The Shrine of St. Thérèse is looking for more volunteers

• News Home
• More from News of the North

Wednesday, May 10, 2023 at 9:09 PM

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Messenger
• Share on Messenger
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Whatsapp

Photo courtesy of The Shrine of St. Thérèse

Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - This summer come out and enjoy the gardens of the Shrine of St. Thérèse.

Joe Sehnert is the director of the Shrine of St. Thérèse.

He came onto Capital Chat to talk about needing volunteers.

First, Sehnert explained the Shrine's background.

"The shrine chapel will be eighty-five years old this coming October. So the shrine has been a part of Juneau fabric for a long time. And you know, it's just amazing," he said. "It's just been built up over the years little by little. The gardens were started about 25 years ago. They've become an integral part of our mission, talking to people about God."

He added that people of all religions are welcome at the Shrine.

"You just feel the presence of God there. I mean it doesn't matter what faith or what religion. It's just a place where you just know that there's something going on there that's bigger than all of us," he said. "It's a lot of property. It takes a lot of volunteers to help us keep that up."

There are over 22 gardens, with over 11,000 square feet of gardens that people can help out with.

"We're looking for volunteers for the garden program. We have four different pieces to our garden program. The first one is Saturday work parties where folks can come once a month, the first Saturday of each month. We work from nine to noon. The shrine supplies everything they need; plants, fertilizer, mulch, whatever, and you just come out," he said. "If you can't make it for the whole time, an hour's great. Whatever time they get on a Saturday. Now that's once a month on a Saturday. We also have our Thursdays with St. Therese, which is every Thursday."

Their Thursday volunteer program begins May 11.

He also explained their Adopt a Garden program.

"We need some new people to adopt a garden. With those 22 gardens, we have gardens from 30 square feet to 1,200 square feet," Sehnert said. "So if you're an individual you can come out and adopt a garden. If you're a family, we got the right-sized garden for you. If you're a member of an organization, we got the garden for you. You don't have to buy anything. All you have to do is be there."

To conclude, Sehnert gave the fourth way to help out at the Shrine.

"If you can't get out there, the fourth way is to just help us financially. To pay for the replace plants, to pay for the bulbs, to help buy the mulch," he commented. "Keeping these grounds as magnificent, as beautiful as they are. So we're grateful for any help we can get."

If interested in volunteering or donating, reach out via their website or call 907-789-9815.

More from News of the North

• Last-minute Anan Wildlife Observatory permits available at the end of June

  Wrangell, Alaska (KINY) - Visitors will soon be able to submit requests for the last four daily permits to Anan Wildlife Observatory, which are meant to accommodate last-minute planning and need to be requested in person at the Wrangell Ranger District, up to one week in advance

• Alaska Delegation frustrated by interior’s delay of the Ambler Access Project

  Anchorage, Alaska (KINY) - U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan (both R-Alaska) and U.S. Representative Mary Sattler Peltola (D-Alaska), today released the following joint statement after the Department of the Interior (DOI) announced an up to six-month delay for the finalization of the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) and Record of Decision (ROD) for the proposed Ambler Access Project (AAP).

• Dozens evacuated from small cruise ship in Alaska after engine room fire

  Juneau, Alaska (AP) — A fire in the engine room of a small cruise ship in Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve prompted the evacuation of dozens of passengers and crew on Monday. No injuries were reported, and the fire was extinguished, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

• CCFR on scene on Fritz Cove Road fire

  Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - CCFR responded to a fire toward the end of Fritz Cove Road at 2:31 AM.

• Murkowski leads bill to invest in blue cconomy, spark innovations in coastal communities

  Anchorage, Alaska (KINY) - U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Representatives María Elvira Salazar (R-FL-27) and Chellie Pingree (D-ME-1) introduced the bipartisan, bicameral Ocean Regional Opportunity and Innovation Act (Ocean ROI Act), legislation that would require the Secretary of Commerce to establish a federal strategy for investing in the nation’s ocean-based economy with “Ocean Innovation Clusters” (ocean clusters).

• Water & Sewer Utility Rates To Increase July 1

  Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - CBJ wants to remind citizens that there will be a utility rate increase effective July 1. The City and Borough of Juneau Assembly, in August of 2019, approved increases to both the water and sewer utility rates. The 2% rate increase will go into effect July 1.

• Comments exceed 100 in effort to shape future of integrated forest management on the Tongass

  Ketchikan, Alaska (KINY) - A public outreach designed to compile as much local input as possible to shape the future of integrated forest management on the Tongass National Forest is proving to be successful and there is still plenty of time to comment.

• Sitka Salmon Derby comes to a close

  Sitka, Alaska (KINY) - Yesterday, saw the 68th Sitka Salmon Derby come to a close. News of the North has the scores

• Brett Gilbert sentenced for 2017 hatchet murder

  Fairbanks, Alaska (KINY) - Fairbanks Superior Court Judge Paul Lyle sentenced 55-year-old Brett Gilbert to 75 years in prison for the murder of Mark Mitchell on July 30, 2017. Gilbert was convicted by a jury of murder in the first degree earlier this year.

• A study to monitor the potentially imperiled Aleutian tern kicks off in Alaska

  Yakutat, Alaska (Alaska Beacon) - Researchers fear the uncommon bird may be in severe decline

• Juneau Symphony closes their 60th season with epic 'Showdowns'

  Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - Juneau Symphony's theme for their 60th season was 'Epic' - and their final performance for the season went above and beyond.

• United Fishermen of Alaska announces support for Senator Lisa Murkowski’s Fishing Industry Credit Enhancement Act

  Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - Late last week, Senators Lisa Murkowski and Angus King (I-Maine) introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at supporting rural fishing communities.