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A new archway stands above the entrance of St. John the Baptist Cemetery, outside St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, in Maria Stein. The Rev. Ken Schnipke calls it "a lasting memorial for St. John parishioners in this world, while also reminding us of the gate of heaven we all hope to one day enter."
MARIA STEIN - The entrance to St. John the Baptist Cemetery is now marked by a metal archway bearing its name that lends a solemn air of elegance to the final resting place of scores of parishioners.
In a touching tribute to the cemetery's namesake, the top layer of the two pillars supporting the archway consists of bricks salvaged from the adjacent St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, which was badly damaged in a May 29 conflagration.
The design and installation of the archway, completed this fall, is the Eagle Scout project of Oliver Huelsman, an 18-year-old member of Maria Stein Boy Scouts Troop 97. Over the course of 140 hours, Huelsman, a lifelong Scout, orchestrated the endeavor, from producing drawings and coordinating the efforts of contractors, to raising funds through an aluminum can drive at Ohio Recycling in Chickasaw.
The results speak for themself, according to the Rev. Ken Schnipke, pastor of Christ our Light Family of Parishes, which includes St. John the Baptist Parish.
"I have seen the archway and concur with sentiments I have heard from a number of parishioners that it is well designed and crafted and a fitting entry way for sacred grounds," said Schnipke. "We are pleased with the Eagle Scout archway project that will be a lasting memorial for St. John parishioners in this world, while also reminding us of the gate of heaven we all hope to one day enter."
In a social media post, Oliver's mother, Erin, said the archway stands as "a sign of renewal even near the devastation of our fire-damaged church."
Huelsman is a senior at Marion Local High School, where he competes in football, basketball and track. The son of Trent and Erin Huelsman, his family roots extend deeply in the Marion Communion. Enduring just as strong is his Catholic faith.
Looking to follow in his older brother Samuel's footsteps, Oliver had set his sights firmly on achieving the elusive Eagle Scout designation, the highest Scout rank reportedly attained by a mere 4% of Scouts.
"I'm always somewhat of a competitive guy, so I saw him get that and I'm like, 'I can't let him one-up me on that,'" Oliver said with a laugh.
Oliver said he and his dad spent a lot of time exploring the community last spring for project ideas. That's when they were informed by community member Stan Bruns that unlike other area parish cemeteries, St. John the Baptist Cemetery lacked an archway.
"The next thing you know, I was playing basketball at the St. Rose schoolhouse and I noticed their archway," Oliver said. "Then I took a walk out to our cemetery, and they didn't have one, and I was like, 'Wow, I might actually have to think about it.' So I talked to my dad about it, and he thought it was a great idea."
Work continues on erecting Marion Local High School Senior Oliver Huelsman's Eagle Scout project: an archway at the entrance to St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, in Maria Stein.
Oliver, then 17, looked to Samuel, 25, for assistance in completing drawings for the archway.
"My brother's a mechanical engineer, works with 3D modeling a lot," he said. "My brother and I drew up drawings, and obviously they were just rough drafts."
Oliver then set out to secure contractors for the project - Klosterman Concrete for the cement work, Manco Manufacturing for the archway's fabrication, Gary Thobe Masonry for brick work and Dynamic Weld for the archway's painting. St. Henry Tile also provided materials.
He first met with Travis Klosterman of Klosterman Concrete.
"He gave me tons of insight on, 'You need to pour this big of a footer,' all that stuff, which is huge to me because I genuinely had no idea," Oliver recounted. "I'm just a 17-year-old person. I actually learned a ton from these guys, and then I met with Gary Thobe from Thobe Masonry."
He learned the cement and masonry work had to be aligned.
"Travis wanted to pour all this stuff, and you need to get the right measurements to lay this amount of bricks," he said. "He (Thobe) also taught me a ton about brick laying. It was actually kind of cool to see it all work out."
Likewise, Oliver sought consultation from the other contractors.
"They essentially just told me if it was doable or not, because it's a big archway," he said. "Eventually we came to the conclusion that I can do it."
Oliver applied his newfound knowledge to his initial archway draft.
"One of the big issues was making it taller so that dump trucks could fit through, so we needed a minimum height requirement," he said.
Before he could commence physical work, he had to gain the approval of cemetery committee members Ted Bergman and Randy Wolters. In fact, it was Bergman's wife, Sarah, who came up with the idea of using church bricks for the top layer of the columns.
"I said, 'I think that's a wonderful idea,' and Gary loved the idea," Oliver said. "It wasn't too hard for him to incorporate … all those bricks. It really looks great out there."
Marion Local High School senior Oliver Huelsman works alongside a contractor on the archway.
Oliver planed to gain approval for the project the day the church caught fire.
"My whole family was freaking out, and I was freaking out," Oliver said. "But once I met with council, I realized I definitely could still do this. It's far enough way from the church. … It's another hundred yards away from the church. And I talked to my dad a little more. Again, he was a big help in this, and he thought I should go through with the idea."
Indeed, Oliver carried forward with his idea, delicately juggling the project, academic work and athletics.
"There were definitely portions where I was at school, and they'd have to do it (work) in the morning," he said. "I was able to rush out there right after practice (one day), and they had this big boom truck, lifting the whole archway.
"That was definitely hard for me, but again, I truly believe that without my dad, I wouldn't have been able to do any of it. He was a huge help in it."
The parish also came through in a big way to support his fundraising campaign.
"I got my name in the church bulletin and got a lot of donors. I had people come over just to my house and just five me $50, $100. They're super graceful," Oliver said. "This community really loves this church."
Staring out over the work site, Oliver said it dawned on him what a nice addition the archway is to the cemetery - and that great things can be accomplished with the backing of a community.
"What I learned about myself is that I'm capable of doing things that I didn't think possible," he mused. "I'm like, 'This is going to be way too much work. I'm on such a time crunch.' But I learned if I am able to put my mind to something and truly want it, I can definitely get it."
The project further cemented his plans to pursue a college degree in engineering.
"This is kind of what I want to be doing sometime in the future. I enjoyed it a lot, being able to build stuff," Oliver said. "I'm a big Lego builder, so I always thought engineering was awesome, just understanding the inner workings of (things)."
A new archway stands above the entrance of St. John the Baptist Cemetery.
