Kevin Hogan (Page, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

At 9.30 this Sunday, 30 November, I will be at mass to celebrate the centenary of the St Mary's Catholic church in Grafton. The church was opened on 29 November 1914. This was in fact after the first church, which was built in 1867, burnt down in 1913. I would just like to read quickly from a newspaper report earlier this year about that. It says:

WHEN a fire tore through St Mary's Church in April of 1913, it left utter devastation in its wake.

So when the foundation stone was laid on January 18, 1914, it marked the "re-birth" of the church, as local identity and member of the church Bill Dougherty puts it.

"After the disaster in 1913, it was not only the Catholic community, but the whole community got together in what was a period of intense preparation and trauma, trying to find enough money to rebuild the church," Mr Dougherty said.

"Then hope was born again, with the laying of that stone."

Bishop Geoffrey Jarrett will be officiating this Sunday at 9.30. Obviously the parish priest, Father Jim Griffin, will be there, as indeed will many members of the clergy who have previously been at St Mary's in Grafton. I acknowledge also Bill Dougherty, who was the chairman of the centenary committee, and indeed the whole committee that have done the work to make Sunday the success I am sure it will be.