Sign, cross, statue removed from St. Stephen’s; hall events moved
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SENTINEL PHOTO - St. Stephen's Church in Shenandoah on Oct. 5, 2019.
By Kaylee Lindenmuth | [email protected]
SHENANDOAH – A statue which stood over downtown Shenandoah atop a church is bound for a cemetery in Shenandoah Heights, while other items from that church, shuttered in 2014, have also been removed and events at its adjoining hall have been moved as well.
The statue of St. Stephen which stood atop the namesake church on East Oak Street for nearly a century was removed Friday. Also missing Saturday was the cross atop the building and a sign designating the church’s centennial. Stained glass windows from the church was sold in Whitehall, Lehigh County today. The statue is bound for St. Stephen’s cemetery in Shenandoah Heights.
Signs on the door of St. Stephen’s Hall at the corner of Oak and Main Street serve as notice that the Knights of Columbus bingo has been moved to the Knights hall a few blocks away, that the voting precinct normally hosted there has been moved to Magistrate Anthony Kilker’s office across the street, and that dinners from a recent church fundraiser are to be picked up at St. Casimir’s Hall.
Additionally, the Rescue Hook & Ladder Fire Company of Shenandoah asked borough council last month for permission to hold their annual bingo at the Senior Citizens building at Penn at Market.
Details regarding the status of the church and adjoining hall are few. A call to the Divine Mercy Parish office Friday provided little information, as the calltaker questioned why a reporter was inquiring. The inquiry was then referred to Monsignor Ronald Bocian, who was not available Friday.
Matt Kerr, director of communications for the Diocese of Allentown, said there is an agreement of sale for the building. The parish property for St. Stephen’s is split into two parcels, according to the Schuylkill County Parcel Locator. One parcel includes the hall, and the other includes the church itself, the rectory, and the former school on South Market Street.
According to Shenandoah Borough Hall on Friday, no demolition, building, or property maintenance permit was on file.
The church celebrated its centennial in 1999. In 2014, the church, along with St. Stanislaus, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, was shuttered as the parishes, as well as St. George’s, St. Casimir’s, and Annunciation, and St. Mary Magdalen in Lost Creek, merged into Divine Mercy Parish.
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