CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A public memorial mass was held at Church of the Holy Family at 1080 W. Roosevelt Road for Rev. George Lane on Sunday, a little over one month after Lane died at age 89.
Lane's credited with the last-minute fundraising drive to save Holy Family from being demolished decades ago. John Vinci was one of the architects who helped restore the historic church.
"All of the credit goes to Father Lane," Vinci said. "He wrote a book on churches in Chicago, and that … made his love for Chicago strong."
Ellen Skerrett, a Chicago author and historian who said she was "in love with the beauty" of the church, was also in attendance.
"Founded by Arnold Damon in 1857, dedicated in 1860, it was a sign of hope and the future of Chicago," she said. "Father George is really like the second founder of Holy Family."
Church of the Holy Family and St. Ignatius High School, which is located right next door, were among the few buildings to survive the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.
Rev. Lukas Laniauskas is president of Church of the Holy Family.
"It's an amazing place," Laniauskas said. "It's an amazing place to encounter God, but also the people of God and the beauty of the grandeur of what we have here."
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