"Santa Cruz is Looking Up!" Those were the words emblazoned on the new sweatshirts of Holy Cross parishioners, also known on this festive day as "Steeple People." It was October 17, 1992, exactly three years since the great quake of '89 damaged and closed the church. Fr. Mike Marini, a Santa Cruz native, had come onboard as the new pastor the year before, understanding the challenges ahead: a displaced community with two million dollars to raise for repairs to the church. In the photo above he is standing with Santa Cruz civic leader John Lisher, City Councilwoman and parishioner Katherine Beiers, and Congressman Leon Panetta. Like everyone in the park that Saturday morning, they were looking up in anticipation and awe as the steeple was raised slowly into place. But before that happened, of course, there was a program which included music sung by the Holy Cross Choir, prayers, speeches, and mounting excitement.
A time capsule was placed in the steeple by students of Holy Cross School and their parents which included such items as a church directory, a copy of The Sentinel's "Great Quake of 1989," and a tape of KSBW-TV's earthquake broadcast. Also included was a two-hour video of life in Santa Cruz in 1992. A brass plaque placed on the lid of the box would identify its contents for future parishioners.
Photographer Bill Lovejoy did a great job capturing students Sarah Machado and Jody Pini with their treasures.
St. Patrick's Church in Watsonville had also been heavily damaged in the earthquake, and representatives from their parish brought both their prayers and a gift of apples to the celebration.
Finally, the time had arrived. Everyone held their breath as the 22,000 pound steeple which would be raised the equivalent of thirteen stories moved slowly through the air.
The steeple - ever so gently - was finally lowered into place! Bells rang, people clapped and cheered, and Handel's "Hallelujah" chorus rang out from a boom box. It was a big day for Holy Cross and for the city of Santa Cruz that did indeed, as Fr. Mike had prayed, "lift our hearts a little higher." The beautiful white church on the hill that was the first thing people saw as they rounded the bend on 17 was complete again. It had its steeple.
But returning to the church was still in the future. And for that story, we need to wait for Part Four.
Addendum: Jesse Corona discovered a video his mother, Concepcion, had made of the steeple-raising and put it on YouTube. Here it is, 29 years after the happy day.