Church Treasures

Way back, in college, while working in the maintenance department of a nursing home, I had my first experience of polishing brass. There was an old house in the back of the main building long sense used for storage and home to wild animals of all sort. In that home were old doorknobs that had once had a purpose but by that time only served to bruise the occasional passerby.  I removed several of them to help streamline the organization of all the clutter thinking that they were just dark, heavy, old doorknobs. A coworker suggested I take one out to the grinding wheel and see what was underneath. That's when I saw it for the very first time, the transformation of something dull into something shinny - a buried treasure at one's fingertips. Eventually, I came to understand that wire bristles may not be the best way to remove years of tarnish and old lacquer and I eventually learned to use professional polishers, chemicals, and other tools to do the job. From there the interest blossomed, especially after being assigned to Saint Boniface, the oldest continually existant parish in Louisville, Kentucky. The possibility of stumbling upon an old piece of brass that could, with a little work, turn back into something marvelous was exhilarating. I began looking for items no longer in use and the hobby has simply exploded. I love the feeling when I turn a corner and there is some lost church treasure just waiting for me. I especially love to reunite lost pairs knowing that what was once used to glorify God now has a chance to do so again. My goal is to return items to Catholic churches where they can be used and perhaps make a little money to continue the process. If you see something that interests you, or if you'd like to know more, please feel free to let me know.

The following gallery is of a show I put on as I was leaving Saint Patrick's / Saint Boniface in June of 2019. The collection has grown significantly since that day: