Coshocton Sacred Heart Church celebrated its 125th anniversary recently with a “Week of Grace” featuring special events and speakers.
The week began with a luncheon that hosted 237 guests and featured a video documentary on the church by local historian Ken Smailes. The parish’s anniversary Mass the next day included a homily in which Father Thomas Gardner, the pastor, challenged parishioners to carry Jesus’ message outside the church so it can continue to serve the community for another 125 years.
Presentations featuring fellowship time and talks on hope, healing and prayer were given on each of the next three evenings by Rachel Muha, Angel Fox and Dan DeMatte.
Muha spoke about “Finding Radical Forgiveness” in response to the murder of her son Brian, a Franciscan University of Steubenville student, in 1999. Her forgiveness and faith have allowed her to serve countless at-risk youth in Columbus through the Brian Muha Foundation and the Run the Race Club. After her testimony, there was an opportunity for prayer for forgiveness of past wounds.
Fox, speaking on “Healing the Whole Person,” focused on her experience of God’s loving grace and mercy when she was lost and distressed. Through her healing from Stage 4 cancer, God helped her bring a message of hope to others.
DeMatte, director of missions and advancement at the Damascus Catholic Mission Campus in Knox County, talked about “Embracing Our Mission” and called his audience to follow Jesus in their daily lives as His disciples. The Damascus worship team led an extended time of praise and prayer.
Displays representing parish organizations told the story of their past, highlighted ongoing activities and hinted at plans.
The parish was founded in 1897, but Dominican fathers began visiting Coshocton County in the 1840s. Throughout the next half century, several mission outposts were established, including St. Nicholas Church in Franklin Township, St. Michael in Plainfield, St. Mary in Linton Township, St. Ann in Dresden, St. Elizabeth in Monroe Township, Our Lady of Lourdes in Wills Creek and St. Rose of Lima in Spring Mountain.
The influence of Irish and German settlers working on the Ohio-Erie Canal fueled the growth of the Catholic community, and, in 1859, a Russian priest, Father Serge de Stchoulepnikoff, oversaw construction of St. George Catholic Church on Third Street, the first Catholic Church in Coshocton.
The parish eventually outgrew that building, and the cornerstone of Sacred Heart Catholic Church was laid on Oct. 10, 1897, by Father Walter Ross. The church was dedicated on July 17, 1898.
Sacred Heart has been part of the fabric of the community for 125 years, with parishioners serving in government, education, business, health, civic affairs and the workforce. That impact is further witnessed through the reach of Sacred Heart School, which was dedicated on Sept. 15, 1907, and its success for decades as a result of the Dominican Sisters of St. Mary of the Springs and the lay teachers who followed them.
