If you build it, they will come

There will be a bobblehead giveaway,
fireworks, hot dogs, and the chance to bond as a Catholic community while
watching America’s favorite pastime. But the more than 1,300 parishioners of
St. Katharine Drexel Mission in Haymarket hope an evening spent watching the Potomac
Nationals play the Wilmington Blue Rocks also will infuse some much-needed cash
into the church building fund. 

St. Katharine, a mission of St. Stephen
the Martyr Church in Middleburg, already has land along Route 15 and designs
for a church to seat around 400. “We’re looking forward to begin clearing land,
and all the technical things with the county seem to be moving forward,” said
Margaret Bocchichio, a member of the church building committee. They aim to
raise $1.5 million for phase one of their capital campaign.

The St. Katharine community currently
worships in Bull Run Middle School in Gainesville, and it takes about 30
volunteers to set up for Mass every Sunday. “The reason we’re trying to raise
this money is that we have kids who were born and raised (having gone to)
church in Bull Run, but we’d like a small country church of our own,” Bocchichio
said.

^{The proposed design for the St. Katharine Drexel Mission
church building will seat around 400. COURTESY}