|
What, When, Why.
This page is still under active construction. The HOME page contains links that bring visitors directly to the latest updates.
The period 2003-2008 is still largely unfilled. We are adding elements on a nearly daily basis. If you are interested in following the development of this story on this site, visit the Home page and click on the links to see what has been added since your last visit.
For the period before SOS-Églises was established in 2000-2001, there are gaps in the sequence of events presented because our files are incomplete for this period. We feel however that it is important to share all the information that we do have on file at this time because what came before the actual crisis is important. The contribution of the people who were involved in the preliminary stages must also be recognized. As more information becomes available,the gaps will be filled.
All the newspaper articles ( Windsor
Star. Lakeshore News, Tilbury Times, Le Rempart) are copyrighted material reproduced with permission
from their original sources for presentation on this website.
This chronology does not contain electronic media coverage (Radio-Canada, TFO, TVO, CBC, and commercial television stations) because that information is currently lacking in our files
only.
Pre 2000-
1996-
1997-
1998-
1999-
2000-
2001-
2002-
2003-
2004
2004 to 2007
Pre 2000
Saint-Joachim and Annonciation parishioners invested considerable time and money in recent maintance and repair projects for their churches.
For example, in 1987,
the Building Committee of Saint-Joachim undertook a long-term plan restoration and maintenance plan to improve and restore this church.(See report) They started with the foundation which they found to be sound and strong and resting solidly on hard yellow clay. In the following years, many areas were repaired or improved: sidewalk, meeting room, exterior lights, facia, overhang, eavestrough,septic system,windows... And the hallway was covered with a rubber membrane, the bell tower floor was resurfaced, new doors were installed, basement windows were replaced with glass blocks, steel lintels were installed to suppport the bricks on all windows and a wheel-chair ramp was built. Two new furnaces and two air conditioning units and a new hydro panel were installed, etc etc...
This is just a partial list of the work that was done. In addition to countless volunteer hours, the community invested over 100 000$ to undertake those projects.
Annonciation parishioners also were diligent in keeping their church in good condition. In the years preceding the clustering of the parishes, over 400 000$ were invested in the upkeep of Annonciation church. The brick was repointed, the roof was reshingled, the interior was renovated and upgraded, an elevator was installed for handicapped parishioners, windows were glazed, storm windows were replaced , etc..
There was much for the parishioners to be proud, and the Pastor concluded his report of 1989 renovations with the prayer that he and his flock would "...continue to do our part to preserve for future generations what our ancestors have passed on to us.."
1996
- The Ontario Planning Act 1996 states "..Significant built
heritage and cultural heritage landscapes will be conserved.." Note the use of the word "will" (as opposed to the word "should"!).
- The municipalities of Rochester (location of Saint-Joachim church) and Tilbury North (location of Annonciation church) include in their Official plans a policy statement in support of heritage conservation. Those municipal plans (Rochester, Tilbury )adopted prior to the 1999 municipal amalgamation creating the Town of Lakeshore are in effect until the adoption of the Official Plan for the Lakeshore, which has not yet been officially adopted.
1997
1 February
The Ontario Government publishes a revised policy statement in support of built heritage
conservation in municipal planning.
10 February
Adrien Sylvestre, Chair of the Saint-Joachim Building committee, writes to the Chevalier Engineering Association asking for a Service and Fee Proposal for a Building Condition Assessment Report for the St-Joachim church. This study was suggested by the Diocese. The Diocese had suggested Allan Avis Architect for this project, but the Building Committee retained the Chevalier engineering firm because that firm was very familiar with the Saint-Joachim church building.
21 February
Chevalier Engineering submit a $2000 proposal to undertake the study. The proposal is accepted and the study undertaken in consultation with diocesan officials.
18 May
At a meeting of the building committee, the parish priest reports that he talked to a diocesan official who told him that the diocese would question projects that cost more than $5000 on a building that may not be around in 25-50 years.
30 July
Chevalier Engineering submits its report to the Building Committee. It identifies 11 areas in need of repair that should be given priority. A diocesan official, Gary Minall, continues to be involved in the follow-up to this report.
29 August
Gary Minall and Gerry Chevalier attend a meeting of the Building Committee to discuss the report's recommendations.
29 September
The Committee studies the recommendations in detail.
21 September 1997
The Parish bulletin informs parishioners that "...the process of clustering St-Joachim, Annunciation and Our Lady of Lourdes parishes will begin on October 1st 1997".
1998
(The information for 1998 is currently not available in our files.)
1999
The firm Allan Avis Architect hired by the Diocese submits its report on the cost of repairs of the three churches in the clustered parishes.
2000
10 May
Father Dwayne Adam, pastor of the three clustered parishes, and Father Anthony Daniels, Vicar General of the Diocese of London, announce that the Saint-Joachim church will be temporarily closed after a piece of plaster fell from the ceiling. They also announce that there will be a public information meeting on June 11 to present the Allan Avis report on the cost of repairing the three churches.
1 June 2000
A public meeting is held in Saint-Jean-Baptiste Hall in Saint-Joachim to present the Allan Avis report on the condition of the three churches. At the end of the meeting, three possible follow-up scenarios are presented: repairing the three churches, repairing Annonciation, or replacing the three building with a new building. Questions or discussion on the scenarios presented are not allowed. Another information meeting will be held September 10
But according to a later review of the Avis Report figures by parishioners familiar with local resources, over $2 000 000 could be have been removed from the repair estimates if such things as volunteer contribution by local skilled persons had been factored in.
18 June 2000
'Cluster Parish Report'
A review of the June 11 public information meeting is presented in the parish bulletin. A recap of three options presented. A September 10 public meeting is announced. This meeting would be followed by a referendum in which parishioners will be asked to chose between the three options. Except for the September meeting announcement, there is no French language version of the information presented.
21 August 2000
In a message entitled 'Capital project freeze' Mgr Sherlock informs parishes in the Diocese that
all church construction and repair projects are to be suspended .
27 August
Information is presented in the parish bulletin on the public information meeting to be held September 10. Parishioners are informed that they may submit written questions in advance of the meeting.
10 September 2000
Church authorities hold a second public information meeting during which questions submitted in advance are answered. Many complain that there was very little time allowed for follow-up questions and other questions from the floor. In the pre-referendum information activities, very little, if any, reference is made to the heritage value of the century-old buildings. The report from the Avis architectural firm had however warned church authorities that while it may be possible to build a new church, it will not be possible to build a church with historical significance.
It should be noted that at that point in time, there was not a full public awareness of the implication of the three options, and consequently, no organized movement was in place to promote the conservation options. As is the case in most popular 'uprisings' against projects devised by public bodies, it takes a while for citizens to get organized and react.
17 September 2000
The parish bulletin presents information about the options that will be on the ballot of the upcoming referendum.
After reading this information, could there be any doubt how church leaders wanted the faithful to vote?
Note the dismissive terminology used to describe the repair options: the purpose of repairing Annonciation would be to "retain some of the history of our geographical location.." ! Geographical location ? How much farther removed can one be from the concept of architectural conservation. And from stewardship responsibilities...
They were correct however to point out that estimated costs can be just that: estimations. The mistake was to apply the right concept to the wrong option (repairs).
According to the Parish Bulletin, as of March 1st 2008, the cost of the new church has gone from the estimated $4 000 000 to a bit over $6 000 000 ("invoices paid to date").
24 September 2000
A referendum is held. Parishioners are asked to choose between three options:
1. repair of all three buildings
2. repair of one of the buildings (Annoncation, because it is the largest)
3. construction of a new church
A 65% miminum level of support is required for the construction of the new church option. An accounting firm is hired to tabulate the results.
On the Sunday preceding the vote, the parish priest uses the pulpit to present the advantages of a new church. The priest informs the congregation that an anonymous donour would contribute $1 000 000 to the project but only if the construction option is accepted.
A controversy arose regarding the role played by the Pastor in the preparation activities leading to the referendum. Father Dwayne Adam has considerable personnal charisma and is very popular with parishioners who sincerely appreciate his contribution to the success of the parish during his tenure, especially with the youth.
Many witnesses attest that at an English mass shortly before the vote, he told the assembly that a new church would be an excellent way of expressing their appreciation for the 14 years of service he has given to the community. The parish priest denies under oath that he has said this, but Court affidavits have been obtained from persons whose integrity is also beyond question that he did make that statement in church. This controversy may seem insignificant but for any one familiar with the local situation, such a statement from the deservedly very popular Pastor would have determined the results of the referendum and condemned the existing churches.
24 September 2000
The September 24 issue of the parish bulletin contains a message from the Pastor about the reaction of the community towards the referendum process.
