WILMINGTON — All homes need to be maintained, especially those that are more than 100 years old. That includes spiritual homes, such as St. Hedwig Church in Wilmington, which went through a series of procedures spanning 15 years and ending this past spring.
The checkup of the twin-spired church in Wilmington’s Browntown and Hedgeville neighborhoods began nearly 20 years ago when parish leaders decided to have the exterior examined, said Ed Lipka, a parishioner who is a member of the team that worked on the restoration. The report the team received, complete with photos, showed a structure in good shape, but it needed some things done.
After launching a capital campaign and working with the diocesan Building Committee, work began. A lot of the concrete on the steeples was cracking, Lipka said, as nothing had been done to them since 1960 under the direction of Msgr. John Gulcz, who was pastor for 65 years. The church opened in 1905. The woodwork on the louvers was in good shape, and all window frames were restored.
“The work started, as far as exterior pointing, in 2008,” Lipka said.
After more than 50 years of exposure to the weather, along with normal wear and tear, all of the mortar joints were ground out and replaced. All of the concrete sills and anchors were replaced or repaired and sealed. When that was done, brick was repointed and the ornamental limestone was restored.
The large rose window frame on the front of the church was scraped, primed and painted. The side walls and transepts were updated. Most critical, according to a parish publication celebrating the parish’s 125th anniversary, the rear and sanctuary walls needed to be addressed, and they were difficult to access. The work was scheduled in phases depending on the weather. It took more than five years to complete.
One area of particular concern were the crosses on top of the steeples, Lipka said. “What do they look like? What are they made of? Are they going to start leaking, and is the water going to come down through the center of the steeples and flood the towers?”
That was just before the coronavirus pandemic hit. The parish had a steeplejack from Philadelphia lined up and all necessary approvals. During the pandemic, the steeplejack went out of business, so the committee had to find another one. The Jack Hassler Co. of Philadelphia came in, and they had to build scaffolding and climb up every day.
“The only time a crane was brought in was to take the old crosses off, put them down, Lipka said. “Four weeks, they had them re-gold leafed, and then put back on the roof.”
That was last December. During the work, a new lightning-rod system was put in place at the church and next door at the rectory. The parishioners raised the $165,000 needed for
that job.
“People are generous,” said Father Andrew Molewski, who has been the pastor for 25 years.
The crosses are made of lead-coated copper, according to Lipka, and were fashioned by hand. They weren’t sure if they were original with the building or installed at a later date.
“But whoever built those things knew what the heck they were doing. They were a perfect piece of engineering,” Lipka said.
‘Part of the beauty’
He noted that the parish is a bit smaller than when it had a school, but St. Hedwig’s is doing well. Father Molewski said he invited parishioners from St. Stanislaus to join after that church closed in 2009, and most accepted the invitation.
Gary Rose, a parishioner and member of the restoration team, said there are 10 churches in the city deanery, and all are historic buildings, which attracts people from beyond their geographic boundaries.
“That’s part of the beauty of the city churches. We have people come from the suburbs for Mass throughout the week, even north of the border in Pennsylvania,” he said.
Doing this maintenance will help ensure the future of St. Hedwig’s, Rose said. The parish is still financially viable, and it is welcoming to area residents day and night.
“There was a young lady at the door when I got here who needed to talk to Father, and he stopped and went in and talked to the lady. He’s always accessible,” Rose said. “That’s the religious side of it. The maintenance side, thank goodness for Father and his knowledge and the people in the parish. We’ve maintained this building and kept it up. It’s been fixed when the problem has been found.”
Father Molewski has been a priest for 41 years, and after stops at Corpus Christi and St. Elizabeth parishes, he arrived at St. Hedwig. He is grateful for the people of his parish.
Their work, he said, allows him to concentrate on the pastoral aspects of his ministry.
“I work here 24 hours and seven days a week,” he said, exaggerating only slightly. “I have no days off. We have a lot of funerals here, weddings, baptisms. There’s constantly someone knocking at the door and asking for advice or for help. It is for what I am, to serve God’s people. God provides to those people.”
The work on the steeples finally wrapped up this past spring, and Lipka said the regilded crosses are now even more visible from I-95 and elsewhere. But the work will continue. Rose said the Stations of the Cross need to be repainted, but it is a job that requires a specialist. The parish has also hired someone to come in and inspect all of the stained-glass windows.
“There’s a little bit of work that needs to be done there,” he said.
Staying on top of the work is key, Lipka said. “We take care of it before the Band-Aid becomes a gauze bandage.”
