Remembering SACP

I want to thank Mary Lou Gibson, our parish archivist, and Vance Strickland, who records and oversees the photographic memory of the parish facilities for their help in unearthing the timeline and details of this aging facility.

As we say farewell to these buildings there can arise a feeling of uncertainty; of anxious concern that is always an aspect of change and starting something new. But I want to invite us to step back a bit from the immediacy of the present moment in order to recognize that we, the community of St. Austin parish, as a missionary community led and served by missionary priests, have been on a journey – a pilgrimage – from day one; a pilgrimage that has traveled about 113 years so far, from our beginnings on this corner back in 1908. And what we are presently entering into is but the next leg of that journey – the next phase of our pilgrimage.

So, to assure us, as we set forth into our future, that we are continuing in the spirit and mission that has energized this place from its beginning, let’s check in with the memories embedded here.

To get ourselves properly oriented, I am going ask you, in your mind’s eye, to place yourself in the big courtyard next to the fountain, facing south toward the rectory and church. In 1908 you would have been looking at the first St. Austin chapel. It was a two-story structure in a mission style with a bell tower with a bell that was hand pulled at appropriate times. The second floor was the original location for the Newman Club – the gathering place for Catholic students at UT. So therein lay the prime purpose for the Paulists coming to the missionary fields of Texas – to be an accessible Catholic presence for the young women and men entering into some of their most formative years within the wide-open world of university life.
Turning your imagined self clock-wise 45 degrees we see the building we know as Paulist Hall. It was built in 1913, named as the Newman Club, with its north side next to where we now see the middle school entrance and its south side next to what is now the alley ramp. On the ground floor was the Club space itself, a comfortable lounge type arrangement with a welcoming working fireplace with an adjoining kitchen and small buffet line for club gatherings. It also boasted a mural depicting King Arthur, Guinevere, and Lancelot (never did understand the choice of topics for that mural). On the second floor were classrooms and offices. The third floor was the priests’ residence. In the early years there were up to six priests serving the parish and the community of university students. There was, and still is, an accompanying chapel with paintings of quasi-scriptural scenes on the walls. We think they were painted by Reuben Le Grande Johnston of Maryland. It appears he painted them on canvas, shipped them here to be glued to the walls.
 
In the 50’s the new church and rectory were built and soon the Newman Club activities moved to their current location at 21st And University Ave. From that point forward the ground floor of the former Newman Club became something of the parish’s living room / den, and it was ultimately given the name Paulist Hall (a compromise settled on in response to all the Paulist priest names suggested)…… This living room became viewed by some who passed through the RCIA process as the womb from which their adult faith was born(perhaps because they had spent the previous 9 months there in weekly “gestations sessions you might say”)…… also Brides and their attendants turned it into a temporary boudoir for those final preparations…… The Knights held court there,……the St. Vincent de Paul Society evaluated and planned there (and maintained a pantry of essential needs), the pastoral council listened, consulted and listened some more, …….just about every non-athletic form of after-school activity that could operate indoors operated there from scouts, to prayer groups, to dance classes. It housed cold weather shelters, smaller adult formation classes ,Yoga prayer sessions, silent prayer, boisterous prayer….and those are just the activities that lasted over a period of time…Throughout its life it was one of the busiest living rooms in the neighborhood.

The Purple Parachute – so 70’s

Now on to the rest of what we know as Paulist Hall. Soon after the Paulist set up operations in the early 1900’s, they started a ministry cooperation with the Dominican Sisters (of Galveston I believe). The sisters started a school in Austin, and ultimately a school connected to St. Austin called Newman School – much more on that from Barbara Kennedy– The sisters first lived in a house on W.21st Street, but with the move of the Newman Club to digs nearer to campus, the sisters switched residence with the priests. So the priests moved to a 21st St. house and the Dominican Sisters took over the 2nd and 3rd floors of the building we think of as Paulist Hall, including the beloved chapel, thus giving it its historical title of Dominican Chapel. Then over time, the Paulist sold the corner lot at Guadalupe and W.21 St. to the sisters who built the first wing of Newman Hall bordering 21st St; Oh, and in 1977 the other wing of Newman Hall, running along Guadalupe St. was completed. By that time, it was a full-fledged highly operative dormitory for women run by the Dominican Sisters. In ’82 the parish purchased the dorm from the Dominicans, who moved on to other work elsewhere. The parish continued to run it as a dorm until 1989. And then leadership moved all the pieces around the board and started again.
The Second floor of the Paulist Hall building became the offices of the suddenly growing parish staff, moving out of the crowded front parlor rooms of the rectory. //And the dorm rooms on the 2nd and 3rd floors of Newman Hall became rental property used by, among others: Greater Austin Right to Life, Natural Family Planning, the Gilbert & Sullivan Society, A Volleyball Camp organization, an Austin Artist Guild, a couple of Youth Outreach operations, with other sporadic non-profits that came and went.

