The CATHOLIC DIOCESE of DODGE CITY

Serving the People of Southwest Kansas

  Bishop dedicates adoration chapel at cathedral

At top, Bishop Gilmore prays before the Blessed Sacrament during the dedication of the adoration chapel at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe May 2. Above,  parishioners pray before the Blessed Sacrament after the dedication. The chapel will be used for first Friday adoration in June, July and August. The parish is preparing to begin perpetual adoration in the fall.

 

By Tim Wenzl

Diocesan Archvist

Bishop Ronald M. Gilmore dedicated the recently constructed adoration chapel at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe May 2.

At the conclusion of the Sunday liturgy, during which 61 youth from the parish were confirmed, Bishop Gilmore processed to the chapel and placed the Blessed Sacrament in the monstrance on the altar. After reverencing the altar with incense and pausing for private prayer, the bishop returned to the sanctuary for the final blessing.

The adoration chapel, part of the original plans for the cathedral, was made possible through a gift of the J. Philip and Mary (Rohr) Dreher Family. Father Jacob Dreher made the contribution in memory of his parents several months before his death on Jan. 11, 2004.

J. Philip and Mary Dreher were married in 1889. Fifteen children were born to this union. Two entered religious life: Father Jacob Dreher and Sister M. Philip Dreher, ASC. The only child who now survives is a daughter, Helen Albert of Mount Vernon, Kan.

Father Dreher was ordained Sept. 18, 1943. In the Diocese of Dodge City, he served at St. Joseph, Offerle, with St. Mary, Hodgeman County as a mission; St. Anthony, Fowler; St. Michael, La Crosse; St. Joseph, Scott City; Holy Family, Odin; St. Joseph, Beaver, and St. Catherine, Dubuque. He retired in 1991. He was buried in St. Joseph Cemetery in Liebenthal Jan. 14, 2004.

The chapel was designed by Robert D. Habiger of Albuquerque, N.M., and constructed by Western Construction of Dodge City. John Born of Born Brothers, Inc., Wichita, was the stone mason who constructed the Silverdale limestone wall that encloses the chapel. The silverdale limestone was supplied by the H J Born Stone Co. in Arkansas City.