The only recognition by church authorities that many parishioners are opposed to plans to replace the heritage churches has been from the beginning dismissive and negative. (See also the bishop's April 24 2001 letter to parishioners. The only hint that heritage conservation is an issue in the debate are references to people being obsessed with the past (see
Regretably, SOS-Églises members are associated in parish and diocesan public statements with incidents of harassment of the parish priest. Personal attacks against any one is not a practice condonned by SOS-Églises. As SOS-Églises has said and written countless time, Father Dwayne deserves much credit for the success of the Annonciation parish where he has served for many years. This is not a personnal issue, it is a legitimate public debate about a project that a substantial number of parishioners and other residents consider to be harmful. See the SOS-Églises flier to residents about this.
27 September 2000
Referendum results are announced. Of a registered parish population of over 2000, 830 parishioners participated. 529 parishioners voted (63.7%)in favor of building a new church; this would fall short of the 65% that was set as the minimum level of support. But the calculations are based on the results achieved separately in each of the three communities (average of averages). Calculated that way, the percentage is 64.9%.
In this way, the 85 Comber votes were given the same weight as the 549 Stoney Point votes . The rationale of the Parish was that this way would ensure that the larger communities of the cluster (Saint-Joachim and Pointe-aux-Roches) would not impose their will on the smaller one, Comber.
Actually, the reverse happened. The 62 Comber parishioners who voted for the new church tipped the scale against the preservation of the architectural heritage of its two French-Canadian partners in the cluster. Without Comber’s control of 33% of the results, the previously set minimum level of support (65%)would not have been reached.
To understand the importance of this, consider the following "what if" scenario:
62 of 85 Comber voters opted for the church construction project, giving that option a 72.9% approval rating in Comber. If 4 of those 62 voters had voted for the restoration option instead, the Comber pro-construction rating would have gone from 72.9% to 68.2%. Add this result to the pro-construction results in the two other communities : 68.2% + 64.7% + 58.3% = 63.7%. The 65% threshold would not have been reached. From that perspective, it can be argued that 4 people from Comber decided the fate of two heritage churches. Two heritage churches outside their community.
6 October 2000
The Pastor, Father Dwayne Adam, exhorts parishioners to work together now that a decision has been made to replace the village churches with a new church.
The message contains much materials that throws light on the nature of the debate that has occured in the community.
The wording of the message shows the large gap between, not only the opinions of the proponents of heritage conservation and church authorities, but also between the basic premisses from which both sides function.
The message tries to leave the impression that the church construction supporters are forward thinking people more concerned about the future than about the past. By that definition, opponents would be locked in the past and blind to what the future requires.
Conservationalists do not see the past and the future as competing priorities. On the contrary, they see both as being linked and part of a healthy continuum. Devout Catholics who are proponents of heritage conservation should take comfort in the fact that their position is very much consistent with the basic philosophy of the Catholic Church where Tradition holds nearly as much influence as the Scriptures in its practices and beliefs.
In the discourse about the construction of the new church, there has been numerous claims by construction proponents that they do not ignore the past but take inspiration from it by imitating our ancestors who built new churches. SOS-Églises has reservations about this. Our ancestors build churches where there were none. Their role in the continuum was to give future generations the facilities needed for the Church to move on to other tasks. It is our responsibility to make full use of their contributions and use our resources not to redo the past (building churches), but to move on toward other areas of endeavour.
1996-
1997-
1998-
1999-
2000-
2001-
2002-
2003-
2004 to 2007
2001
February 2001
Marcel Belisle begins to knock on doors in St-Joachim
to gather support for the conservation of the church. He
is joined by Paul Trépanier, Adrien
Sylvestre, Madeleine Leal, Larry Mailloux, David and Debra
Kostanjevec ...
SOS founders, Adrien Sylvestre (standing)and Marcel Belisle (seated, on his right).
In the photo: David Kostanjevec (playing the guitar) and his wife Debra (in black, leading the song at an SOS-Églises Christmas party). Between them are Maurice Sylvestre (of Tacita Campana fame!- see June 2004)and Larry Mailloux.
March 2001
Marcel Belisle meets with the parish priest of a nearby
village who is a friend of his to ask for his advise as
to how to proceed. The priest suggests that Marcel meet Bishop Grecco. Marcel calls Mgr Grecco who indicates his willingness to meet him and others but that a written report be submitted to him on the matter (see March 26 below).
1 March 2001
David Tremblay asks the Pastor, Father Dwayne Adam, for an opportunity to discuss the church replacement project. Father Adam refers him to the Parish Council.
6 March 2001
Windsor Star
Churches and history - Editorial
14 March 2001
Windsor Star
Landmark churches face wreckers’ ball
15 March 2001
Windsor Star
Destroying a Heritage column by Gord Henderson
15 March 2001
Windsor Star>
Preservationist eye St.Joachim: Emergency action planned to save one of three threatened churches
19 March 2001
Windsor Star
Razing churches sparks split- Generational rift emerging over decision to demolish landmarks
20 March 2001
Windsor Star
Parishioners ask for second opinion
20 March 2001
Windsor Star
Closing indicates local culture dead at the root -Letter from Timothy Jacques
20 March 2001
Windsor Star
Responsibility to preserve historic buildings - Letter from P. Davis
20 March 2001
Windsor Star
Demolition debated-Henderson insensitive to need for moving ahead - Letter from R. Giroux
21 March 2001
Tilbury Times and Lakeshore News
Parishioners agree to close local Catholic churches
21 March 2001
Windsor Star
ACO initiative challenged
24 March 2001
Windsor Star
Don’t reduce churches to pile of rubble -Letter from Rita Brisette -
26 March 2001
Windsor Star
Take a piece of beloved church to use in new Letter from Catherine Brown -
26 March 2001
Windsor Star
Jesus didn’t need a fancy building to preach Letter from Guy Dierckens
26 March 2001
A ten-year member of the Saint-Joachim Building Committe, Adrien Sylvestre, whose professional background is in construction and engineering, sends a report to Mgr Grecco informing him of the extensive money and time investments that were recently made by the community in the upkeep and repair of their church.
Mr Sylvestre conveys his concern about the process used by the Diocese in obtaining professional expertise to determine the work that still needs to be done. He refers to the parish's own data obtained from an engineering firm (Chevalier Engineering) which do not agree with the Avis conclusions in terms of costs.
26 March 2001
Five Saint-Joachim parishioners ((Adrien Sylvestre, Marcel Bélisle, Maurice Sylvestre, Debbra and David Kostanjevec) write a 5 page letter to Mgr Grecco. This letter is written in the name of SOS. It it a follow-up to a conversation the week before between Marcel Bélisle and Mgr Grecco. The letter touches on a number of points. It explains why the century-old church is important for the community. It gives many reasons why the results of the referendum of September 2000 are questionable, and why, in any event, the Diocese should not be bound by them. Questions are raised about the clustering process which was supposed to 'respect differences and support cultural growth in our communities'. In fact, the Saint-Joachim parish was closed and folded in Annonciation.
Photos of the five signataries can be viewed in various pictures in the "Members of SOS-Églises at work" section of the Photos page.
27 March 2001
Windsor Star
Parishioners had chance to save old church Letter from Mary Masse -
28 March 2001
Windsor Star
People staying away so
churches are closing - Letter from L. Cadarette
28 March 2001
In his reply to the March 26 letter from the five parishioners, Mgr Grecco of the Diocese of London proposes a meeting to discuss the matters raised in the March 26 letter. He informs the group that Father Tony Daniels, Vicar General, will contact them to set up the meeting which should be held as soon as possible prior to Holy Week.
31 March 2001
David Tremblay meets Annette Rondot, Chair of the Parish Council to ask her two questions: What is needed for another referendum to be held? Why was it an automatic decision that the churches had to be demolished? Annette asks that the questions be put on paper for them to be considered by Parish Council. David agrees and sends the question in a letter the Parish Council with a copy to the Diocese.
End of March 2001
An invitation is distributed across the three villages to attend a public information meeting on the fate of the 'historical churches'. One of the purposes of the meeting is to determne the level of public support for a campaign to save the churches.
3 April 2001
Windsor Star
Citizens aim to save church
4 April 2001
A public meeting convened by David Tremblay of Pointe-aux-Roches is held at the Sportmen's Club of Pointe-aux-Roches to provide the hundreds of people who object to the replacement of their village churches with an opportunity to express their concerns. One of the purposes of the meeting was also to gauge the community support for the conservation of the century-old buildings. The large meeting room is full, a clear indication that there is strong support for the conservation of the two century-old churches. David Tremblay who has just been asked to lead the movement sets the tone for the upcoming campaign. In his introductory remarks, he makes it clear that no personal attacks on church authorities will be tolerated.
