Scottsdale’s Catholics restore Old Adobe Mission

By Rebecca Bostic
The Catholic Sun

SCOTTSDALE — Our Lady of Perpetual Help is giving its Old Adobe Mission a facelift. The renovation of the historic building began a year ago and the mission committee is ready to begin phase two of the project.

The Old Adobe Mission, located in the heart of downtown Scottsdale, was nearly razed six years ago because of its deteriorating structure. Two members of the current mission committee attended the Scottsdale City Council meeting and lobbied for the option to contact the pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help about saving the historic building.

Fr. Thomas Hever, pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, was initially interested in restoring the mission because of the integral part the mission plays in the parish’s history. The mission was the original church in which the Our Lady of Perpetual Help community congregated until the construction of their current facility on Miller Road in Scottsdale.

“It will reach people that we’d never ordinarily reach: visitors that come to Scottsdale, because it’s right within walking distance” of many downtown attractions, Fr. Hever said of the renovated mission. “Hopefully too, as we develop and grow, we’ll be able to have a little bit of evangelization there, explanation of doctrine and what we’re about as Catholics.”

The opportunity to evangelize has already presented itself in the six months the mission has been open to the public. The mission has hosted 5,500 visitors from every state in the United States and 31 countries.

The mission will be home to Catholic celebrations and community activities.

“This will be open to Catholic weddings or special Masses that people request,” said Sr. Alice Ruane, SC, the administrator of the committee since 2003, adding that two weddings, quinceañeras and an ecumenical prayer service have already occurred in the mission.

“We intend to have artifacts on display so that people — tourists and locals — can come in to see the history and work that had to be done, along with some of the future plans,” she said.

Sr. Alice has worked closely with a committee of 11 parishioners on mission renovations. Patricia Underhill, the mission historian, was one of the original members to form the committee and has put many hours into discovering the unique history of the Old Adobe Mission.

“It’s a passion, it’s an addiction,” Underhill said of her involvement with the mission restoration project. “I love mysteries and this has been just one grand mystery.”

The Hispanic, Yaqui Indian and Anglo families living in Scottsdale built the Old Adobe Mission — the city’s first Catholic church — in 1933. The mission served as a church and community center for Catholics of the area until the construction of the current Our Lady of Perpetual Help church in 1978.

Only one of the original pews, built and maintained by each family in the community, remains. Much of the original artwork did survive, including stained glass windows. The committee is restoring and recreating damaged or destroyed pieces.

The Historic Preservation Heritage Fund, administered by the Arizona State Parks Board, provided a grant for the restoration project. Phase one of the restoration is complete and the committee is currently fundraising for phase two.

“We’re not generously endowed,” Underhill said. “We’re grateful for the grants and for the Historic Preservation Society, but other than that we are very innovative in our fundraising.”

With enough funds, Sr. Alice and Underhill expect to finish the project within two to three years.

The women hope this Scottsdale landmark will continue its prominence in the community and grow into a larger presence in the city.

“It will be a spiritual, contemplative center for anybody who wants to drop by,” Underhill said. “It’s a very peaceful, quiet place.”

For more information on the Old Adobe Mission visit its Web site at www.olphaz.com/old_adobe_mission.htm.