SAN ANTONIO – The temperature inside St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church on the Southeast Side wasn’t just hot; it was sweltering.
“This church has no windows that you can really open up, and so we put some fans in with some open doors, and we did our best to actually keep the people cool,” said Father Jimmy Drennan, the church’s pastor.
Even though electric fans were set up, parishioners attending morning and afternoon Mass still had to use hand fans to try and get cool.
Drennan said church attendees were also offered water so they could remain hydrated.
He said the church is forced to endure the heat inside after a would-be thief could not break into the church’s mechanical room and turned their attention to the church’s water chiller tower.
“The damage that was done to the water chiller was within the bearings and the large fan,” Drennan said.
As a result, the A/C units inside the church do not work.
“This serves the entire church building,” Drennan said. “Yeah, so this one unit is what keeps the entire church cool; without that, we can’t cool the church.”
Last week’s temperatures were a preview of this week. Triple-digit temperatures are in the forecast daily.
Drennan said the parts to fix the chiller have been ordered, and he is praying the repair company can fix it this week.
He is also praying the church will be able to pay for it when they learn what it is going to cost.
“Unfortunately, we are a struggling parish,” Drennan shared. “We don’t have the revenues set aside for something like this.”
Despite the unbearable hit, Drennan marveled at his congregation’s faithfulness.
The church is praying for the person or persons responsible to come and worship at their church home.
“People’s devotion to Christ is what keeps them coming, and the heat wasn’t gonna keep them out,” Drennan said.
Drennan said once they learn the cost of the repair, the church will be able to file a police report.
He added that once the water chiller is fixed, the congregation may have to look at putting a fence and a cage all the way around it.
Until it is, parishioners are being advised to dress lightly and comfortably.