WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Each week, the Sts. Patrick and Raphael Parish community gathers to break bread.

 

On Sunday, they also gathered to break ground.

 

The Roman Catholic parish held a site dedication and blessing for a long-awaited front entryway project after its 10:30 Mass.

 

The Rev. John McDonough and parish officials spoke briefly and the choir sang songs of praise before groups of dignitaries, parish employees and children from its Faith Formation group took turns turning the ground where a large front entry and new mahogany doors soon will grace the front of the 19th century church on Southworth Street.

 

"Any project of this size really needs true leadership," said Laura Day of the parish's Fundraising Committee. "We're so grateful to Father John and the lay leaders of the parish for their demonstration of that, including Al Chrosny, Becky Santori, Rita Coppola-Wallace and John Benzinger.

 

"We're grateful to Henry Pierpan and others who came before us … who led projects like this that model what it means to make God's presence in the physical church accessible to our full community."

 

In addition to beautifying the historic church building, the new entry will include an upgraded ramp for parishioners with mobility issues.

 

The project, when completed, will cost about $850,000, the vast majority of which has been raised locally, said Benzinger, the chair of the parish's Building Committee.

 

As work gets underway in earnest on Monday, the parish will lose access to the church building for about two months. It plans to hold most of its services in the Parish Center next door with the 10:30 Mass at Williams College's Thompson Memorial Chapel.

 

Benzinger said the main staircase and plaza in front of the church should take about two months. The doors will be installed afterward, hopefully before the end of the calendar year, and the project's landscaping will be completed in the spring.

 

When completed, it will be the latest in a series of investments at Sts. Patrick and Raphael, formerly known as St. Patrick's Church before merging with the town's other Catholic parish in 1997.

 

"I've been on the building committee about three years, and we've really done some wonderful projects the last three years," Benzinger told the small crowd gathered for Sunday's ceremony. "The new roof on the church, repaired the boiler in the basement of the church, we got rid of all the asbestos in the basement of the church … we put a new heating and cooling system in the rectory for Father, and I think he appreciates that quite a bit. We insulated the roof of the rectory, as well, to save energy, and a series of other small projects.

 

"This particular project, we've started some work already. We washed the brick and the marble on the front of the church already. … They've sealed the brick. They haven't sealed the marble yet."

 

When the project is finished, it will include recognition of one of a popular figure in the parish's recent past.

 

"We're grateful to Father [William] Cyr for his long-standing leadership in the community and for allowing us to honor him and his service through the doors that we will open together when this project concludes," Day said.