Then in 1990 the Middle School got its own facilities with a substantial remodel of the 2nd and 3rd floors of Paulist Hall and the adjoining parts of Newman Hall. The parish staff, ever-expanding and in need of more room, moved into the 3rd floor of Newman Hall. Over time the 2nd floor non-profit tenants found other digs and parish ministry groups took over the remaining space. RE moved beyond the school’s facilities on Sundays, particularly with 3 pre-K&K Godly Play dedicated spaces. By this time Sunday RE was morphing through a number of forms, from intergenerational monthly sessions just about everywhere on campus to a hybrid age specific form with monthly whole family sessions. It really was a good bit like a three-ring circus – somewhat controlled chaos but fun – I think. And there were various incarnations of youth ministry that seemed to regularly be drawn to the basement rooms for their sessions – yes, there are basement rooms in Newman Hall…there was even a sump pump down there to keep them from flooding in heavy rains. You want a taste of pilgrim “on the road again” ministry? Try doing full range Pre-K through High School RE on one day in these facilities. Remember we come from a wide range of zip codes – you are only going to get most of us down here once a week. Creativity is the essential requirement. 

Now we move to the final, and many would say, most important ministry spaces: The dining hall – town hall – community hall that ultimately took on the pride of place and name - Hecker Hall.  Coupled with the fish bowl, as one rather shy participant called it, the multi-purpose room par excellent Our Lady of Guadalupe room, lovingly shortened to OLG.

Obviously with a commercial grade kitchen attached, Hecker Hall was originally the dining hall of the dormitory. After life as a dorm diner, what became known as Hecker Hall began to feed the world, or at least that part that had some connection to St. Austin Parish. It ultimately became the school cafeteria; the Sunday Morning coffee, donuts and chat spot to be (with the Knights of Columbus world famous breakfast tacos on the lucky days); ……it was where friends and family could gather for a memorable funeral meal put on by the Martha Ministry folks as they remembered their loved one who had passed;…. It held receptions, with fine finger food, to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, farewell and welcome gatherings, ….. meetings with food catered or brown bagged, ……it served meals before, after and in the midst of retreats, …..and planning and formation sessions. Beyond that Hecker Hall hosted parish wide meetings, discipleship formation days, RCIA days of reflection, Knight’s High Court gatherings, AGAPE to welcome new members on the Vigil of Easter – with mariachis appearing at times, future planning and truth telling sessions about the state of the parish…… and for many year’s Sr. Sharon’s Pre-Lenten Twilight retreats. There were occasions that held our attention with the sobriety of the truth presented such as the Kristallnacht displays; and others that set a tone for the season such as the Christmas Basket project’s stuff the bags extravaganza.  Some would say it was where we were most “community” with our jeans on and our sleeves rolled up.
It is from the walls of that room that I listen to hear the story of this community as it has continued on this pilgrimage of ours. Have you ever noticed that it is often around food that the family is the most itself – the most open and hospitable. In my visual memory bank this is most clearly marked by the people involved in Thursday outreach, and from an earlier period, those involved in Thursday meals for youth living on the street. There often was a most unique chemistry that occurred there. Where the openness and honoring of the other was happening on both sides of the encounter. You could see humans treating others as equals, as the child of God that for a brief moment they each realized the other was. They each were honored as a member of the household of the Lord. When we are at our truest.

And finally, the Grand Lady, the Our Lady of Guadalupe room. It started its life as the dorm’s lounge where residents could visit with their male friends. …..When the dorm life left the building, this space became the de facto medium size group activity center, from girl scouts in the afternoon to adult classes in the evenings and on Sundays. It was a quite prayer space for retreats and a group sharing space for the weekends of Christ Renews His Parish.  Regularly it became the workshop of the Prayer Blanket ministry, lovingly crafting expressions of care and support for those facing physical or emotional struggle, even trauma (such as the blankets sent overseas to soldiers in places of conflict). We gathered in OLG to witness the enduring pain of the Holocaust, and the rich prayer traditions of the Islamic faith. We even tried to have a coffee house with music there once – not one of our better attempts at ministry.  Whether it was permitting more personal conversations with Outreach clients or small group discussions for Adult Confirmation prep classes, this versatile space supported it all. We hosted neighborhood association planning meetings there and during one period provided it as a place to vote. …. I think you get the picture. OLG always came through when a flexible accessible meeting place was needed.

There are other nooks and crannies that round out Newman Hall:…..St. Augustine across from the cantankerous elevator, where the Women of Faith Unbound met (the sponsors of our Mary of Magdela and Phoebe statuary). The St. Joan & Raymond room– aka the catacombs at the base of the little-used southern staircase, where the masculine spirituality group met for years; and the little known but frequently used St. Vincent de Paul room off the secret stairs on the west end of Hecker Hall, which morphed effortlessly from small meeting room into storage space for Christmas Basket ingredients into where the extra chairs got parked. Do you know that it once housed the parish’s library – yea, we had a library at one time.

I could go on, but I hope that this string of memories might spark a few of your own as you walk around this place one last time. Such as just around the courtyard– the start of the Easter Vigil around the fountain – the yearly attack of the Mocking Bird – pecan sales; cookie sales; raffle tickets…..just a whole range of unique encounters on those memorable bricks….Yep, that courtyard has a whole chapter unto itself. The main message is that as we leave this place, we are taking its spirit, its stories, its memories with us as guides for the journey forward.

Let us continue on the pilgrimage started here in 1908, bringing the Light embedded here into its future, into our future.