Please click here to Enjoy a Tour of Our Beautiful Church!

OLL Church Tour
2832 Rosebud Drive
Cincinnati, Ohio 45238
Phone: 513 922- 0715
Parish Website: www..lourdes.org
Page 2
Welcome to Our Lady of Lourdes
We are happy you are here. We hope you enjoy your visit
with our parish family.
Our Parish History
Our Lady of Lourdes Parish began Easter Sunday, April 17, 1927.
The first Mass was celebrated by
Father Francis Biendl (1927-1932) in
Dr. Charles Murray’s home located
near the site of the present church.
Six months later the white frame
building was completed as the first
church. Archbishop John T. McNicholas was the spiritual leader of the
Archdiocese of Cincinnati at that
time. Rapid growth followed.
Shortly after the frame church
came another frame building
was erected to serve as OLL
School.
Our first festival was held in 1928. Energetic Father George
Grunkemeyer (1932-1945) was OLL’s second pastor. He was succeeded by Father George Lamott (1945-1971).
Under Fr. Lamott, there was tremendous growth in the postWorld War II era. In 1948, part of the present school building
was built. Until the present church, both the school cafeteria and
the gym were used as our church.
REMEMBER, O most gracious Virgin Mary,
that never was it known that anyone
who fled to thy protection, implored thy help,
or sought thy intercession was left unaided.
Inspired with this confidence, I fly to thee,
O Virgin of virgins, my Mother; to thee do I come;
before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful.
O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my
petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me.
Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.
Amen
Our Lady of Lourdes
In 1960, the school annex was completed with eight classrooms. It
is called St. Bernadette Hall. A convent was built in 1961. Now it is
the Parish Office Center. The present church was built in 1967. An
outward structure was added in 1981.
Our beautiful hand
carved crucifix
above our altar was
donated by parishioner Marion Subler
in memory of his
late wife Emma Subler in 2006. It was
carved in Italy by
Moroder Company,
the same company
that carved the statue of the Risen
Christ in the Gathering Space and Our
Lady of Lourdes by
the Altar.
Msgr. Tensing was our pastor
from 1971 to 1986. He was
succeeded by Fr. Francis J.
Miller 1986 to 1992 and Fr.
Edward L. Rudemiller 1992 to
2005. In 1999, our Fulfilling
Our Dream project began.
Under Fr. Rudy’s leadership
the grotto was moved to
Rosebud, Tensing Hall was
erected on Glenway, and our
Church was renovated.
Our current pastor, Fr. David Sunberg, came to Lourdes in 2005. In
commemoration of our parish 80th anniversary in 2007, several
parish benefactors added to the beauty of our Church. Under Fr.
Dave’s leadership, our church and school continue its strong traditions. The strength of Lourdes is the goodness of its people, manifested by a strong faith, deep
hope and an active love that
cares and shares.
Pastors of Our Lady of Lourdes
Fr. Frances Biendl
Fr. George Grunkemeyer
Fr. George Lamott
Msgr. Robert Tensing
Fr. Francis Miller
Fr. Edward Rudemiller
Fr. David Sunberg
Fr. Len Wenke
Page 3
1927 — 1932
1932 — 1945
1945 — 1971
1971 – 1986
1986 — 1992
1992 - 2005
2005 – 2016
2016—
Our parish is named after the
apparitions of Our Blessed Mother to St. Bernadette Soubirous, at
Lourdes France in 1854. The
shrine of Lourdes is known for
its curative powers. Over five
million people visit Lourdes each
year. We have much to be thankful for here at OLL. God has been
very good to us and blessed us
with many gifts of His love.
May our Blessed Mother
continue to watch over us and
keep us close to Jesus.
Page 4
As you approach the church from the
parking lot, you will first notice
the beautiful
outside doors
made of sturdy oak. They were
designed for the Gathering Space
to make it handicap accessible.
