May 8th - 100% Chance of Rain

“100% chance of rain at 5pm.” I check a text message from a choir member and look out the window two hours before showtime: overcast clouds - not good!

I wasn't too worried, though. When you start your day with a Missa Cantata it can't really be that bad. Hello everyone, my name is Alex Walker, and I help out Fr. Thomas manage the Pompeii Rising Restoration Project. For those who were able to join us on May the 8th, what a night! For those of you who were unable to make it, I will take you behind the scenes and give you the play by play.

All of the fretting over rainfall was in vain. It ended up being a sunny afternoon which led to an exhilarating evening full of prayer, music, laughs and cheers.

When Fr. Thomas asked me to help put on the third annual celebration, I knew it would be hard to contend with years past. In 2024, we unveiled the official replica for the first time. In 2025, we officially broke ground. Yet, Friday May 08, 2026 was truly a night to remember.

I thought about how we could make the night special since the church was still a construction site which de facto meant we could not give tours. Father told me that he would be personally driving the sacred replica from Naples to Jacksonville in time for May the 8th. Things really started falling into place once we knew the painting would serve as our anchor. The evening just built itself around it.

Obviously, we needed a fun way to reveal the beautification of the painting. One gold silk sheet should do the trick. Regarding the lack of building entry, I called Auld and White to see if they still had the VR headset so that we could give our guests digital tours. I was glad to see there was a long line for this, mostly kids. A neat experience and a great way to walk around the construction zone safely without a hard hat.

More good news. We got a call earlier in the week that the big dumpster blocking the church’s front door was taken away. This meant the construction fence could open up. We asked our general contractor if this meant we could allow our guests to take a look around; even as far as to walk around the church. Auld and White was happy to make this happen and laid out a path of straw around the church. 

The ceremony began in front of the church with Fr. Thomas offering a few words before a crowd of local parishioners and curious visitors. The procession began with 4 priests leading the way. A standard bearer of Our Lady of Pompeii followed along with over 200 men, women, and children, cautiously circumnavigating the construction site while belting out Immaculate Mary, Hail Holy Queen and Christus Vincit. Once we returned to the front plaza, we prayed St. Bartolo’s Supplica in unison, which was quite moving and a formidable sight. The ceremony concluded with a sacredotal blessing and invitation to dinner.

A short 5 minute walk to our favorite restaurant, Strings, brought about the second phase of the evening. People found their seats and the announcements began.

Fr. Thomas asked that people give their attention to the choir who sang the most lovely renditions of the following pieces:

Ave Maria - Jacob Arcadelt (c. 1505 - 1568)

Locus Iste - Anton Bruckner (1824-1896)

Ave Verum Corpus - Byrd (c. 1540-1623)

Sicut Cervus - Giovanni P. Da Palestrina (c. 1525-1594)

Ave Verum Corpus - Michael J. Trotta, ASCAP

Ubi Caritas - Maurice Durufle (1902-1986)

Bogoroditsye Dyevo - Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)

If Ye Love Me - Thomas Tallis (c. 1505-1585)

Afterwards, the Sacred Image, the centerpiece of the evening, was uncovered by our guest, District Bursar, Fr. Scott Gardner. The food was then blessed (and what a blessing it was!)

Dessert was a Rosary Crusade Cake surrendered by brownies, cookies, and petit fours

The clear winner of the night was the shrimp and grits with salmon as a close runner up. My friend Emily wants the recipe of the chef’s charred brussel sprouts with a reduction of balsamic and caramelized onions. The food was hot, the beer was cold, and the hospitality was delightful.

Once we settled down, Fr. Thomas broke two big pieces of news. First, the bad news. Instead of us occupying the church by August 15th, the date of the first Mass is now scheduled for November 3rd. I know this timeline is in God’s hands, so how can I be disappointed? I’ll just be more patient. The silver lining is we now have 10 more weeks to plan the chapel transfer.

The good news came next. Two Rosary Crusaders delivered a check for $1,300,000. The donor wishes to remain anonymous, so Fr. Thomas applied St. Bartolo Longo’s autograph to the signature line. Whoever “Bartolo” is, thank you!

As the night wrapped up, we raffled off some prizes that Fr. Thomas collected from his European and South American pilgrimages. The kids helped draw the winning numbers and multiple winners went home with books, Rosaries, wall art, and free entries for the Quito statue raffle.

Everyone was invited to the unofficial afterparty at the new cigar lounge around the corner. The establishment is new to Springfield and the owners have wonderful taste, applying a rich Catholic motif throughout. Since it wasn’t a school night, I was able to have a nightcap and enjoy the deep scents of leather, cedar, and fine tobacco.

Around 9 PM, we used my van to carefully transport the sacred image back to the chapel where I was able to sneak in some Adoration in thanksgiving for such a wonderful night

Specifically, I’d like to appreciate:

• The priests in attendance

• Meghan & the Strings team for hosting us.

• Ben Walsh and Philip Rhea and the choir. You sounded amazing.

• Bill Gulliford - Project Lead Emeritus

• Jeff & Laura Smiley

• Chris Schattinger and Joe Pellicer for coordinating the event

• Chad & Mary Scharf for helping me with AV and grant writing.

• Bob Austin & Robin Ogle for dedicating countless hours behind the scenes

• Our architect Jeff Lane and the Auld and White team: Buck Smoak, Mary Weeks, George Arco, Kyle Webb, Niko Hogan, Jackson Abshier, John Slaugh, Kevin Garcia, and especially Steve Auld for coming out.

I would like to end by thanking Danielle Kraus and the 64 children who’ve offered over 22,000 Rosaries.

God willing, I would like to be a part of May the 8th next year in some way, shape, or fashion.

Photo credits George Arco & Billie Jo and Aidan Edmondson