There was good reason for Greenwood parishioners to revel during the official blessing of All Saints Catholic Church’s pending parish centre on Sunday, 9 May.
Emeritus Archbishop Barry Hickey celebrated the Mass alongside concelebrant Greenwood Parish Priest Father Elver Delicano.
The former Archbishop of Perth then blessed the cornerstone of the parish centre, which is now also home to a time-capsule.
The incoming parish centre will be situated between the upper car park and the presbytery. The design allows opening the doors on the side facing the upper car park to enlarge the enclosed hall with an undercover space, thereby doubling the size if needed.
In addition, there will be ample storage, a spacious kitchen with a walk-in pantry, and restrooms.
Before the cornerstone of the parish centre was blessed by His Grace on 9 May, an epistle of St Paul to the Ephesians (2:20-22) was proclaimed:
“Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.”
Emeritus Archbishop Hickey then thanked the loving Father and commended everyone who has assisted in the process of building the centre.
“This will be a building that will be used for the growth of our community and be a place of welcome. As we dedicate this future building, we place items that reflect who we are today and what we have been in the past,” he prayed.
“May we always use the building to God’s greater glory.
“I congratulate Fr Elver, the parish committee, and you the parishioners for this great initiative. May it prosper, God bless you!”
Fr Delicano showed his gratitude towards all who contributed to reaching this stage of the new parish centre development.
“Thank you very much for your presence. Thank you for being part of this parish centre to be built very soon, and to Archbishop Hickey as well for presiding,” the Greenwood Parish Priest expressed.
According to All Saints Church’s website, the new parish centre development has prioritised safety between the flow of vehicle and pedestrian traffic, in relation to the new building layout.
The upper car park will become one-way vehicle traffic only with dedicated entry and exit and no vehicle access to the lower car park. A new pedestrian only path will be located at the existing driveway ramp between the upper and lower car parks. The current exit from the lower car park area will be widened to accommodate an entry and exit lane. This will improve safety by minimising crossways between cars and pedestrians.