CHARLOTTE — Harry Scott was 3 years old in 1955 when his late mother Marie Scott took him to the groundbreaking for a new Catholic church on Statesville Avenue in west Charlotte.
Seventy years later, he is still a member at that parish – Our Lady of Consolation – as well as chairman of the parish council.
On Dec. 13 and 14, he joined with hundreds of fellow parishioners to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the historically Black parish. Established when segregation was still in effect in the South, it quickly became not only a spiritual home for Charlotte’s Black Catholics but also an important source of outreach to the community.
More than 300 people came together on Dec. 13 for a jubilee banquet and dance that featured special music and reflections on the parish history. On Dec. 14, Father Juan Miguel Sanchez, priest-secretary to Bishop Michael Martin, celebrated a joyful Mass for parishioners old and new and included music by the church’s four choirs.
Father Marcel Amadi, parochial administrator at the parish since July, gave a homily centered around the true joy found through faith in God, and said that joy has enabled Our Lady of Consolation to give witness over the decades.
“People kept coming back to Our Lady of Consolation over the years because they found joy here, and we hope joyful people will continue to be in this church for the next 70 years, the next 100 years,” he said.
Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles sent a letter paying tribute to the parish’s role in the city, praising the parish’s “strength, faith and commitment…uplifting generations through your ministry and dedication to service.”
Generations of memories
The celebration led long-time members like Scott to reflect on their many years at the parish.
Scott’s treasured memories included being an altar server, especially at midnight Masses for Christmas. He attended the parish school from kindergarten through eighth grade, and remembered basketball games, school plays and the annual summer Vacation Bible School taught by the Oblate Sisters of Providence who staffed the school, which closed in 1988 when the sisters left the diocese.
“Over the years, it always felt to me like it was a privilege to be able to be at Our Lady of Consolation, and for me now it is a matter of being home when I’m here,” he said.
The parish is also home to generations of Bonita Graham’s family, whose grandparents and parents worshiped at St. Mary and Our Lady of Perpetual Help – the two smaller parishes that merged in 1955 to form Our Lady of Consolation. In the spring of 1956, construction began on parish buildings consisting of a rectory, school, auditorium and convent.
Graham and her two siblings were baptized and received their other sacraments in the new church, Graham’s daughter was baptized and married there, and her granddaughter, now 10, was also baptized there.
Like Scott, she has fond memories of attending the parish school, where she recalled the nuns would join the students on the playground to play dodgeball and baseball.
“They were involved in everything we did – they did not just sit on the sidelines,” Graham said.
Many people in the majority Black neighborhood would send their children to Our Lady of Consolation School because of its strong Catholic education, Graham said.
Her love for her parish led her to play a big role in planning the celebration, and on Sunday Graham manned a booth taking orders for commemorative T-shirts. It was a lot of work, but not too much to ask to celebrate the parish she loves.
“For me, there is just such a sense of belonging here – everybody knows everybody, you are recognized by your priest, and there is a sense of friendship and community,” she said. “We greet everybody here and everyone interacts with each other. When we have our annual revivals, visiting priests from other places always talk about Our Lady of Consolation and tell us that we have something very special here in the city of Charlotte.”
— Christina Lee Knauss
