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Our Heritage of
Faith, Hope and Love
In the autumn of 1909, a nucleus of forty
families of Polish descent assembled to plan the formation of a new Polish
Catholic congregation. Some of the families that pledged themselves
to carry on the Polish heritage by building a church, a school, and a
parsonage were as follows: Bisek, Bryniok, Giemza, Kamla, Kampa,
Klonecki, Knusella, Kokott, Korpal, Kotlarz, Kubis, Kujak, Liberko, Micek,
Milek, Misch, Motszko, Pierzina, Reck, Ressel, Rucinski, Shepherd, Owcarz,
Schock, Sobotta, Sonsalla, Soppa, Stachowski, Stelmach, Suchla, Waldera
and Wiersgalla.
Great determination, sacrifice, faith,
hope and charity were the necessary ingredients to promote this task in
that pioneering era. Until that time most of the Polish people
worshipped in St. Michael's Church in North Creek, a little settlement
about four miles east of Arcadia. In the early days of June 1910, a
deal was closed to build on a piece of land purchased from J. C. Gaveney.
On July 8, 1910 it was announced that a
new Catholic congregation had been formed by the Polish Catholics after
permission to erect a new parish church was granted by Bishop James
Schwebach on June 23, 1910. The permission was based on the reason
that a large number of people wanted to have their church in the city of
Arcadia for better accommodations, a more central location, and because
school facilities in Arcadia would be better that in North Creek.
The name chosen for the new congregation
was St. Stanislaus Congregation of Arcadia. The officers were
President-Rt. Rev. Bishop James Schwebach, Vice-President and Pastor-Rev.
John Rayski, Secretary-John Soppa, Sr., and Treasurer-Mike A. Sobotta.
In the late summer of that year, these people granted a contract to Jac.
G. Schneider to serve as contractor and builder of the new church under
the leadership of Rev. Rayski. The church was of red brick veneer
and Gothic architecture. It had a seating capacity of 360. The
church was nearly completed in the Spring of 1911. On May 14, 1911
an impressive ceremony of blessing the bell of the new church was
held. The public was invited to attend this first service. Now
that the church was completed with pews and fixtures in place, a
dedication day was announced.
St. Stanislaus Church was dedicated on
Independence Day, July 4, 1911 by Bishop Schwebach, a number of
neighboring priests, and pastor Reverend John Rayski. In attendance
were Rev. J. L. Hauck of Our Lady's parish, Rev. Kulig of Independence,
Rev. Gara of Pine Creek, and J. G. Schneider, the architect. Rev.
Gara delivered the sermon, and the bishop spoke words of commendation and
encouragement to the people who had provided the means to build the
church. Services began at 9:30 a.m., with Mass at 10 o'clock.
Following the services, a picnic dinner and amusements were scheduled for
the afternoon; activities included games and contests, such as wrestling
matches, tug-of-war, sack races, foot races, and a baseball game between
the married farmers and the businessmen. Good music was provided and
everything possible was done to entertain all who attended.
The years 1911 and 1912 saw the beginnings
of many parish services. The choir was organized early in the church
history. Mrs. Martin (Julia) Soppa was the organist; she developed
the most beautiful four-voice choir in the area at that time. The
first teacher in the parish was John Stelmach. He taught in the room
that was to be the kitchen in the church. Frank Kamla, Sr. was a
janitor and maintenance man for many years. The farmers brought cord
wood for fuel and credited the value toward their pew rent or church
support. Peter Sonsalla sawed wood for many years to be used in the
wood furnace. In 1912 the Stations of the Cross were added to the
fixtures of the church. They were dedicated in February; the cost
was $670.
In 1912 a new rectory was built of red
brick veneer consisting of eight rooms. From 1909 to 1912, Rev.
Rayski had been pastor of North Creek St. Michael's Church and St.
Stanislaus Church. After the rectory was built, our parish received
its own pastor, Rev. Ignatius Orlik, who was appointed in 1912 and
remained until 1914. The earliest parish records at our rectory list
the first baptism as that of Leon Paul Korpal, the son of Valentine and
Lucy Korpal on June 29, 1912. The first marriage recorded here was
performed by Father Orlik on June 11, 1912-the marriage of Paul (Misz)
Misch, son of Peter and Mary Misz to Katherine Bisek, daughter of
Valentine and Mary Bisek. Francis Bautch, son of Andrew and
Josephine Bautch, died on July 5, 1912 and was buried on July 8, 1912.
Plans for a new school and sisters'
dwelling were laid out in March 1914. The north side of the building
was the sisters' residence-living quarters on the first floor, bedrooms
upstairs. The two rooms on the south side of the building
accommodated four grades, each. Both Polish and English languages
were taught in all eight grades.
Religious training was stressed and taught
only in the polish language. Two Sisters of St. Joseph from the
Stevens Point Motherhouse were the first teachers in the new school.