4 April 2001
Lakeshore News
Save our Churches - photo
5 April 2001
Windsor Star
Church issue stirs emotion
11 April 2001
Parishioners from Annonciation de Pointe-aux-Roches and members of the SOS group from Saint-Joachim meet to plan a common campaign to save the two churches.
David Tremblay, who has extensive experience in municipal politics is asked to be the spokesperson for the group.
Other decisions made at that meeting:
- a request for another referendum will be made;
- the goal of the committee will be to save the churches as churches;
- SOS will send a delegation to the April 24th Town of Lakeshore Council meeting to ask for the heritage designation of the churches.
11 April 2001
Le Rempart
Près de 300 personnes contestent la demolition des églises de Pointe-aux-Roches, Saint-Joachim et Comber.
11 April 2001
Tilbury Times
Common Goal and
Interest helps bring family together
11 April 2001
Windsor Star
Only 20 percent
voted in parish Letter from Marcel Belisle :
17 April 2001
Windsor Star
Voters have spoken, too bad more did not take the time - Letter from Jim Chute :
18 April 2001
Le Rempart
Letter from Mgr Sherlock - Mise au point au sujet des actions de Mgr Fallon
19 April 2001
Patricia Malicki, President of the Windsor Region Branch of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario, writes to David Tremblay to support the request for designation of the two churches
20 April 2001
Windsor Star
Support is needed to keep churches open - Letter from Marcel Belisle
24 April 2001
In an open letter to parishioners, the Bishop of the Diocese of London, Mgr Sherlock expresses his support of the decision to replace the existing churches with a new building.
The letter also gives the impression that efforts to conserve the village churches constitute an attack on the Pastor. It is reported that there were incidents where the Pastor has been the object of harassment. This type of behaviour is reprehensible. From the very beginning of the campaign, SOS-Églises leadership made it clear that any form of personal attack on anyone would not be tolerated. All our attempts to dialogue with the Diocese and Parish have been courteous and respectful. A flier was sent to all households in the three village to make that clear. The issue in this debate is heritage conservation, not animosity toward any individual.
A few weeks later, a parishioner refers to those comments from Bishop Sherlock in a statement presented to church officials.
24 April 2001
In a letter to the Town Council of Lakeshore, Paul Chauvin, President of the Conseil régional Windsor-Kent-Essex of the Association canadienne-française de l'Ontario, expresses the support of his organization for David Tremblay'a proposal that the municipality include a heritage conservation policy in its Official Plan.
Paul is the smiling gentleman, second from the right, second row, in photo (6) of the section "Members of SOS-Églises at work") in the Photos page
24 April 2001
David Tremblay of SOS-Églises addresses Lakeshore Municipal Council (see Lakeshore News photo ) to propose that the municipality include heritage site protection in its Official Plan. He also proposes that a Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee be established. He mentions three sites that require the OHA protection from demolition: the century-old village churches in Pointe-aux-Roches and Saint-Joachim, and the lighthouse in Lighthouse Cove. (Council subsequentely designated the Lighthouse and made it the centerpiece of the Town logo. See www.lakeshore.ca).
Paul Chauvin, president of the regional council of the Association canadienne-française de l'Ontario, informs Council of its support of the SOS-Églises proposals.
Paul Mahon speaks on behalf of the council of the clustered parishes and informed Lakeshore Council that the decision to build a new church was binding and final. He also informed SOS-Églises and Acfo that they should contact the Diocese if they are interested in purchasing the two churches.
SOS-Églises twice offered to purchase the Saint-Joachim building at a price advantageous to the Diocese (compared to the other offer it had received which included the demolition of the building by the Diocese). Twice the offer was turned down.
The Tremblay proposal is referred by Council to staff for study in the context of historical designation policies in the Official Plan under development. See extract of minutes of meeting.
25 April 2001
Windsor Star
Council drawn into fight - Group asks for historical designations to save
churches from demolition
2 May l 2001
Lakeshore News
Council asked to designate church an historical building
2 May 2001
>
Le Rempart
David Tremblay demande la désignation des églises patrimoniales
3 May 2001
David Tremblay as spokesperson of SOS-Églises writes to the parish advisory committee and asks for an opportunity to make a presentation at its May 24 meeting in order to inform the Council of SOS's concern and undertake a dialogue on this issues which is dividing the community.
6 May 2001
The parish bulletin contains a short poem by an anonymous author who believes that since God said "I AM" and not "I WAS" or "I WILL BE" He meant that we should not be interested in the past or in the future ! No reference is made to the heritage churches situation, of course, but it could easily be inferred by some parishioners that God is against heritage conservation!
10 May 2001
Annette Rondot responds
(p1) (p2) to David Tremblay's earlier written queries.
In his January 21 2002 letter to Father Dwayne a parishioner, Michael Lanoue, paints a different picture of the process described in the Parish Advisory Board response
10 May 2001
Windsor Star
New Catholic Church cause for concern -Letter from Marcel Belisle
10 May 2001
Windsor Star
Past Policies may help old churches
16 May 2001
Windsor Star
Focus on churches
16 May 2001
Windsor Star
Building may change but not parishioners
16 May 2001
Windsor Star
Bulding won't make a Catholic a good Catholic Letter from M. Major
22 May 2001
Windsor Star
Differences on churches should be aired openly Letter from Mary Bouillon
23 May l 2001
Le Rempart
Mgr Sherlock soutient le processus décisionnel
23 May 2001
Tilbury Times
Questions to be answered Letter from L. Elliot
24 May 2001
Windsor Star
Destroying our churches destroys our heritage- Letter from Jerome Baillargeon
24 May l 2001
Windsor Star
Letter from Jérome Baillargeon - Destroying churches destroys heritage- pro conservation
31 May 2001
A member of SOS-Églises writes to the Diocese for information concerning its policy towards receiving "conditional gifts". Her concern is about the million dollar donation offered on the condition that a new church be built.
1 June 2001
Windsor Star
Church controversy hurts community spirit - Letter from L. Bourcher
4 June 2001
Windsor Star
Diocese agrees to meeting
12 June 2001 2001
Diocesan reply to the Mary Bouillon letter concerning conditional gifts. According to the Diocese, "..'conditional gift' is really a contradiction. A gift is a free will offering. However gifts may be designated for a specific purpose as long as they are within our Church's teaching.A gift is not registered..."
13 June 2001
Le Rempart
Le Comité pour sauver les Églises rencontre les porte-paroles du diocese le 20 juin
13 June 2001
Tilbury Times
United we stand-letter from Mary Bouillon
14 June 2001
A letter from Father Anthony Daniels of the Diocese to SOS-Églises announces that the Diocese/SOS-Églises meeting will be held on June 20 at Assumption University in Windsor. It will be attended by Diocesan and parish representatives. SOS-Églises is invited to delegate 3-4 persons.The purpose of the meeting will be to "..hear a clear presentation of why your group believes that the vote, which was taken at the conclusion of the parish process, should now be put aside. As Well, we are prepared to hear why your group believes that the building condition reports should not be trusted..."
No decision will be taken at the meeting itself.
,
15 June 2001
Letter to the Diocese from Joe Comartin, federal MP for Windsor-St-Clair. He asks the Diocese to reconsider its decision. ".....It is not just the influence of the past but the continuing role that the Church plays at the centre of the community today that must be considered.."
16 June 2001
Windsor Star
Reasons for closures -Letter from Father Cartier and others
20 June 2001
Many SOS-Églises supporters are devout and practising Catholics who decided to stand by their principles even though this places them in conflict with the leaders of a parish that has been their spiritual home for most if not all of their lives.
The attached statement from Marie Terese Tobin was prepared for the SOS presentation at the June 20 meeting with Church officials. Mrs Tobin was a member of the SOS delegation.
Mrs Tobin's message challenges the parish position that the replacement of the village churches is for the betterment of the Church. She supports SOS position that heritage conservation and religious interests can converge.
For many years Mrs Tobin has played an active role in the parish as spiritual consultant to many parishioners. Her support of the conservation of the heritage parish facilities in Pointe-aux-Roches and Saint-Joachim, and her joining SOS is significant because it makes it obvious to all that the cause is about legitimate faith issues. The cause reaches deeply into the parish fabric because it engages parishioners whose lifelong loyalty to the Church cannot be questioned.