Like our own home, the doors
welcome family and friends into
our home. We are reminded of
the words Jesus says to us,
“Knock and it shall be opened to
you.” (Lk.11:9)
All who pass
through these doors are welcomed by Christ and share in His
life.
As you enter the church you, will be in the
Gathering Space
In this space, your attention will be drawn to
the FOUR HANGING LIGHT FIXTURES. These
are from the original White Frame Church.
They were taken out of storage, refinished and
polished in 2001. (Left to right) Cross, Ship,
HIS, Jesus Christ. The cross is the central image of our faith, for by the cross, Christ
achieved our salvation. The ship is an ancient image of the
church. She sails across the rough waters of life, carrying the
pilgrims of Jesus to the promised shores of the Kingdom.
The Gathering Space is embellished by beautiful stained glass
windows, which are intertwined with four windows from the old
Church (1966). The Eucharist (bread & wheat), The Eucharist
(wine & grapes), The lily and tools represent St. Joseph, The roses and water represent the appearance of Mary at Lourdes,
France) and four new ones all designed by parishioner Dee
Fagedes. The four new windows representing Baptism, Alpha,
Omega, and Matrimony for the new church were created by River City Glass Company, Northern Kentucky and made by parishioner David Danenhauer.
Our Lady of Lourdes
Page 13
ST. THERESA, LITTLE FLOWER is
made of plaster and was purchased by Fr. Lamott.
INFANT
OF
PRAGUE
is made of
plaster,
1927. Devotion to
the infant
Jesus, celebrates
the “Child
of God” the great
mystery
of
the
incarnat i o n .
T h e
child in all of us believes in the
humanity and the divinity of
Christ, and rejoices in God’s
caring love for us.
ST ANTHONY - is made of
plaster and was in the White
Frame Church, 1927.
It was refurbished by alumni
and parishioner Aimee Wolf
Reilly in 2001.
Our Lady of Lourdes
Page 12
Page 5
THE STATUES
around our Church
THE RISEN CHRIST
The Risen Christ
statue
was
purchased in 2001.
It is made of
Linden wood and
was hand painted
by the artisans
from the studio of
Conrad Moroder in
Ortisei, Italy.
OUR LADY OF LOURDES is
made of Linden wood and
was hand carved in Italy
by the Moroder Co in
2001.
SACRED HEART AND
ST. JOSEPH
are made of Linden wood
and were purchased in
1981
BAPTISTRY BOWL
The bowl is made of green St. Denis Marble
with waves of gold Venetian and was used in
the 1966 church. The cover is bronze and
includes a cross, knob and lock. The Pedestal
was purchased for the present church. It is
through the waters of baptism that we are
reborn into new life in Christ. It stands at the
threshold of the Church to remind us that
through baptism we have life also in the
Church and the other Sacraments
FULFILLING
OUR
MEMORIAL BOOK
DREAM
On the wall by the entrance is
a permanent memorial book
which lists all of the dedicated
and generous people who
donated time, treasure and
talent to the renovation of our
Church and expansion of our
beautiful campus.
AS WE LEAVE THE GATHERING SPACE, ENTERING THE MAIN
BODY OF THE CHURCH OUR EYES FOCUS ON:
Page 6
Our Lady of Lourdes
The ALTAR is the most important part of the Church
because it represents Christ
who is the center for Our
Lady of Lourdes parish family. It is a symbol of Christ,
strong, sturdy, the center of
worship of our Church. It is
made of oak and contains
the front and side panels
from the 1966 altar, which
are made of Botticino marble. The altar, ambo, credence table, and
the pedestals for the statues were made by the
Wittrock Company.
A Beautiful HAND-CARVED CRUCIFIX hangs
above the altar to remind us that the connection
of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross is the same
sacrifice offered on the altar each time Mass is
celebrated.
THE ANGELS AND
SCRIPT PAINTED
above
the
Altar
were done by professional artist, Andrea Frangiosa. This project was a gift
from several parishioner families in
honor of the 80th anniversary of our
parish in 2007.
