Our Lady of Seven Dolors Msgr. Heineman Heritage Fund
The parishioners of Our Lady of Seven Dolors Catholic Church, Festina, Iowa, celebrated the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Parish in 1993. At that time Msgr Heineman wrote: “We hail with respect and gratitude the faith of our predecessors who walked through the doors of our parish church and knelt here in prayer. We note with admiration the sacrifice and love of former parishioners who built and maintained this parish. We acknowledge the priests and sisters who left from this parish to serve God and church in other parishes. And we deeply appreciate those who came to us from elsewhere to serve.
We thank those before us who handed us the torch of faith. We promise to treasure this gift of faith, and we pledge to hand it to those who will follow us.”
Our Lady of Seven Dolors Msgr. Heineman Heritage Fund
We are blessed to have a parish endowment fund that was seeded by the generosity of Msgr. Heineman. The funds are used for the operations of the parish and/or maintenance of the church building, parish center and property. It will provide regular distributions to help the parish until Jesus comes again.
An endowment is a fund set aside for the long-term benefits of an organization. The initial and additional funds contributed to the endowment are invested and a portion of the earnings are distributed for charitable purposes. An endowment fund is typically permanent and will generate income for Our Lady of Seven Dolors well into the future. It gives your charitable giving eternal life on earth.
Donating to Our Lady of Seven Dolors Msgr. Heineman Heritage Fund is easy. The fund is managed by The Catholic Foundation in the Archdiocese of Dubuque (CFAD), and gifts can be made online, by check, fund transfers, or other methods.
We invite anyone interested to support this effort through donation and/or prayers. Thank you for your help in this effort that will keep giving to the upkeep and operations of Our Lady of Seven Dolors in Festina, Iowa.
Festina Parish was an Indian Mission
Our Lady of Seven Dolors Catholic Church, Festina, Iowa, has the unique distinction of being the only parish in the Archdiocese of Dubuque able to trace its genesis back to an Indian Mission. The history of the parish is reckoned from 1843, shortly after the Winnebago’s (Hochunk) were moved to a new reservation at Fort Atkinson on the banks of the Turkey River.
Fr. Samuel Mazzucheli had worked with the tribe starting in 1835 and the Christian Winnebagoes, along with soldiers from the Fort, eventually attended a mission established in 1843 by Rev. Joseph Cretin, which he names “Our Lady of the Wilderness.” Due to the many pains and persecutions he faced in establishing the parish, however, he changed its title to Our Lady of Seven Dolors.
Between 1848 and 1849 the Indians were gradually being removed from the reservation. Simultaneously several families who had migrated to this section of Iowa with the intention of organizing a Catholic colony arrived. They immediately selected “Old Mission” of Our Lady of Seven Dolors to serve as their chapel.
The chapel was destroyed by fire in late 1854 and relocated to Twin Springs, now known as Festina. The present stone church was completed in 1863.
~This history was provided in the original Endowment Fund pamphlet