Mrs Tobin is the white-haired lady at the centre-left of photo (3) in the "Members of SOS-Églisesat work" section of the Photos page. "
20 June 2001
Diocese/SOS meeting at Assumption University. This is the sole opportunity given to SOS-Églises by Church authorities to present its case in a face-to-face situation.
Its purpose is not dialogue but the transmission of information only. The conditions set in the convocation letter
from the Diocese make that very clear.
In attendance:
from the Diocese and Parish: Bishop Grecco and Vicar General Daniels, Father Dwayne Adam and Annette Rondot (President of the Parish Advisory Board).
from SOS: Marie Terese Tobin, Jérôme Emery, David Tremblay and Marcel Belisle.
After an opening statement by David Tremblay, each representative presents specific information on the issue. This includes Mrs Tobin statement , financial impact of church construction on the parish community, a large petition document, letters of support for conservation of the existing churches, an overview of the considerable recent investments in the maintenance of those churches, etc (links to some of those documents will be added later).
There is no dialogue. Church authorities leave the meeting with the understanding that they would consider the information and report back to SOS-%Eacute;glises by mail.
21 June 2001
Windsor Star
Church faces angry parishioners - Protesters pray as they march outside closed door meeting
27 June 2001
Le Rempart
Suite à la rencontre avec l’évéché, David Tremblay demeure confiant
28 June 2001
Diocese excluding locals from process -Letter from S. Seguin
29 June 2001
Windsor Star
Parishioners question church voting - Letter from Marcel Belisle
10July 2001
In a letter to David Tremblay co-signed by Mrg Grecco and the Rev. Daniels, the Diocese reaffirms its decision to support the replacement of the village churches by a new church. It reiterates its confidence in the Avis reports.
The letter also raises concern about personal attacks on Father Dwayne, thereby suggesting that SOS-Églises is responsible. The letter is published and distributed to parishioners.
SOS-Églises regrets this injection in the debate of indirect public accusations that it considers nearly personal. (SOS-Églises has always strongly opposed any personal attacks on anyone during its campaign and urged everyone to be respectful of others no matter their opinion on the subject. SOS-Églises itself has always tried to relate to church authorities in a respectful and courteous manner.
18 July 2001
Windsor Star
A Humble Walk - letter from Mary Bouillon
25 July 2001
Windsor Star
Church leaders reaffirm stance
2 August 2001
The SOS-Églises Committee writes to the Pastor, Father Dwayne Adam, to invite him to attend the August 8 2001 public meeting to be held in the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Hall in Saint-Joachim. Father Dwayne is informed that the purpose of the meeting "...is to make an earnest attempt to understand all that has transpired and what proactive options are available on either side of this contentious issue."
8 August 2001
An information public meeting organized by SOS-Églises is held at the St- Jean-Baptiste Hall in St-Joachim. Close to 200 people attend. Anti new-church window stickers are handed out. Various options are discussed, including hiring a lawyer in order to obtain an injunction to stop a demolition intiative by the Diocese, should that eventualily arise. Parishioners are encouraged to continue going to church.
8 August 2001 t
Windsor Star
Parishioners plot course
8 August 2001 t
Le Rempart
Réunion importante concernant la destruction de trois églises
9 August 2001 2001
Michael Lanoue, a member of SOS-Églises, prepares an analysis of the results of the referendum and of the costs of the church construction project.
His concludion is that the 65% threshold required for the construction option was not reached (529 of 830 votes cast = 63.735%). This threshold had been set by the Diocese prior to the referendum.
He questions the method used to determine the announced 65% : instead of counting the number of "pro-construction votes" as a percentage of the total number of votes cast, the percentages were calculated separately for each of the three communities, added and the total divided by three. This gives the Comber vote (85 voters) and Pointe-aux-Roches votes (549 voters) equal weight.
Mr. Lanoue argues that the Parish constitution states that election activities will be governed by Parliamentary procedures, and that Partliamentary procedures require that all votes should have equal weight.
9 August 2001
Windsor Star
Churches advocates lay plan
15 August 2001
Lakeshore News
Fate of area
churches discussed
22 August 2001
The Town of Lakeshore announces a public meeting to be held September 10th in the Council Chambers.
This meeting is a follow-up to the SOS-Églises proposals presented by David Tremblay at the April 24 Council meeting. The proposals were that Council include in its Official Plan policies concerning heritage conservation, and that Council establish a heritage conservation advisory committee. The proposals had been referred to the town's staff for study.
The purpose of the meeting is "...to consider Heritage Conservation Policies which may be incorporated into the new Official Plan for the Town of Lakeshore.. Provincial representatives have been invited to the meeting to provide directions to Council on this matter..."
Residents are invited to make presentations
23 August 2001
David Tremblay writes to the Secretary of the Parish Council and asks for various information: the parish profile, the Building Commission Report, the Vitality Study and minutes of the parish council meetings.
5 September 2001
Annette Rondot responds to the August 23 Tremblay letter on behalf of the Parish council.
10 September 2001
Lakeshore Council Public Meeting announced August 22 to consider heritage conservation policies (as proposed April 24 by David Tremblay of SOS-Églises).
Two experts address Council : Heather Thompson from the Ministry of Culture, and Terry Fink from the Ministry of Tourism. They encourage Council to include heritage conservation in its Official Plan and to establish an advisory committee for conservation (this committee was finally established in 2007).
Presentations from three follow: Pat Malicki for ACO, David Tremblay for SOS-Églises and Larry Brennan for the Diocese of London who explains the diocese's position with respect to the designation of its churches.
After the presentations, Council decides to defer its decision. Pages 7-9 of the meeting's minutes contain a summary of the presentations.
17 September 2001
Pat Malicki contacts the Business Administrator of the Diocese of London and asks for "a guarantee of at least a year before a demolition permit is applied for" so as to allow for a search for new uses for the buildings. Pat offers to supply the Diocese with information about instances elsewhere in Ontario where churches have been sold for other uses.
18 September 2001
Pat Malicki writes to officials of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Recreations, Heritage-Canada and the Heritage Foundation of Ontario for information on instances where church buildings have been sold and converted for other uses.
2 October 2001
Church authorities hold a public information meeting in Annonciation church in Pointe-aux-Roches. Some 300 people attend. Diocesan and parish representatives make presentations showing the advantages of the new church construction project.
After the presentations , David Tremblay walks to the front of the church and asks if questions could be entertained from the audience. He is told that the meeting program is not open for changes and that no question period is included.
Mgr Sherlock goes to the microphone and says that the period for dialogue is over. The church construction decision is final.
About 50 people rise and walk out of the church in protestation.
2 October 2001
A Press release is distributed under the signature of Annette Rondot. The release states that "...After a lengthy open dialogue and analysis, the parish community will begin making the exciting transistion towards building a new church..."
The release describes the division in the parish as a conflict between 'new' and 'old'. It quotes Mgr Sherlock as saying that "...the debate should not be about
bricks and mortar
but about bringing people to God and God to people..."
There is no recognition in the release of the crux of the debate: heritage conservation stewardship.
3 October 2001
Windsor Star
Churches face wrecking ball : Bishop Sherlock says decision to close historic buildings is final
10 October 2001
Windsor Star
Diocese, SOS talk tough during meeting
11 October 2001
Windsor Star
Bishop contradicts himself on parishes Letter from M.Belisle
16 October 2001
Letter from Paul Chauvin, President of the Association canadienne-française de l'Ontario, Conseil régional Windsor-Essex-Kent (ACFO-WEK) to Mgr Sherlock.
Mr. Chauvin informs the Bishop that ACFO-WEK offers to buy the Pointe-aux-Roches church to use it as a cultural centre. He asks for an opportunity to meet with the Diocese in ordre to discuss the purchase proposal.
22 October 2001
At Lakeshore Council meeting, Cindy Prince, the Lakeshore municipal planner, recommends that a decision concerning the establishment of a Heritage committee be deferred pending adoption of the new Official Plan. It has been proposed that Heritage conservation be included in that plan.
David Tremblay addresses Council and speaks against the deferment of the decision. He says that heritage buildings are under immediate threat and the new Plan is still some considerable time away from completion.
Besides, there is no need to wait. He tells Council that the Municipal Act governing amalgamation states that, until a new Official plan is adopted, existing plans from the amalgamated municipalities are still in force. In our case, the former municipalities Official Plans contain provisions for heritage conservation initiatives. (Rochester, Tilbury North)
. Consequently, there is no reason why the decision needs to await adoption of the new Plan.
Nevertheless, councillors Jack Morris and Leo Lessard propose that Council defer the decision pending the apppoval of the new Plan. The motion is adopted .
