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The bells at St. Mary's will ring again

Long-time parishioner Mike Simpson said the bells fell silent and were only used in special events. Now he’s leading an organized effort to make the bell chiming a staple of the church.

The tintinnabulation of the three bells at St. Mary’s Parish in Cochrane will be heard this Sunday.

 

A dedicated group of volunteers have taken the helm in heralding the tradition back. Long-time parishioner Mike Simpson said the bells fell silent and were only used in special events. Now he’s leading an organized effort to make the bell chiming a staple of the church.

 

“Our mandate for building this church was to create a journey from the secular to the spiritual,” Mike Simpson said. 

 

“The bells will start that journey for people that are coming to celebrations here. They will be an announcement that something is happening here.”

 

The current location of the parish in River Heights was dedicated on June 3, 2007. Simpson, a retired structural engineer, heads the parish’s art committee which includes interfacing with the historic bells.

 

Parishioner Warren Harbeck researched the origin of the bells in a bulletin he prepared for the St. Mary’s Building Committee back in 2006. Harbeck discovered that the parish’s 75 foot spire is one of the highest free-standing bell towers in the province.

 

Harbeck wrote that the top bell is cast of bronze, weighs about 145 lbs, measures 18 inches across the bottom, and is tuned to G. It was cast in France in 1903 by the Robert and Jean Boller foundry.

 

The middle bell, also bronze, weighs 220 lbs and measures 21 inches across the bottom. The bell is tuned to E and was cast in France in about 1903 by the Georges and Fancisque Paccad foundry. The parish acquired the top and middle bell more than 30 years ago.

 

Harbeck was able to uncover more history on the bottom bell. The bell was originally installed in St. Peter’s and St. Paul’s RC Church in Ladywood, Man. The wooden church was demolished and rebuilt in 1936. The bell continued in service until the church was decommissioned in the early 00s. The parish purchased the bell at that time.

 

The simple act of ringing a bell will also be an opportunity to bridge the gap between the parish’s young and older members of the congregation. Simpson explains that a group of volunteers from Christ Church Anglican Calgary came to the parish last week to offer a training session. The group taught different techniques and different musical sequences.

 

“We’ve never done that,” Simpson said of the training experience.

 

“We’re trying to generate a sense of spirit and participation in the parish. This is one small thing that adds life to the process.”

This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent and the beginning of the parish’s 125th year of service. The parish began serving our area’s Indigenous population, traders, trappers, settlers, ranchers and farmers and growing families from both rural and urban communities. The original site was a small log hut 18 kilometres south of the current town site of Cochrane.

 

The parish has a congregation of between 800-900. They’re located at 10 River Heights Drive. For more information visit their website: www.stmaryscochrane.ca

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