Refurbished Sacred Heart Church pipe organ to be dedicated Oct. 9

AUBURN – Years of hard work and dedication will come to a celebratory end on Saturday, Oct. 9, at Sacred Heart Church, 2 Sacred Heart Place.
The refurbished 1954 Casavant Opus 2277 pipe organ at the church be blessed in an event that includes a buffet dinner at 5 p.m., a blessing of the organ at 6:30 p.m., and a concert with John Mehmann, Leon Griesbach and Scott Vaillancourt at 7 p.m. Free tickets for the dinner are available at the parish office or after all Masses. Tickets are not needed if you are just attending the blessing or concert.

The celebration comes at the end of a winding road that began almost six years ago, when the parish bought the organ from the Sisters of Notre Dame in Toledo, Ohio, who had used it for more than 60 years. Subsequently, the Faucher Organ Company rebuilt the organ to meet current Maine code and other improvements.
To help defray the costs, the Sister Elizabeth Platt Organ Fund for Sacred Heart Church was established. The honored Sister Elizabeth in recognition of her 30-plus years of service to Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, of which Sacred Heart Church is a part. She led choirs and had a great fondness for beautiful, sacred music. She died in 2019. Donors to the fund are being recognized with their names listed in a memorial next to the organ.
In addition to covering the organ installation and interior church modifications, proceeds from the fund are being used for ongoing maintenance and improvements of the instrument; education and training of parish organists, choirs, and cantors; the subsidizing of organ lessons for deserving and talented young people; and additions to the parish music library of sacred music.
For more information about the event contact Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish at 207-782-8096.