Major restoration complete; Historic St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church holding open house
Barney Lerten
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — An extensive restoration has been completed at the Historic St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in downtown Bend, which is holding an open house from 4-6 p.m. Thursday.
Phase 2 of the renovation began last July, at a cost of more than $3 million.
The restoration was designed to bring the church more in line with its historical and traditional style.
Deacon Phil McCarty told us, “The statues, the pews, the stained glass windows, the Stations of the Cross, all of that is original – original 1920 that has been restored to be as beautiful as it was in 1920 and repaired in some cases. So we really were not looking to change anything.”
The church got in contact with the family that made the original statues 100 years ago to have them refinished. The incredible stained glass windows were taken apart, cleaned and reassembled. The 100-year-old wooden pews got the same treatment as well.
The first Mass will be held next Monday, and is a ticketed event.