places of worship >st. joseph’s monastery of the poor clares
St. Joseph’s Monastery of the Poor Clares
Aptos, California
The relationship between Susan Wagner and the Sisters of St. Joseph’s Monastery began over twenty years ago, when Susan designed a small stained glass window for the monastery visitors’ room. A few years later, a new building was in the planning, and the Sisters asked Susan to create new stained glass windows for the chapel and also to design and oversee fabrication of the liturgical furnishings.
A wonderful saga began in 1990 with a memorable trip to Assisi, Italy, home of St. Francis and St. Clare. Franciscan scholar Father Salvador Butler, OFM, became both her guide and chief negotiator with the local quarry that was selected to mine and carve the 2000-pound limestone block that would eventually become the altar for the chapel. The beautiful pink stone arrived in California within a few months. However, moving the stone into place presented a problem because of delicate heating elements already in the flooring. Susan found some local weightlifters and explained the situation. These extremely strong and generous men volunteered to help, and one Sunday arrived at the chapel, lifting the Altar stone into place with the ease of flipping a pancake.
In addition to her glasswork, Susan enlisted a number of talented artisans to complete the chapel interior. Anne Dizikes wove graceful silk altar cloths; metal smiths fabricated the steeple’s cross, the enclosure screen, lectern and credence tables; and woodworkers constructed the celebrants’ chairs. |
