Religion: Scanlan Glass Commissioned to Make Gift for Pope Francis, By Laura Eng

Most of Kevin Scanlan’s studio glass business at Scanlan Glass in Red Hook comes from commissions from artists, lighting designers, and private individuals. But last month, he received a very different kind of request.

With less than a week and a half before the Pope’s visit to New York, Kevin got a call from John Heyer, Jr., Development Officer of the Diocese of Brooklyn, asking him to create a gift to be presented to Pope Francis from the Diocese. Kevin described himself as feeling honored to be given such a commission for the Holy Father.
Very few guidelines came with the request other than it had to include the logo of the Catholic Foundation of Brooklyn and Queens, which consists of a globe with the Brooklyn Bridge and a cross in the foreground.

Kevin decided to create a glass sculpture in a “free-flame” shape. The first step was liquefying the glass in a 2000 degree glass furnace and forming the molten substance into the desired shape. This step took about an hour.

The sculpture was then placed in an annealing oven to slowly and completely cool so that it wouldn’t crack. It was then cut off at the bottom, ground down and polished, and inserted into a wooden base that Kevin also made.

The logo and the cross etchings were taken from a photographically-made masking that was ordered and sand-blasted onto the sculpture. Kevin’s studio-mate, Mary Ellen Buxton-Kutch, then applied gold-leaf to the cross. The Diocese provided an engraved plaque that was affixed to the base.

So on the afternoon of September 24, shortly after the papal plane touched down at JFK, seventh grader Raymond Rico, 12 – one of the five Catholic School children on hand to greet the Pope – presented the unique and specially-crafted sculpture to the Holy Father. As he received it, Pope Francis carefully studied the gift with a broad smile on his face.

Kevin became interested in working with glass when he was a kid attending art school in Detroit. He has lived in New York for the past thirty years and relocated his business from Gowanus to Red Hook five years ago. In addition to producing functional, abstract, and conceptual pieces, Scanlan Glass also offers glassblowing classes for beginner and intermediate students. If you are interested in taking classes or would like to view Kevin’s beautiful work, some of which has been featured at The Museum of Modern Art Store, The American Craft Museum, and The Corning Museum of Glass, visit www.scanlanglass.com.

Upcoming Events

Annual Catholic Charities Bereavement Conference – On Saturday, November 7 from 1-3:30 pm at St. Francis College (180 Remsen Street), Catholic Charities will host its annual Journey to Healing Bereavement Conference. This year’s theme is “End of Life Conversations and the Catholic Perspective.”

Participants are invited to listen to compassionate professionals discuss losing a loved one or nearing the end of life and will receive a Conversation Starter Kit that can help prepare for decisions about healthcare proxy, end of life wishes and more. The conference is free but registration is required. For more information and to register, call (718) 722-6214, email april.boone@ccbq.org, or visit www.ccbq.org.

The 55th Annual Scotto Funeral Home Mass in memory of all our departed loved ones. On Saturday, November 7 at 12 pm at Sacred Hearts/St. Stephen Church. Light refreshments to follow in Cabrini Hall.

Congregation Mount Sinai, 250 Cadman Plaza West
• Isha L’Isha Women’s Group with Rabbi Sara Zacharia on Monday. A monthly gathering of women to study Jewish tradition and text, to connect with the voices of women from our past and find personal meaning and relevance for today.
• Interfaith Scripture Study – Wednesday, November 4 , 7-8:30 pm at Dawood Mosque, 143 State Street; Wednesday, November 18, 7-8:30 pm at Congregation Mount Sinai. Free. Kane Street Synagogue, 236 Kane Street
• Open Beit Midrash, a creative, informal learning academy each Tuesday evening from October 20, 2015-April 12, 2016 kicks off with “The Torah of Music.” Dinner at 6:45 pm and class from 7:30-9 pm. Cost is $40 per each three-week course, or subscriptions are available for $189 for all eight courses. Visit kanestreet.org or contact Joy Fallek at ronitjoy@aol.com for information and registration.