PROCESSIONAL CRUCIFIX AND STAND behind the
present altar were designed and crafted by parishioner
Lou Cassaro. The Corpus was taken
from the Cross that hung in the sacristy
prior to the renovated church.
THURIBLES where incense is burned
are from the original Church .
Page 11
Our beautiful Stained Glass windows from the previous Church
(1966): Madonna & Child, Christ & Little Children, and the Risen
Christ surround the Archive Room .
Page 10
Our Lady of Lourdes
The CRY ROOM was erected
in the space that had been
two confessionals in old
church.
The ARCHIVE
ROOM is
the old entrance to
the Church. The
cross and stained
glass hanging was
designed by
parishioner Dee
Fagedes.
PEWS AND CHAIRS were purchased in 2001
from Sauder Mfg., Archbold, Ohio. The Church
seats approximately 964 people. The pews
from the previous Church are being used at Our
Lady of Guadalupe Chapel in Peoples, Ohio.
TO THE LEFT OF THE ALTAR AND AROUND THE REAR OF
CHURCH …
CHAPEL OF
RESERVATION was
designed as a place
where the Tabernacle
containing
consecrated hosts are
reserved and is a
space for private
prayer.
Our
ARCHIVE DISPLAY along the wall was built by parishioner
Dan Locaputo, Dave Wittrock, and friends and was dedicated to
Sr. Ann Mary Lay, RSM,
on May 23, 2004 in
gratitude for her many
years of devotion to OLL
as our pastoral minister
and archivist.
Page 7
TABERNACLE
dates back to the
church when it was
in the school gym in
the 1960’s. The rail protecting this space is from the 1966 church
communion rail made of Botticino Marble top. The candleholders
are made of brass and marble. They were purchased by Fr. Lamott
in 1966.
SANCTUARY LIGHTS
were newly purchased in 2001. Rail protecting this space is from the 1966 church communion rail which
had Botticino Marble top.
HOLY WATER FONTS were purchased in 1981
and refurbished by parishioner Larry Stock in
2001. As we enter and leave it is tradition to
bless ourselves with Holy Water to remind ourselves who we are by baptism, children of God,
and that our mission is to go forth and share the
Good News of Jesus.
Page 8
SACRISTY
Our Lady of Lourdes
Page 9
is in the original space when Church was erected in
1966.
FOURTEEN STATIONS OF THE
CROSS are from school gym church,
PRESENT SACRISTY CROSS
was donated by Ed
and Betty Burke in memory of their son, James
Edward who died October 25, 1967, at age 18, from
cancer. It had Previously hung above the Altar
(1981).
cleaned and refurbished by parishioners Dee Fagedes and Lynn Stock in
2001.
SOUND SYSTEM was
STAINED GLASS WINDOWS of 1966 that
were behind the choir, are now in the sacristy
and in confessionals to the right of altar.
VOTIVE
CANDLE AREA
purchased from Nor-Com.
PIANO is a Wurlitzer purchased
in 2001 and has an electric attachment. Cost $15,000.00. This
was donated anonymously.
ORGAN was purchased in September, 1978 .
TWO CONFESSIONALS
THE PIETA …...was
purchased in 1967 by Fr. Lamott. It was
purchased through Amerigo di Martino
Barsanti and is made of Carrara marble.
The Pieta was donated by Katherine
Huelsman. Stand donated by Florence
Bruns, our sacristan and housekeeper
for many years.
next to
organ and choir space are in their
original space, plus the mosaic
glass windows from the old
church have been added. It is here
that the sinner is reconciled to the
Lord and to the Church.
PLAQUES on the side wall are erected in honor of our past pastors.
The first plaque purchased was of Fr. Lamott after his death. Msgr.
Tensing’s plaque was put up when he retired. The first two pastor’s, Fr. Biendl and Fr. Grunkemeyer, were crafted and hung after
Fr. Edward Rudemiller arrived.