near th...I didn't know until now, 2024. I lived near there for 34 years and moved in 2018. Somehow i never heard about the dismantling. Last I visited the family plot was in 2014. My husbands funeral there in 1999, and his family going back 4 or more generations are buried there. My sister in law married there, and I think her great great grandmother was one of the first married there. Sir names Kirk and Burns. Many fond memories of East Dorset. Sometimes I wish i never moved away. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post-48499439450474485082019-05-07T21:00:27.893-04:002019-05-07T21:00:27.893-04:00And left behind by those in charge.
The roof leak...And left behind by those in charge. <br />The roof leaked. White mold grew 12" thick. <br />I do not believe it was desecration to carefully remove and reuse materials which had been lovingly and carefully put together and were now not cared for and had no purpose. They have a job once again. Without the deconstruction their fate would have been mold and decay. We honored the community which built it by taking care of the parts. <br />The church itself, the people, had moved elsewhere. The cemetery needed more space.<br />Janehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03960577578174018923noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post-23174724497198996222019-05-05T11:55:04.925-04:002019-05-05T11:55:04.925-04:00It was deconsecrated.It was deconsecrated.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post-51314505037378658722018-08-24T18:29:47.385-04:002018-08-24T18:29:47.385-04:00My family is so heartbroken to see this. We live i...My family is so heartbroken to see this. We live in NY now but our grandparents, great, great great are buried here. My baby brother and baby niece are also laid to rest in the little slice of heaven on earth. It was never a sad occasion to visit, it was pure peace and a deeply moving place to visit. You can imagine our horror as we made the trip just to see the foundation of what once was lying in ruins. Just heartbreaking. I’m glad you are pumped up by the architecture but some do not share in the enthusiasm, it is a desecration of holy land. What a shame!!!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07005763912658649914noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post-44754210030242521582017-01-16T09:00:58.106-05:002017-01-16T09:00:58.106-05:00I think the plan is to extend the cemetery into th...I think the plan is to extend the cemetery into the the space occupied by the church's foundation which will allow more people to be buried there.<br /><br />I assume the Catholic Diocese in Burlington made the decision. I talked to the Dorset Town Clerk about the church She was a parishioner. You might speak to her. <br /><br />The company that deconstructed the building had a contract to take it down. They sold the parts to many different people. I think it would be very difficult to put it back together. The mold and decay was considerable. There were not enough people left to love it every day.Janehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03960577578174018923noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post-46744063718109886112017-01-15T21:26:07.035-05:002017-01-15T21:26:07.035-05:00My father is buried very close to the church. My f...My father is buried very close to the church. My family and I visit his grave several times a year. We were shocked and surprised to see the church torn down to its studs. We did not hear or see any materials indicating this would be happening. It is such a beautiful little church, is there no way to restore (at this point, reconstruct) it?RMchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05887223452070017812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post-37878901387938241892017-01-07T10:44:40.099-05:002017-01-07T10:44:40.099-05:00I am especially glad to know that the church was l...I am especially glad to know that the church was loved by you, the last parishioners. <br /><br />I am an architect. I have always been attuned to space. <br /><br />When I went in the first time, the walls were stripped to the lath, most of the pews gone. the white mold thick. I could see that there had been some grace, but the sense of abandonment was stronger. The arches seemed a sad failed attempt, a poor copy. The apse, 2 steps up, arched half dome and doors, felt out of place.<br /><br />I felt the grace come as the ceilings came down. The space became holy. I have worshiped in many places that were not churches, and helped make them holy. Here I was not needed, the church itself spoke. <br /><br />Janehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03960577578174018923noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post-2049290046940720672017-01-06T22:27:52.691-05:002017-01-06T22:27:52.691-05:00Hello Mary,
Thank you for stopping here to read a...Hello Mary,<br /><br />Thank you for stopping here to read and for adding your comments. <br />I am sorry the building did not find another use, but that would have to happen years ago. With all its layers of updating and modernizing already there its original grace probably would have stayed hidden under a newer layer of paint, flooring and ceiling.<br /><br />By the time church was dismantled, the roof leaked and mold had taken over, so much so that it looked like snow, except it was upside down. Of course those beams could not be saved. Buildings need to stay dry in order to survive.<br /><br />I will post more after I have measured the church in early spring.<br /><br /><br />Janehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03960577578174018923noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8118094056356737952.post-12586638405688909782017-01-06T22:00:45.323-05:002017-01-06T22:00:45.323-05:00Thank you so much for this lovely article. This ch...Thank you so much for this lovely article. This church was well loved & had at least a dozen families attending when it closed down. It is sad to see it be torn down, instead of being preserved as a community space. The one blessing is that we can finally see the beautiful architectural elements you describe, which were hidden to all of us by the drop ceiling. Lovely that the church still stands in this elemental fashion for a few more months.Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07329981696570471201noreply@blogger.com