SAN ANTONIO • Drop cloths once again draped the interior of the Chapel of the Incarnate Word, with construction scaffolding to follow, as the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word prepared for Phase II of renovations to the 100-year-old Romanesque structure.

    Phase I repairs and renovation of the impressive red brick edifice with white stone facings were begun and completed last year, initiated in response to Vatican II guidelines and to create a prayerful environment incorporating more of the CCVI identity.

    Prior to the start of work on Phase II, a special blessing of the workers was held by the sisters in the chapel on Jan. 2. Lighting candles before the altar for this were Raul Juarez, Jody Mokry and Mike Boyle of M.J. Boyle General Contractor. A prayer read by Sister Walter Maher, CCVI, general councilor, asked a blessing on the workers, referring to their hands as instruments which “have done mundane tasks, yet also create beauty.”

    An individual blessing of the hands of each of the 17 workmen and supervisors present, who formed a semi-circle around the altar, was given by Father Ed Kelly, pastoral administrator at Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Von Ormy, and accompanied by the singing of “On Holy Ground.”

    Phase II, according to project supervisor Tom McCoy, will include repair of plaster imperfections, as well as the painting and highlighting of pressed metal ceiling panels and other architectural detailing, including the painting of the interior dome of the sanctuary. As before, workers will be putting in extra efforts to ensure weddings scheduled for the chapel will be able to take place as planned, he stated.     The initial detailing will be completed by Feb. 14, just in time for a Feb. 17 wedding. The chapel will then be closed from July through September to do the majority of the painting.

    Following this, a 10-foot tall crucifix, carved out of linden wood in northern Italy, will be installed above the altar. The face of its crucified Christ is modeled after Father Wilmo Candanedo, OP, who was a former pastor of St. Ann Church in San Antonio and is now stationed at the Dominican Abbey in Irving.

    Standing beside the cross, which will be fixed within a globe of the earth, will be figures of the Virgin Mary and St. John the disciple. The five niches behind the altar will hold carved images of the founders of the congregation, with the carved depiction in the center being the Annunciation, on which the sisters’ mission is based.

    The 100-year-old golden oak choir stalls, modeled on the antiphonal seating found in monasteries of medieval Europe, show the wear and tear of age and will be removed and replaced with exact replicas built by New Holland Church Furniture. New wood flooring terraces will also be installed to hold the seating as before, with recessed theatrical strip lighting on the steps to improve visibility.

    Sister Walter noted that a number of persons had expressed interest in the old seating and the sisters hope to restore as many of them as possible, with the intent of holding a special auction. The proceeds would go into a chapel endowment fund for future repairs and restoration. One restored set of the old seating will be saved for the CCVI archives room.

    The sisters hope to eventually find individual sponsors for the restoration of the chapel’s stained glass windows, Sister Walter said, with the names of restoration donors being added to the windows.
    Randy Escamilla, director of public relations for the sisters, noted that repairs to the chapel’s exterior will include chemical treatment of its copper roof to turn it patina green. The tower’s four angels will also receive a little “R & R” — renovation and repair. As Sister Helena Monahan, CCVI superior general, pointed out, their arms are understandably weak. “After all — 100 years,” she said with a smile of the winged messengers who have braved hail, rain and lightning during their long watch over the chapel.
    Their trumpets, like the chapel’s roof-top crosses, will be temporarily removed for repair and gold-plating, giving the 10-foot tall guardians a well-deserved rest.

    Workers have discovered one of the angels shelters a massive bee hive and have affectionately dubbed her “Honey” as a result.
    Being environmentally conscious, the sisters plan to see that as many bees as possible are saved when work on the angels begins and the bees are relocated to a new hive by a beekeeper.