Rev. Francis Barszczak came to Arcadia in
1914 and remained pastor until 1919. In March 1919, Rev. James
Korczyk became pastor, staying only for one year, until November
1920. From then until September 1922, the parish was served by Rev.
Lucien J. Kufel. On September 15, 1922 the Rev. Joseph Andrzejewski
was appointed pastor of St. Stanislaus parish. After the buildings
were constructed, the parishioners concentrated on building upkeep, school
support, and debts to the parish. Under Father Andrzejewski, all
buildings were repaired or remodeled, a $5,000.00 Estey pipe organ was
installed in the church, and within a comparatively short period of time,
he had this small, struggling parish completely out of debt.
Before the years of a parish council, a
number of men served as trustees for the parish. For many years John
Sonsalla served as Secretary, and Frank Soppa served as Treasurer.
Their services terminated in early 1949 during Father Andrzejewski's
pastorship. Replacing them were two young men (at that time),
namely: William B. Micek as treasurer and Ernest E. Sobotta as secretary,
serving to about the time the Parish Council was established in
1972. Sobotta remained on the Parish Council for a few three-year
terms.
In 1925 the school was modernized.
It became a four-room school to make room for the growing
enrollment. At the same time an up-to-date convent was constructed
at a cost of $10,000.00. This was to house our sisters - whose
number had grown to five. Julia Pierzina was father's cook for fifty
years.
Joe Stanislawski had served as janitor for
a long time for a meager wage of $100.00 per month. Sacrifice and
dedication were his strong qualities. Joe Slaby was hired as janitor
after Stanislawski's retirement. Since then many have served in this
capacity.
This parish sponsored many activities
which pertained to the support of the church and school. Picnic
dinners were served annually by the entire parish. The main
entertainment was the playing of bingo. Stanley Sonsalla headed this
committee with the ushers assisting. Later, the Rosary Society, Holy
Name Society, and other committees sponsored special and separate meals
and festivities. Then the main event became the Fall Festival, which
grew to include all committees and groups as the sponsors. The
generosity of the people served to be a good source of revenue throughout
the history of this congregation.
The Catholic Youth Organization had been
formed in the 1930's. They participated in religious enlightenment,
sports, and youth participation in neighboring parishes. The St.
Stanislaus group was outstanding in this area. They were among the
top groups in softball, and they won the championship in our Deanery in
the basketball tournament. Also, one year they were the champions fo
the Diocesan C.Y.O.
On April 29, 1942, the church was struck
by lightning and burned to the ground, being completely destroyed.
Only the steeple with the Cross pointing heavenward stood. The day
after the fire, the parishioners under the direction of Father
Andrzejewski began a triduum for the Holy Father. Our parish rented
the new armory which we used for services until the new church basement
was ready. F. J. Stepnowski and Sons was hired as architects of the
new church. An imposing structure of Romanesque design was
constructed on the same spot where the old church had been. It was
constructed at a cost of $300,000.00; it had a seating capacity of over
650. Considered to be one of the finest churches of the Diocese of
La Crosse, it was solemnly blessed by His Excellency John P. Treacy,
Bishop of La Crosse, on May 16, 1948.
In about ten years, the cost of building
the new church was completely paid up. Some anonymous donors were
friends of Father Andrzejewski contributed much toward this effort.
Nine persons contributed over excess of $2,000.00; thirty-five people
contributed over $1,000.00 each to pay the debt. The remaining
parishioners contributed toward this cause. The Rosary Society
contributed over $10,000.00, and the Holy Name Society had contributed
about $5,000.00 during that time. In addition to this, the Holy Name
Society had purchased a block of land for playground purposes and equipped
it with playground equipment.
The year 1961 brought something new to our
church. The granite altars and communion rail were purchased for a
combined cost of $15,000.00. In addition a grotto was built on the
front lawn of the church. A billboard for announcing daily and
Sunday services was erected on the front part of the grounds; this was
donated to the parish by Stanley Sonsalla in 1978.
To replace out Catholic Youth Organization
a 4-H Club was organized; this was led by Stanley Sonsalla for 27 years as
general leader until he retired. Mrs. Ernest Sonsalla, Mrs. Joe
Skroch, Julia Thomas, men of the parish, and others have contributed their
time to this worthwhile youth project.
Msgr. Andy, after pastoring this
congregation for 45 years, retired. He stated that as one goes in
retrospect over the annals of the parish, a fitting thought comes to mind:
"The world has always been blessed and religion has always been aided
most by those who do things and not by those who merely talk about
them."
On June 15, 1967 Rev. Roman Papiernik was
appointed pastor of St. Stanislaus Parish; he served until 1969.
Rev. Edward Sobczyk became our new pastor in 1969. During his
leadership, the Parish Council was organized, replacing the two trustees
and two auditors (or advisors). The laity was to take a more active
part in the functions of the Church. During this time an important
transition has transpired. The two schools of St. Aloysius and St.
Stanislaus joined in Catholic education for Arcadia. Combining the
two schools was a difficult decision for many people, of both
parishes. But, Arcadia Catholic School developed with a combined
staff, school board, and goal - quality education for all Catholic
youth. Years later, ACS also included students from Sacred Heart
Parish in Pine Creek.
After Rev. Sobczyk was transferred, our
parish had a lapse of about three months without a resident pastor.
In March, 1974 Rev. James Hagmann began serving as our pastor.
During this time the laity was being utilized more extensively, as lector
and lay distributor programs were begun. |
