FELIX JEREMIAH, YENAGOA
IT was a Naira rain recently as St Joseph’s Catholic Church Agudama Epie in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State launched the Church building roofing project.
Our Correspondent reports that it was launched in a unique style as parishioners sang songs of praises to the Almighty God as over Ten Million Naira was realized at the event.
The Parish Priest, Rev. Fr Kelvin O’Hara who donated Three Million Naira cash on behalf of parishioners and also friends from Diaspora who are Godly minded and great philanthropists equally donated great sum of Five Million Naira, notably William who also pledge to build a new Alter and a new tabernacle for the Church.
Rev. Fr Kelvin O’ Hara, the Parish Priest in his word of encouragement said his kinsmen are very interested in God affairs, although they are farmers, stressing that the house of God must be roofed, while appreciating parishioners friends and well-wishers who donated marvelously for the roof project. The parish priest also noted and announced the commencement of the roofing project with the sum realized which he said would go along way, moreso, highlighting that the launch would be a continuous one.
The Chairman’s of the Twenty Million Naira Church building/roofing project planning committee, Sir E.P Berezi, in his remark highlighted the historical biography of St Joseph’s Catholic Church Agudama Epie, noting that evangelic work came to the community on the 2nd of March 1964, after a meeting convened by the Late Mr. Titus A. Egba in the house of Late Mr. Darius M of Augdama Epie.
It was noted that few participants at the meeting unanimously agreed to bring Catholic Church to Agudama Epie Community consequently; the first mass was celebrated by Rev. father McDonald on the 14th May 1964, at the ancient community hall, across the creek which was used as the temporary Church.
Agudam-Epie Church began to crow from strength to strength after crossing over to its present site, with the influx of non-indigenes
coming to reside in the community and its environs. They were then under St. Mathias Parish, Amarata out station.
In the year 2004. 18th of July precisely, a great development was recorded as St. Joseph’s Catholic Church Agudama Epie was carried out of St. Mathias, Amarata Parish as an Autonomous Catholic Community by the then Bishop of Bomadi vicariate Late Dr. Joseph Egarega (Navy capt. Rtd) of blessed memory with Rev. Father Aloysius Ubong Eneyo as the pioneer resident priest.
St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, as an Autonomous community was made up of Five (5) Stations namely. St. Joseph’s Agudama Epie, St. Patrick’s Yenizuegene, St. Thereseas Okoloba/Sabagreia, St. Philip’s Ogboloma and St. Patrick’s Tombia/Ekpetiama. There was huge source of motivation in the evangelization of the gospel in those areas and that brought about the rapid development of St. Joseph’s Autonomous community in numbers, and in the moral/spiritual standard.
This rapid growth paid off as St. Joseph’s Catholic Church Agudama-Epie on the 6th of August 2006 was elevated to the status of a
full fledged Parish. Due to increase. In the number of parishioners, renovations, expansions become imperative so as to accommodate the teeming population of worshippers but this still could not serve the purpose as the years rolled by this necessitated the acquisition of ten (10) plots of land in Agudama-Epie, on which, the construction of a Three Thousand (N3, 000) seating capacity Church building is no going, which will serve as the permanent site. In 2007, there was an exchange of baton in the pastoral administration of the Parish. Rev. Fr. A Eneyo was replaced by another dynamic Priest Rev. Fr. Arugu Augustine Arugu, who immediately toed the path of his predecessor in the development of the parish. He left no stone unturned to see this even those who hate his guts with the desire of ensuring that Agudama-Epie becomes a force to be reckoned with in the vicariate.
In January 2012, Rev. Fr. A. Arugu was transferred and was replaced by Rev. Fr. James Mokor, who stayed briefly but imprinted indelible foot prints in the annals of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.
Rev. Father Kelvin O’ Hara, SPS in the month of August 2012 took over the Mantle of shepherding the flock of the church. He, like every other priests who has worked in Augudam-Epie parish was challenged by the pitiful condition of parishioners, worshipping under harsh scrounging sun and thunderous rain during Sunday masses. His mission and parishioners prayers now culminated the realization of getting the befitting edifice of the permanent cite which sir Berezi described as one of the best cathedral when fully completed within few months.
He also said the building is presently at the roofing level of completion.
Sir E.P. Berezi on behalf of the entire parish priest whom God used to make the launching so fruitful and eventful, moreso, appreciating Mr. Williams and others in Diaspora who donated marvelously, urging the Rev. Father to extend the warmest greetings to his kinsmen for their magnanimity and finally, to all parishioners who donated, supported spiritually and morally for the great success story, so he said is history.
