Just shy of a year after Lancaster St. Mark Church celebrated its final Mass, the building reopened with a new purpose.
The former St. Mark Church and surrounding 38 acres are now the Basilica of St. Mary of the Assumption Emerald Campus. St. Mark parish was suppressed on April 30, 2024 and merged with Lancaster Basilica of St. Mary of the Assumption parish.
Msgr. Craig Eilerman, rector of the basilica, blessed and dedicated the basilica’s new Emerald Campus on Sunday, April 27. The campus’ name was inspired by St. Mark’s longtime pastor, Father Pete Gideon, who referred to the church and its grounds by the name.
The church building has undergone renovations in the year since St. Mark’s closing.
On the campus, the former church building was renamed the St. Mary Center for Evangelization and Faith Formation. The former nave and sanctuary inside the building is now St. Mark Assembly Hall.
The St. Mary Center includes a St. Mark Shrine, which is dedicated to parishioners of the former St. Mark parish. Msgr. Eilerman blessed the shrine with holy water during the building’s dedication ceremony.
The rector also blessed St. Mark Assembly Hall, which is filled with chairs, a stage and podium at the front, serving as a space for meetings and other gatherings.
St. Mark Knights of Columbus Council 15447 color guard brought the colors to the assembly hall stage at the conclusion of the dedication.
Al Prisco, a founding member of the former church’s Knights of Columbus parish council, moved to Lancaster with his wife nearly 50 years ago. The couple belonged to St. Mark Church.
“Regarding the closing of the parish last year, it was not easy, especially after being here so long, making all the relationships, just being familiar with St. Mark’s and the atmosphere of the parish community,” Prisco explained. “It’s a very close-knit parish, very family oriented. It was difficult for us, but we were willing to take the lead in moving forward with the changes, and it’s turned out very good.”
Sue Tobin, a member of the former church for nearly 30 years, shared Prisco’s sentiment. Tobin belonged to the parish since the time it had a school. She taught all grades kindergarten through sixth.
“Despite the many tears shed when the parish was closed last year, the transformation, although difficult, has been good,” she said. “I’m very, very pleased with how it looks now.”
Cynthia Pearsall, who serves as volunteer manager of the food pantry that was part of St. Mark parish for years, attended the blessing and dedication of the new campus. The pantry, located in the building’s basement, draws many volunteers and clients. Pearsall described the building as full of the Holy Spirit.
She is a parishioner at St. Mary of the Assumption and has belonged to several parishes throughout the years while serving as a nurse in the U.S. Navy and her husband was a U.S. Air Force officer. The couple lived in Washington for several years before landing in Lancaster.
“I’ve had lots of opportunities to compare and contrast people and edifices, and this is a special place. St. Mary’s is certainly a special place as well. They’re very different cultures, but what’s very interesting is to watch how it’s coming together,” Pearsall said.
“The maturity of it is growing by leaps and bounds. There are a lot of St. Mary’s people here as well as St. Mark’s people celebrating this.”