24 October 2001
Windsor Star
Parishioners want a proper second vote
26 October 2001
Windsor Star
French Group Wants Church
26 October 2001
Windsor Star
Church’s future decided before vote was taken - Letter from David Kostanjevec
30 October 2001
Windsor Star
Letter from Gerald Carter - Proposed closing of churches makes sense
31 October 2001
Lakeshore News
Churches a part of our heritage -Letter from Michael Lanoue
7 November 2001
Windsor Star
7 November 2001
Windsor Star
Church closure already has negative impact - Letter from Marcel Belisle
9 November 2001
Debra DiDomenico, a member of the SOS workgroup, writes to the Honorable Eugene Whelan, a member of the Canadian Senate, a former minister in the Pierre Trudeau Cabinet and a former candidate for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada. Mr Whelan, now retired, continues to be an extemely popular figure in Essex County. He subsequently agreed to be the keynote speaker at the February 24 2002 public rally organized by SOS-Églises.
9 November 2001
A letter of appreciation is sent to Lakeshore councillor Al Fagio for his apparent support of the establishment of a heritage committee at the October 22 meeting of Council.
14 November 2001
Lakeshore News
Letter from David Kostanjevec - Lack of heritage preservation
22 November 2001
Letter from Brian Anthony, then Executive Director of Heritage-Canada to SOS-Églises member, Jérôme Baillargeon in which he offers the Heritage-Canada Foundation's support.
After describing the heritage value of the two churches, Mr. Anthony states that "...For its part, the Heritage-Canada Foundation is prepared to work with your organization and all parties concerned with the future of these structures."
29 November 2001
Historic churches should be saved-Letter from C. Sylvestre
30 November 2001
Windsor Star
Diocese erasing memory of ancestors - Letter from Pauline St-Pierre -
17 December 2001
Wrecking ball will destroy vision- Letter from M.T. Tobin
1996-
1997-
1998-
1999-
2000-
2001-
2002-
2003-
2004 to 2007
2002
During the year, a number of initiatives were undertaken at various times for which our current files do not provide specific monthly dates. We will include them here at the beginning of the 2002 chronology although they occured later in the year:
- Public information flyers
An information campaign was undetaken to explain to the general public (and not only to the parishioners) what the issue was about. This was done through the mailing of "flyers" to every household in the three villages. The flyers were printed back to back in English and in French. One of the first flyers was entitled "Loving...with differences!". It addressed the painful conflicts dividing families and friends as a result of the debate concerning the fate of the village churches.
POOF
A caricatural character named "POOF" was created to illustrate the flyers. POOF is a wrecking ball that joined SOS-Églises because it does not want to destroy heritage churches! Many people in the community started to call the flyers "POOFs" ("Did you get the latest POOF?"!)
-First website
Suzanne Gouchie, a member of SOS-Églises who has expertize in web design created a first web site for the campaign. When Suzanne left the region, the site had to be abandonned for lack of personel that could keep it updated. The present web site is a separate initiative.
<
3 January 2002
Windsor Star
Churches get more backing
4 janvier 2004
Windsor Star
Diocese willing to talk sale
According to this article, the Diocese of London would be willing to sell the two churches to community groups. However, when the Windsor region section of the Association canadienne-française de l'Ontario tried to enter into negociations with the Diocese for the acquisition of Annonciation in Pointe-aux-Roches, they were unable to do. See the Paul Chauvin February 11
letter .
It should also be noted that in 2003, and again in 2004, SOS-Églises made a offer to the Diocese for the purchase of the Saint-Joachim church. Information about the latest offer of purchase has just been added to Year 2004 of this chronology.
15 January 2002
Windsor Star
Church restoration report unreasonable
Letter fromd Adrien Sylvestre, Chair of the St-Joachim Building Committee
21 January 2002
A parishioner writes a
letter to Father Dwayne Adam explaining his concerns about the process used to arrive at a decision to build a new church.
4 February 2002
In preparation for the Februrary 24 public rally being organized by SOS-Églises, Heritage-Canada sends another message of support and provides information about assistance it can offer.
10 February 2002
The parish bulletin contains an invitation to parishioners to attend days of parish reconciliation conducted by the Saint Basil Institute, Mental Health Education.
In an interview with TVO, a diocesan spokesperson admitted later that this initiative was not succcessful.
It should be noted that the reason for this failure is not that parishioners fighting to keep their village church were opposed to reconciliation. The vast majority of pro-conservation parishioners remained practicing Catholics and sincerely regretted being in conflict with church authorities and fellow parishioners who subscribe to the church replacement project. But they were not willing to participate in a reconciliation exercise requiring the abandonment of their beliefs in heritage conservation and their support of a project that they considered very harmful to their community.
The very conditions of participation set by the Saint Basil Institute made it difficult for proponents of heritage conservation to participate.
The process specifically required that references to the past be excluded from the discussions. This exclusion was an odd condition for a project that would attempt to "...to engage underlying thoughts and feelings, both positive and negative, and to address the deeper concern of the participants..." How can a person study his or her 'underlying thoughts,feelings' if any references to past experience are not allowed? As for examining 'concerns', does the past not provide us with essential ingredients to understand our 'concerns' for the present and the future? Is there nothing in our community's past (i.e. its architectural heritage) that needs to be retained by parishioners in their reflection about their " thoughts, feelings and concerns"? Why was the crux of of the debate, heritage conservation, not even allowed to be part of the discussion? How can you reconcile two parties if you insist on excluding from simple discussion the principal justification of one side's position?
Also, if they were to participate parishioners were told to "..put aside their own agendas.." . Why would parishioners have to abandon their own legitimate hopes and aspirations for the community in order to be allowed to participate in this exercise? Could it be because the hopes and aspirations for many people include heritage conservation? It is hard to understand how there could have been any hope for reconciliation success when members of one of the parties in the dispute were told to leave their legitimate dreams at the door of the conciliation room.
11 February 2002
Letter to Diocese of London from Paul Chauvin, president of the Windsor-Essex-Kent Region of ACFO
. The letter requests a response to its 16 October 2001 letter asking for negociations to be undertaken toward the acquisition of the Annonciation church building by ACFO.
15 February 2002
Windsor Star
Lobbyists seek heritage labels
18 February 2002
Letter from Pat Malicki of the Windsor Region Branch of ACO to Larry Brennan, Business Administrator for the Diocese of London. The letter provides information on the re-use of churches in Ontario. The information includes newspaper articles on the subject as well as relevant websites and printed information.
To be eligible for funding assistance from such sources as the Heritage Challenge Fund, Ms Malicki stresses the importance of having the churches designated as heritage sites as a basic requirement.
She reiterates ACO's position that Annonciation and Saint-Joachim churches should continue to be used for religious and cultural purposes. If that is not to be, at the very least, they should not be demolished.
Ms Malicki quotes Sir Athur Doughty who wrote: "(our heritage churches) are the gifts of one generation to another and the extent of our care of them marks the extent of our civilization..">
24 February 2002
SOS-Églises holds a large public information meeting in the gymnasium of Ecole Saint-Ambroise of Saint-Joachim. When the date for the event was established, organisers had no idea that this date would also coincide with the seventh and final game of the World Cup series played between Russia and Canada. In spite of this conflict, close to 300 persons attended the meeting to hear speeches by SOS-Églises members (Paul Chauvin and David Tremblay) as well as by the Honorable Eugene Whelan, now a senator, and formerly minister of Agriculture in the Trudeau government. Mr. Whelan heartily supports the conservation of the two churches because for him, they represent the collaborative efforts of the Irish and French-Canadian communities in the region
25 February 2002
Windsor Star
Church lobby gains support
27 February 2002
Le Rempart
Jean Mongenais- Réunion de l'ACFO au sujet de l'Annonciation :
intérêt général mais pas de suggestion d'actions concrètes
27 February 2002
Le Rempart
SOS reçoit des appuis de taille
March 2002
The Diocese of London undertakes a fundraising campaign to restore St-Peter's Cathedral in
London. An article in a diocesan publication encourages parishioners to contribute generously
to the campaign. Parishioners are reminded that "...It is important to remember that
each generation of St-Peter's parishioners has had a role in the ongoing maintenance of the
Cathedral. Today it is our turn...A century ago, Bishop Walsh and his people demonstrated
courageous faith and remarkable vision in building the Cathedral. Now, it is for us to preserve
a precious heritage.."
1 March 2002
Letter to Lakeshore Council from Larry Brennan asking Council to defer its decision to designate the churches in Saint-Joachim and Pointe-aux-Roches until a decision has been made by the Diocese about its plans for the properties. The letter states that the churches will not be used as places of workship when the new church is completed.
