NORWALK—“Finally, the day is here,” said Father Jeff Couture, pastor of St. Matthew Parish, on the morning of the dedication of the Walter C. Orlowski Recreation Center, Sunday, December 12.
“We want to thank Monsignor for watching over us and seeing this thing through,” said Father Couture.
The center is named in honor of St. Matthew’s late pastor, Msgr. Walter C. Orlowski, who began the project in 2018, and whose vision was to create an intergenerational gathering place for wellness in body, mind and spirit.
During the Mass, Bishop Frank J. Caggiano acknowledged that the celebration was taking place in Gaudete Sunday, the Sunday of Joy.
“We are not always promised that we will be happy, but we are promised that we will have the gift of joy,” said the bishop. “For joy comes from the deep trust that we have in our hearts that no matter what happens to us, challenges before us, or suffering we face, our God will be before us.”
“It is the most appropriate of all Sundays when we come here to bless this recreation and wellness center in memory of Msgr. Walter,” the bishop said.
“If there was a man whom I have met in my life who understood what the gift of joy was and is, it was Msgr. Walter,” said the bishop. “He was always laughing and smiling. He was a man of faithfulness who suffered greatly for the Lord Jesus. He was very much acquainted with suffering, loss and challenge. He gave until it hurt and he kept on giving, and what allowed him to do that was the gift of joy, which he had in his heart.”
The bishop congratulated the congregation for completing this wonderful project, which will be a benefit to parishioners and the larger Norwalk community and beyond that. “It will be a place where you will gather to recreate, to socialize, to grow in faith and friendship, but it is also a place of wellness.”
The bishop tasked parishioners to make it a place of joy in honor of Msgr. Walter. “May this new center be a place where people’s hearts who are broken because they are alone can find friendship. May this be a place where people who are suffering and have no one to speak to about it find a willing ear to listen. May this be a place where everyone will feel welcome, be invited, and be strengthened for the work of love…so that the joy Christ promises us we will allow others to receive in their lives.
Father Jeff Couture thanked the bishop and priests who concelebrated Mass and those who had been present during the development of the recreation center. Many members of the community supported Monsignor’s vision for the center and Father Jeff was sure to thank them all.
Following Mass, excited parishioners filed out of the Church and gathered around a red ribbon surrounded by balloons in front of the new rec center. The ribbon was cut to cheers and applause from the crowd.
Mayor Harry W. Rilling and State Senator Bob Duff were present for the ceremony in support of the new center being a fixture of the community.
Those gathered were able to file into the center, as the bishop and Father Jeff blessed a plaque dedicated to Msgr. Walter, and the track inside the center which will be used by many.
Construction began on the recreation center in July of 2019.
“We’re building on what we already have, to give people the training space and programs they need to encourage health in body, mind and spirit,” said the late Msgr. Orlowski on the eve of the groundbreaking. “It’s all about creating a parish even more welcoming than ever before—one that can be the center of people’s lives. It’s all for the good, all for God’s people.”
The 18,000 square-foot two-story recreation center houses a court/fieldhouse, indoor walking/running track, universal workout room, tumble room for toddlers and Newman Lounge, designed by the architectural firm, Doyle & Coffin Architecture and developed by Lecher Development.
St. Matthew is partnering with Norwalk Community College for the development of the Newman Center to serve the 40 percent Catholic student population at the college. The club will be based at the St. Matthew Recreational Center and open to all NCC students. Newman Centers focus on strengthening today’s Catholic young adults in the faith during their college years.
(For more information, visit: www.stmatthewnorwalk.org/recreation-center)
