News

Bear creek garden grows anew with prayers

By Patricia Kasten
Compass Associate Editor

Let Mary welcome you to her prayer garden.

In Bear Creek, just southwest of Clintonville, St. Mary Parish has a Mary Prayer Garden. Complete with flowers, statues, fountains and benches for reflection, it sits between the church and cemetery.

The garden, built with the help of volunteers and donations, was the idea of Sr. Sandy Peterson, pastoral associate. She, however, credits Bp. Robert Morneau - a priest son of the parish - with the inspiration three years ago.

"He was here for a funeral," Sr. Sandy said, "He looked out the sacristy door and saw these dying trees between the church and the cemetery. He told Fr. Don Everts (pastor at the time), 'You have to get those trees removed. They look like hell.' So Fr. Don had them removed."

Bill Klegin, the cemetery sexton, removed the trees, which had been donated years earlier by the Morneau tree farm. However, Sr. Sandy, who lives in the rectory, looked out her kitchen window at the new empty space every day.

"Wouldn't it be lovely," she thought, "to have a prayer garden that people could walk by on the way to the cemetery after a funeral?"

The idea took off and soon - with the help of Klegin and the Prayer Garden Committee - $13,000 was raised. A memory stone was purchased, along with the plants and statues. An arbor was built by Dick Fletcher, a wishing well by Leroy Christensen and the 14 benches by Bob Bessette. The garden has four flowerbeds and a large crucifixion scene. The layout was designed by Tim Wanta, who chairs the committee with his wife, Sandy. Next year, a set of Stations of the Cross will be added.

"People really got behind this garden," Sr. Sandy said.

On Aug. 6, at 2 p.m., the Mary Garden at St. Mary's will be formally dedicated. The dedication will be in conjunction with St. Mary's Sauerkraut Festival, which was started 42 years ago by Bp. John Grellinger, who is buried in the cemetery. Priest sons and Sisters who have served at the parish or been members there are invited.

Bp. Morneau, however, has another commitment.

"He said it looked like hell," Sr. Sandy said. "Hopefully it now looks like paradise."