6 mars 2002
Lakeshore News
Church preservasionists rally support
7 March 2002
Memorandum to Council,from Cindy Prince, Municipal planner for the Town of Lakeshore.
The purpose of the memo is to present information to Councillors in preparation for the March 12 meeting when David Tremblay will head an SOS-Églises delegation asking that a Heritage Advisory Committee be established in Lakeshore.
The memorandum provides the following information:
-The Official Plan contains Heritage Conservation policies that pertain to lands within the former townships of Tilbury North and Rochester;
- These policies include provisions for the establishment of a heritage advisory committee;
- There is a Provincial Policy on heritage conservation that makes it mandatory for heritage resources to be preserved;
- Any new Official Plan for Lakeshore must have regard for Provincial Policy;
- Any new Official Plan for Lakeshore must be in conformity with the Essex County Official Plan. The draft of that County Plan encourages the establishment of heritage conservation advisory committees;
-the Diocese of London has written to Council to ask it to defer any decision concerning the designation of the two churches until the diocese has determined their plans for the buildings;
- le Diocèse de London a écrit au conseil municipal pour lui demander de remettre à plus tard sa décision concernant la désignation des églises de Saint-Joachim et de Pointe-aux-Roches;
- The question that Council needs to address is whether it is appropriate to require preservation of a property without the owner's consent. For the preservation of natural heritage sites, Council has determined that the owner's consent is required. If a heritage advisory committee is established, its mandate could be limited to consider for designation only properties to which the owners have consented to have designated.
11 March 2002
Windsor Star News
Church advocates take plea to Council
11 March 2002
Pat Malicki, Regional President of ACO writes to Lakeshore Council to support the upcoming SOS-Églises delegation that will ask Council to establish a Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee (L.A.C.A.C)in Lakeshore.
She provides information to Council on the possible costs to the municipality of establishing such a committee, based on the experience of other municipalities that have already done so (budgets for L.A.C.A.C. range from 0$ to 10,000$ depending on the size of the community.). The letter points out that the majority of the work of L.A.C.A.Cs. is done free of charge by volunteers.
She reminds Council that the Provincial Policy on heritage conservation makes it mandatory for municipalities to protect Ontario's heritage that is under their jurisdiction. A simple statement in the Official Plans will not meet this obligtion. Council must also establish a process by which significant structures will be protected.
12 March 2002
Letter from Paul Chauvin to the Rev. Anthony Daniels, Vicar General of the Diocese of London.
Mr. Chauvin informs the Diocese that ACFO proposes that a French-Canadian parish be established in either Pointe-aux-Roches or Saint-Joachim. This would be the best solution to the numerous problems associated with the co-habitation within a common institution of the two cultural communities.
He also reminds the Diocese of ACFO's interest in acquiring Annonciation church in Pointe-aux-Roches in order to prevent its demolition.
12 March 2002
Important Lakeshore Council meeting. A decision taken at this meeting brought the intervention of the Divisional Court of Ontario in this file in 2003.
An SOS-Églises delegation led by David Tremblay accompanied by Madeleine Leal of Saint-Joachim and Jean-Paul Gagnier of Pointe-aux-Roches makes a presentation to Lakeshore Council.
The delegation make the following points:
- Lakeshore Council should establish a Local Architectural Advisory Committee (L.A.C.A.C);
- Council should note that the municipal planner agreed that the necessary policy direction for the establishment of a Local Architectural Advisory Committee is in place through the (
Rochester,
Tilbury North ) pre amalgamation Official plans which are still in force until replaced by the new Lakeshore Official Plan under development.
- Local Architectural Advisory Committees are strictly advisory and can help a busy Council in its decision-making responsibilities in the area of heritage conservation. The existing Planning department staff could provide necessary administrative support. No additional staff would be required.
- Grant money is available from provincial and federal sources to help conserve buildings that have been designated as heritage sites. None of this financial assistance will be available to Lakeshore historical buildings if they are not designated;
- Communities in Lakeshore are among the oldest in Canada. Wihout designations, Lakeshore's historical buildings can be demolished from one day to the next, at the whim of the property owners;
- Council should direct staff to prepare the required by-laws for the establishment of a Local Architectural Advisory Committee.
Discussion around the Council starts before the delegation finishes its presentation. A councillor noted that under current financial plans for heritage designation, only the owner could apply for financial assistance, and that the Diocese had asked that the churches not be designated. Councillors also expressed concern about the possible costs of establishing a Local Architectural Advisory Committee.
After discussion, Councillor Jack Morris, seconded by Leo Lessard, proposed
"...-That the town of Lakeshore adopt the following policy regarding requests for heritage designation of property in the Town of Lakeshore.
-That a request for heritage designation of a property be made directly to the Council of the Town of Lakeshore. Such a request must include the following:
blockquote>
a) this request is made by the owner of a property;
b) the reasons as to why this property must be designated heritage must be given;
c) the future use of the property must be stated;
d) Where is the financing for this property coming from ?;
e) Will there be at any time a request for financial assistance from the Town of Lakeshore for this property.
It is understood by Council that this motion will be sent to the Town Planner and Solicitor to bring back to Council a formal policy based on the 5 points as designated in the motion..."
It is noted by Councillor Morris that this policy will be similar to Lakeshore's policy with respect to the preservation of natural heritage features where the consent of the owner is required before protection is granted. (SOS-Églises editorial note: Why in the world would a property owner who wishes to destroy a woodlot ask the munacipility to protect it from destruction..? If the owner has no intention of destroying a woodlot, where is the need to protect it ?)
All Councillors supported this motion except Mayor Pat Hayes who voted against it because it did not include the establishment of a Local Architectural Advisory Committee.
12 March 2002
Paul Chauvin, President of the Windsor-Essex-Kent Region of ACFO writes to the Diocese of London to request a copy of the report on the condition of Annonciation church. He also requests permission to have the building inspected by its own engineers. Those requests are in view of ACFO's offer to purchase the church.
14 March 2002
Windsor Star
Heritage building measure rejected
18 March 2002
Windsor Star
Decision on churches has far wider implications - Letter from David Kostanjevec
18 March 2002
Windsor Star
Lakeshore decision will jeopardize history - Letter from André Chénier
20 March 2002
Lakeshore News
Council rejects heritage committee- SOs chairman says he is discouraged
25 March 2002
Windsor Star
Diocese uses muscle to demolish churches - Letter from D. Didemonico
26 March 2002
Windsor Star
Future use of churches must have diocese OK - Letter from Jack Morris (Lakeshore Municipal Councillor representing Comber)
27 March 2002
Tilbury Times
- History placed in danger - Letter from André Chénier
31 March 2002
Mgr Sherlock and the Pastor, Father Dwayne Adam, announce the site for the construction of the new church. The church will be built near Comber on what is now agricultural land. The land was given to the Diocese by a local funeral home located on an adjoining property.
The letter also informs the community that an architectural firm has been selected for the project.
-------------------------
NOTE:
In order for the church to be built on that site, the property's zoning will have to be changed from agricultural to institutional. SOS-Églises makes plans to oppose this rezoning which makes no ecological sense. Locating the church outside communities means that everyone will have drive to church to attend services. All students in the 4 Catholic schools which were up until then in close proximity to the existing churches will have to be bussed to attend services. Residents of the Senior citizens homes close to the actual churcher will have to find a way to be driven to church.
And another piece of rich agricultural land will be covered with bricks and asphalt, while the architectural heart of two communities will struggle to survive.
3 April 2002
Letter from CBC program Fifth Estate to SOS-Églises founding member Marcel Belisle thanking him for his suggestion that the Lakeshore churches issue be the subject of a report.
10 April 2002
SOS-Églises writes to the Honorable Sheila Copps, Minister of Heritage-Canada, and to Alan Goetlib, President of the Ontario Heritage Trust to inform them of the situation and to underline the need for action to avoid the loss of these important part of our Canadian and Ontarian heritage. Here is the
letter .to the Minister.
The same message was sent to the Ontario Heritage Trust.
SOS-Églises asks for an opportunity to consult with government staff to explore ways and means of ensuring the conservation of the buildings.
(We hope to be able later to translate documents linked to this site, but for now, we use the documents we have on file in their original language. Our practice about the use of French or English in our correspondence was that, generally, we used the language best understood by the person we were writing to.)
16 April 2002
Le Rempart
André Chénier- Des visiteurs impressionnés
17 April 2002
Lakeshore News
Letter from Joyce Tymer- Conflicting messages disconcerting
17 April 2002
Windsor Star
Bishop not concerned about local architecture
20 April 2002
Windsor Star
Support is needed to keep churches open - Letter from M. Belisle
May 2002
Unfortunately, the church replacement project created deep divisions within the community. Even families were divided on the issue.
