MANCHESTER – It may have been hot inside the un-airconditioned Cathedral of the Air chapel but there was also an air of excitement featured on a recent Sunday afternoon to mark a very special occasion.
For the first time in many years, the historic Cathedral of the Air held a service marking the anniversary of the groundbreaking of the historic church located on 2494 S. Hope Road.
The event was held a few days prior to the June 26, 1932 anniversary date. The Cathedral of the Air is a memorial chapel located near the Lakehurst side of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. It served military personnel and the public for many years.
Joint Base Dix-McGuire-Lakehurst Deputy Director Captain James Howell, who also serves as commander of the Naval Support Activity, welcomed everyone at the well-attended service.
He noted that volunteers had been trying for several days “to figure out how we could keep it cool.” He also drew attention to the black and white photos of the ground breaking ceremony and also referenced some the chapel’s unique features such as its stained-glass windows that were installed from its completion through the 1950s.
The project itself was approved in 1929 and ground broke three years later. In 1933, the cathedral structure was completed and its first stained-glass window, Chancel Rose, was installed.
Over the next 20 years, other stained-glass windows, 18 in all, were installed, depicting everything from the Creation and Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden to the Graf Zeppelin at Lakehurst in 1928.
Catholic symbols were hung throughout the cathedral – stations of the cross, a three-foot crucifix hanging over a wooden exit door, the Virgin Mary holding the Christ-child. The icons are covered during Protestant services.
“I’ve wanted to resume religious services here for a while,” Captain Howell said. The Cathedral of the Air was the concept of American Legionnaire Gill Robb Wilson, who was the American Legion’s national chaplain. “I’m sure the legionnaires in those pictures didn’t have a complete picture of what this chapel was going to be but they powered through and they broke ground that day in 1932 and it became what it is today.”
“It shows their bravery and their vision,” Captain Howell said. “I appreciate the support of the Chaplain’s Office.” He also commended the efforts of Jan Neimann, Bobbie Seidel and Chaplain Dan Schaffer who each conducted segments of the day’s service.
Members of American Legion Post 129 and the Preserve the Cathedral of the Air Committee extended the invitation to the public. Members of the Tin Can Sailors were also well represented at the event and Councilwoman Michele Zolezi represented Manchester Township while Councilman Brian DiMeo represented Lakehurst Borough. Ninth District Assemblyman Brian Rumpf was present and former Ocean County Commissioner Joseph Vicari and his wife were also in attendance.
The last service prior to this one was held in April 2012. The chapel was designed for regular worship for Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish military personnel. Now, it hosts only weddings, funerals, and baptisms but things may change.
The Navy Lakehurst Historical Society who also took part in the day’s service, at one time held its meetings in the Norman-Gothic cathedral too. An annual service honoring chaplains who gave their lives to save others is an annual tradition.
That tradition will continue. Future Cathedral of the Air scheduled worship events will be held on September 1 with a Labor Day weekend worship service, a Veteran’s Day weekend service on November 10 and a Christmas worship service scheduled for December 22.
To reserve the Cathedral e-mail chad.haan@us.af.mil
Captain Howell said that the chapel was in good shape and that he was involved doing some landscaping recently. “The chaplain and I have been working on a few things. We just finished painting the gazebo. That area grows some of the meanest thorns that you have ever seen. The first time I went out to cut some weeds I was covered in those things. I’m a little more careful now,” he told The Manchester Times after the ceremony concluded.
“I live on the base and the base pays for my landscaping and that frees me to come out here and do some of this,” he added with a laugh. He noted that the parking lot will require some filling to remove the cracks “and we need to put up and replace some signs.”