The Oratory Church of St. Boniface, 109 Willoughby Street
• Announcing Beyond Sunday at the Oratory. For 20 or 30 somethings looking for a group of fellow Catholic young adults to share spiritual, service, and social activities. Email Emily Mathis at beyondsundayoratory@gmail.com to be added to the weekly newsletter list and to find out about upcoming events.
• Ben Niemczyk, Music Director of St. Boniface, will be conducting a concert with the New York Session Symphony on Saturday, November 7 at 7:30 pm at the Broadway Presbyterian Church, 114 Street and Broadwayin Manhattan. It will include works such as Mozart’s Sonatas K.329, 336, 278 with Anthony Newman on organ, and other works.
• Advent Vespers 2015 – Theme: “My prayer is that your love may more and more abound, both in understanding and wealth of experience, so that with a clear conscience and blameless conduct you may learn to value the things that really matter…” Philippians 1, 9-11. At 4 pm on November 29: Brendan Coburn, Founder of CWB Architects; December 6: Stephen Perkins, Engineer at BurroHappold; December 13: Sister Margaret Ormond, OP, President of Dominican Academy in Manhattan; December 20: Mary Hiebert, Research Foundation of CUNY.

River of God Christian Center, 110 Wolcott Street
• Thanksgiving Day, November 26 – The Saints at ROGCC will be feeding the Thanksgiving dinner to the neighborhood.
Sacred Hearts/St. Stephen Church, Summit & Hicks
• All Souls Day Memorial Mass remembering all who died and were buried from SHSS on November 2 at 7pm.
• The Ghostlight Chorus, under the direction of Evelyn Troester, will present a Concert of Sacred Choral Works, on Friday, November 6 at 7pm. Free will offering with all proceeds to benefit the Music Ministry at SHSS.
• Thanksgiving Mass on Wednesday, November 25, at 7 pm featuring the Children’s Choir.
• Reading with an Author featuring Carroll Gardens’ native son, Vito Gentile, author of Little Christmas, reading his Christmas poetry and stories on Sunday, December 6 from 2-4 pm. Admission is free and refreshments will be served.
• The Year of Mercy begins on December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, with Father Ugo Nacciarone, SJ preaching about the concept of mercy at all Masses.

St. Agnes Church, Hoyt & DeGraw
• French Mass each Sunday at 11 am
• Sounds on Sackett – A concert series of jazz, pop, and classical performances continues on Saturday, November 14 at 7 pm with Grammy Award-nominated David Smith and his quartet performing American jazz standards, original compositions, and arrangements inspired by church hymns. Admission is $20 for adults (children under 12 are free) and includes a post-performance reception. For more information and a full list of upcoming concerts, call (718) 625-1717.
• Thanksgiving Day Mass at 9:15 am on November 26. Please bake a cake or pie and bring it to Mass. All desserts will be transported to Our Father’s House in Bedford Stuyvesant to feed those in need.

St. Mary Star of the Sea, 467 Court
• Parish Mass of Thanksgiving on November 26th at 9 am. All are welcome!
• Advent Celebrations – For information on Advent and the upcoming Children’s Christmas Party, visit www.stmarystarbrooklyn.com and on Facebook.

St. Paul Episcopal Church, 199 Carroll
• St. Paul’s 27th Annual Auction – Saturday, November 7 beginning at 5pm. An evening of competitive bidding, delicious supper and wine during the silent auction with the live auction following coffee and dessert. Raffles for $2 and $5 Treasure Chest raffles will be sold. The evening will end with the drawing for the Quilt Raffle. Admission for adults is $30. Adults only event with childcare available. Contact St. Paul’s office for tickets at (718) 625-4126 or email info@stpaulscarrollst.org. The BIN (Buy It Now) Online Auction for such items as fine dining, museum passes and gift certificates to local merchants. Go to biddingowl.com/Auction/home.cfm?auctionID=4845
• Cerddorian Vocal Ensemble will present Fitful Flame: Music of Love and War, directed by James John, on Friday, November 13 at 8 pm. Advance tickets are $20 ($25 at the door; $15 for students). For information, visit www.cerddorian.org.
• Bring a Friend to Church Day – Sunday, November 22.
Visitation, 98 Richards Street
• Jazz Concert on Sunday, November 8 at 4 pm, featuring Alicia Rau, jazz trumpeter and her group from the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. Suggested admission of $20
• Mass of Prayer for Healing – Friday, November 27 at 7 pm.