In order to help parishioners and other members of the communities still live in harmony in spite of the disagreement about the conservation of the village churches, SOS-Églises prepared a flyer entitled "Loving With Differences!" and mailed it to all households in the three villages . The flyer featured POOF, the wrecking ball that joined SOS-Églises because it does not want to destroy beautiful old churches!
7 May 2002
Letter from Pat Malicki to Cindy Prince, Lakeshore municipal planner.
Ms Malicki shares the information she received from the Ministry of Tourism and from Community Heritage Ontario (CHO) about the Morris/Lessard resolution adopted by Council on March 12.
The letter expresses concern about the designation process and the requirement that future use of the buildings be a condition of designation.
12 May 2002
A message in the Parish bulletin informs parishioners that the Comber and Saint-Joachim properties will be offered for sale. No information is given about the condition of sale the sale, the offer of sale by the real estate agent specifies that for Saint-Joachim, only the land is for sale, not the building which will be demolished.
15 May 2002
SOS-Églises writes to the Reverend R. Fabbro who has just been designated as Bishop-elect of the Diocese of London, to replace Mgr Sherlock upon his upcoming retirement.
The purpose of the letter is to convey "..our perception of the problem.." directly to Father Fabbro and to ask him for a moratorium on the church construction project to allow himself the time to review the situation and meet with SOS-Églises.
15 May 2002
Following Lakeshore Council's decision to limit heritage designation application rights to building owners, (which contravenes provincial policy) SOS-Églises sends a letter to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing informing him of the situation and its consequences, including possible legal action by SOS-Églises against the municipality.
(This letter was redirected by the Minister of Municipal Affairs to the Minister of Culture who
responded August 29).
17 May 2002
Windsor Star
Signs offer churches
19 May 2002
SOS-Églises writes to Father Eugène Roy, Pastor of St-Francis Parish (called Saint-François when it was established)in Tilbury and Councillor to the Diocese for French Language services.
The purpose of the letter is to explain the situation in details and in our own words. Father Roy is a potential participant in internal diocesan discussions about the issue and needs to understand the rational of our position clearly.
20 May 2002
SOS-Églises writes an information letter to Mgrs Marcel Gervais, Archbishop of Ottawa and Vincent Cadieux, bishop of the Diocese of Moosonee. The purpose of the letter is to ensure that Franco-Ontarian church leaders are well informed of SOS-Églises' position.
The same message is sent to Mgr Jacques Berthelet, President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops
21 May 2002
SOS-Églises writes to Mgrs Jean-Louis Plouffe, bishop of the Diocese of Sudbury, Paul Marchand, Bishop of the Diocese of Timmins; André Vallée, Bishop of the Diocese of Hearst et Paul-André Durocher, Bishop of the Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall.
The clergy has traditionally played a prominent leadership rôle in support of the French-Canadian community in Ontario. It is important for those leaders to be well informed of what is at stake in the Lakeshore situation: the protection of an important part of the French-Canadian architectural heritage. SOS-Églises recognizes that those bishops cannot be publicly involved in a dispute with their colleague in the Diocese of London, but believes that there can be many internal opportunities for them to be supportive of our cause. And also very importantly, SOS-Églises wishes them to be conscious of the importance that the community confers to the conservation of its religious architectural heritage.
Mr Paul Chauvin, a member of SOS-Églises, and the organizer of the tricentenial celebrations of 2001 marking the 300th anniversary of the establishment of the French-Canadian establishment in Southwestern Ontario, writes a letter to Archbishop Maurice Couture who had been invited to officiate at the Commemorative Mass celebrated during the festivies. Mgr Couture had been invited as successor to the first bishop of "La Pointe de Montréal", as was called the local area at the time. The authority of the Bishop of the Diocese of Quebec extended to all French establishments in Canada, including those that reached deep inside the continent such as what we call today Ontario.
22 May 2002
Windsor Star
Letter from Mary Bouillon- Differences on churches should be aired openly
27 May 2002
Mgr Fabbro replies to the SOS-Églises
May 15 letter
10 June 200
SOS-Églises receives Mgr Gervais' response to SOS-Églises' letter . As expected, he writes that he cannot intervene in the affairs of another diocese. But, as a French-speaking native of Manitoba, he fully understands, supports and even encourages efforts to defend the French-Canadian community across Canada.
One of his statements, however, does suggest an incomplete appreciation of the importance of religious architectural conservation when he asks "Mais est-ce que votre histoire ne se rattache qu'à des bâtiments?" (Does your history relate only to buildings?).
The Diocese of Ottawa found itself at the centre of a public relation storm concerning the archbishop's plans to "modernize" the interior of the heritage Notre-Dame Basilica in Ottawa. A small group of concerned citizens organized a successful campaign in opposition to the project which was reluctantly abandonned by the Diocese.
27 June 2002
Jean-Marc Aubin, Provincial President of l'Association canadienne-française de l'Ontario (ACFO), writes to Father Anthony Daniels to inform him that the delegates at its recent 2002 Annual Conference were shocked to learn of diocesan plans to demolish the village churches of Saint-Joachim and Pointe-aux-Roches. A resolution of support for SOS-Églises was adopted unanimously. ACFO stongly urges the Diocese to abandon its demolition plans and to ask that the buildings receive heritage designation which would make them eligible for financial assistance to undertake necessary repairs. ACFO reminds the Diocese that this would make much more financial sense than to undertake an expensive new church construction project.
4 July 2002
The Parish Finance Committee writes to local businesses to ask for donations to the fundraising campaign for the new church.
"...Members of our parish have long supported your business and contributed to its current growth. As a business owner, our parish (sic) now invites you to invest in the building of our new church..."
No reference is made of course to the fact that by leaving the villages, the parish was removing a part of the client base for those businesses, that is, church goers who came into the village every week to attend religious services.
The letter concludes with the following statement:
"Your commitment is deeply appreciated as our parish moves forward as one single community.."
A single community? How far we have moved away from the original clustering commitment that the integrity of the participating communities would be respected!
10 July 2002
Le Rempart
Column byAndré Chénier- Des ancres, des ponts et des phares
17 July 2002
Philippe Porée-Kurer, newly elected President of the Windsor-Essex-Kent Region of the Association canadienne-française de l'Ontario, writes to Father Anthony Daniels, Vicar General of the Diocese of London.
The purpose of the letter is to reiterate ACFO's March 12 request for a copy of the report on the condition of Annonciation church. The March 12 letter also requested permission to have the building inspected by an engineering firm hired by ACFO.
ACFO also deplores the Diocese refusal to create a French-Canadian parish for the Pointe-aux-Roches and Saint-Joachim region which would be ACFO's preferred option with respect to the provision of French-language religious services and the use of the Annonciation church building.
14 July 2002
A message in the parish bulletin informs parishioners that, "for safety reasons, it has become absolutely necessary to remove the spire from the tower of Annonciation Church". An engineering firm has recommended the removal of part of the spire above the belfry.
Work is to begin July 22.
The spire is not the original spire for the church. The original had been replaced in the early 1970.
30 July 2002
Following the July 4 parish fundraising letter to business owners, SOS-Églises writes to all business owners in the three villages to remind them of the impact that the village church replacement project could have on their businesses.
The letter refers to an SOS-Églises flyer sent to all households in the three villages.
31 July 2002
Annonciation church steeple is removed.
A parishioner offers to purchase the steeple and preserve it on her land as a memento of the threatenned chuch. The Diocese refuse to sell it on the grounds that it is a sacred object and that sometimes it si preferable to destroy those objects than let them be used as decorations.
But this is easier said than done with this object.
In spite of multiple attempts by the crane operator to lift the steeple high above the parking lot, and to let it drop repeatedly, the steeple holds together. Chainsaws and sledge hammers are required to break the sacred object down in pieces small enough to be carted off to the dump. Please read Marty Gervais' Sept 9 column below
1 August
Windsor Star
Raising the roof
7 August
Le Rempart
Première phase de la demolition?
7 August 2002
Le Rempart
Anonymous article- SOS commente la demande d'engagements financiers
pour la construction d'une autre église
15 August 2002
Windsor Star
Parishioners Upset
- Church an elitist institution - Letter from Joyce Tymec
- Leaders show shortsighted vision- Letter from Pauline St-Pierre
- Is there anything sacred anymore?- Letter from Mary Bouillon
- Communities are being abandonned - Letter from Marcel Belisle
23 August 2002
Windsor Star
Parishioners could buy churches, preserve them -Letter from Paul and Debby Mahon
29 August 2002
Minister of Culture, David Tsubouchi,
responds
to SOS-Églises May letter sent to
the Minister of Municipal Affairs and redirected to the Minister of Culture.
9 September 2002
Windsor Star
Stubborn Steeple proves point, church backers say-Marty Gervais column
19 September 2002
Windsor Star
Demolition saddens Stoney Point native Letter from J. Gagnier
19 September 2002
Windsor Star
Letter from Jérôme Gagnier Demolition saddens Stoney Point native
Numéro d'automne 2002 - ACORN (la revue de Architectural Conservancy of Ontario)
Anonymous article- mise à jour de la situation
1 October 2002
The Town of Lakeshore grants a permit to the Diocese of London for the demolition of the Saint-Joachim church.
2 October 2002
Lakeshore News
About changing your mind
6 October 2002
Walkerville Times
SOS-Eglises...Save our Sanctuaries!
6 October 2002
A major rally is held on the grounds of Saint-Joachim church. Hundreds of people respond to the SOS-Églises invitation. A human chain is formed to give "a hug" to the church!
Speakers include Charles Barker, representative of the Office of the Official Languages Commissioner of Canada, Joe Comartin, a prominent leader of the New Democratic party and numerous local people.
During the singing of O Canada at the end of the rally, the church bell that had been silent since the closing of the church, starts to ring !
A few days later, David Tremblay is charged with breaking and entering. The charge is later dropped when the CBC submits a television tape that shows David on the front steps of the church while the bell is ringing.
As of this day, no one knows the identity of the conservation Quasimodo!
A few weeks later, on a Saturday night, residents of the village place "ghetto-blasters" on their porch and replay a recording of the ringing village church bell.
7 October 2002
Pat Malicki, President of Archictural Conservancy of Ontario (ACO), Windsor Region, writes to the Diocese to request permission for noted restoration architect, Christopher Borgal, who is also provincial President of ACO, to inspect the two churches.
? October 2001
Windsor Star
Church backers dig in
11 October 2002
Windsor Star
Closing l'Annonciation destroys a culture Letter from M-J. Suwinski
16 October 2002
Lakeshore News
Activists vow to continue church fight
19 October 2002
A group of volunteers from the clustered parishes start to prepare the church for its demolition. Pews and various other objects (statues, community kitchen appliances,etc) are removed.
Church neighbours alert members of SOS-Églises to what is happening. A small group of SOS-Églises members arrive quickly on site and start marching in front of the church with placards informing passing motorists of what is happening.
The demonstration is very peaceful considering the pain and frustration in the heart of Saint-Joachim villagers as they witness the removal from their community of a precious part of their village identity. A police cruiser is on the site at the request of the Diocese.
21 October 2002
Lakeshore News
Protest can't halt church clearance
22 October 2002
Windsor Star
Protester Charged with bell ringing: Cops say
SOS leader broke into church
23 October 2002
Windsor Star
News footage may hold key
24 October 2002
Windsor Star
Cannot move history to a 'soulless temple' Letter from A. Chénier
24 October 2002
A local community website conducts a public opinion poll about the level of support for heritage conservation. Surprisingly, 61 of the 63 participants expressed support for conservation. SOS-Églises members did not know in advance about this poll and there were no concerted efforts to encourage their participation.
28 October 2002
Architect Christopher Borgal of ACO inspects the two churches and reviews the Allan Avis
reports .
Permission from the Diocese for this inspection was requested by Pat Malicki, President of ACO, Windsor Region.
28 October 2002
The law firm Nelligan O'Brien Payne informs the Diocese that the services of Ronald Caza and Rodrigue Escayola have been retained by SOS-Églises "...to prevent the destruction of an institution important to the francophone community in Ontario...We have been instructed to incur the necessary fees and disbursements to protect thos historical landmarks and we wil seek reimbursement of these costs"
28 October 2002
The Diocese responds to the firm's letter of the same day informing Mr.Caza that the demolition of Saint-Joachim church is imminent.
29 October 2002
Windsor Star
Church debate, us versus them
30 octobre 2002
Windsor Star
SOS continues to fight
30 October 2002
Le Rempart
Accusation portée contre David Tremblay
30 October 2002
Le Rempart
Des paroissiens protestent
30 October 2002
Le Rempart
La Fourche
30 October 2002
The final steps before the arrival of the demolition crane are being completed. The demolition crew remove the large central window in the facade of the building.
SOS-Églises realizes that it has no recourse other than a court intervention to challenge Lakeshore's handling of this issue. A decision is made to obtain the services of the law firm that had succesfully argued the SOS-Monfort case in Ottawa. Hôpital Montfort, the only French-language teaching hospital in Ontario, (and in Canada outside Quebec), had been scheduled to be closed as a cost cutting measure by the provincial government of the day. A movement called SOS-Monfort had fought tooth and nail against this decision and had challenged it at the Supreme Court of Canada level. Ronald Caza was the principal SOS-Monfort lawyer in the case. The Court had ruled against the decision by the province.
Earlier, the SOS-Églises chair, David Tremblay had met Ronald Caza who was a speaker at a conference organized by the Association de municipalités francophones de l'Ontario.(David Tremblay was a founding member of that association) Mr. Caza expressed interest in the Lakeshore situation as a 'smaller scale' corollary to Montfort decision.
But first, an injunction must be obtained to suspend the demolition permit in order to undertake the full legal proceedings against the Town. Paul Chauvin,Roger St-Pierre, David Temblay, Paul Trépanier and André Chénier agree to act as complainants.
30 October 2002
Le Rempart
Photos et articles anonymes : Des paroissiens protestent
30 October 2002
Le Rempart
Column by André Chénier : La Fourche
31 October 2002
Windsor Star
Lawyer joins fight
1 November 2002
Conservation advocates gather in front of Saint-Joachim to await the results of Superior Court hearing
Judge Johanne Morissette of the Ontario Superior Court holds an emergency
hearing in Windsor Court to receive SOS-Eglises' request for an injunction to
suspend the demolition permit for the Saint-Joachim church in order to allow
SOS-Eglises time to challenge Lakeshore Council's decision not to accept to
consider its proposal that the two churches be designated as heritage sites.
The lawyers for the Municipality, Jim Rennick and Kurt Walstead are joined by
two lawyers from the Diocese of London, Norman Pizzale and Dan Macnamara.
Ronald Caza is assisted by lawyer Rodrigue Escayola.
After hearing the case, Judge Morissette suspends the demolition permit on
the grounds that the SOS-Églises challenge of the Lakeshore decision not to consider
would be moot if the church were to be demolished in the meantime.
She asks but does not order the Diocese to cover the large opening made a few days before in the facade of the church until a decision has been made about its designation as a heritage site. The Diocese offer to cover the opening with a tarp. Judge
Morissette agrees because it is expected that the Superior
Court will hear SOS-Églises challenge in three weeks. (The case was not heard before May of the following year. The interior of the church was exposed all winter to the elements because the Diocese refused SOS-Églises offer of assistance to replace the tarp by a more appropriate protection. Six years later, the church is still protected by the tarp only in spite of SOS-Églises repeated offer to pay for better protection.)
2 November 2002
Windsor Star
Church granted reprieve
4 November 2002
ACO
President and restoration architect, Christopher Borgal, submits his inspection report to Pat Malicki, of ACO, Windsor Region.
Situation summary : SOS-Églises is now focussing on three topics: (1)the distribution of the results of the Christopher Borgal inspection, (2) the application by the Diocese for a rezoning of a piece of farmland for the contruction of the replacement church outside the villages, and,(3) the upcoming Superior Court hearing (scheduled for November 19 but deferred to December 19).
5 November 2002
Windsor Star
Letter from Renée Helling-Laur Community sanctuaries should be preserved
6 November 2002
Le Rempart
Letter from SOS-Églises au Conseil paroissial
6 November 2002
Le Rempart
La Cour supérieure annule le permis de démolition
11 November 2002
Tilbury Times
Bob Odette- Church demolition halted
11 November 2002
Lakeshore News
St-Joachim now in the eye of national media
13 November 2002
Le Rempart
Saint-Joachim dans l'oeil des médias
RDI, the Radio-Canada's national newsnetwork is on site.
13 November 2002
Lakeshore News
William Harris - Lease on Life granted to Saint-Joachim church
19 November 2002
Windsor Star
Battle to save historic church delayed in court
20 November 2002
Windsor Starbr>
Destroying buildings destroys our heritage Letter from M. Lacasse
20 November 2002
Le Rempart
Des panneaux publicitaires installés par SOS
| |
