Pioneer families gather to honor St. Rita’s, Vail

He was one of about 50 descendants of ranch families assembled in the Vail church Sept. 7 to attend the Pioneer Mass celebrated by Bishop Edward J. Weisenburger in advance of the parish’s 85 ^th anniversary next March.
Escalante, 86, lives in Tucson. He scanned the crowd before Mass to wave to friends and share stories with other old-timers whose pioneer families ranched in the area and supported the parish in its early years. His grandfather Miguel was one of three brothers to settle in the Rincon Valley after leaving Sonora, Mexico around 1880. The elder Escalante  worked  the ranches at the base of the Rincon Mountains. Miguel, the grandson, recalled having to come to Vail for school after the local Rincon School closed in 1947.
Miguel married in 1958, moving to Tucson. He entered the construction business and retired about six years ago. He came back to St. Rita’s at the invitation of J.J. Lamb, he said. Lamb, a local preservationist, was one of the driving forces behind “Voices of Vail,” a critically acclaimed local documentary about the history of the area.
“We all went to school here in Vail,” Miguel said. “There are no cattle here now, just houses.”
He spots his sister, currently living in Phoenix, sitting a pew, and finds a seat with her for Mass.
Earlier Sarah Hiteman, who grew up in the parish but moved away to raise a family, gave a quick tour of the old church building.
Hiteman talked about some of the capital needs. Projects include removing carpeting and restoring the flooring. The pews, which are original fixtures, also need to be restored. Alcoves had been treated with laminate over the years and that needs to be removed. Beams holding up the roof also need attention. The stained-glass windows needed cleaning and to have protective glass installed on the outside. Parts of the building could also use fresh paint.
During a meditation she offered at the end of Mass, Hiteman told the story of returning annually on her birthday to attend Mass with her father, Fred Mayer Jr., and later sharing breakfast at a local diner.
“He sat in the fourth row from the back, on the West side,” she recalled. Her dad died on July 25, 2018, at age 87. In his memory, she made a donation to the parish and installed a plaque on the pew that read “In loving memory of Fred Mayer Jr.”
“He really would have enjoyed being here today,” she said.
The church was built through the benevolence of Caroline Takamine Beach. She dedicated it to the memory of her late, first husband, Jokichi Takamine. He was a Japanese chemist who died in 1922; four years later, Caroline married Vail rancher Charles Beach.
Local historians say that Mrs. Beach, a Catholic convert as an adult, wanted a place for ranchers, miners and railroad workers to worship. In 1927, she arranged for a Sunday Mass to be offered in the Vail schoolhouse, before purchasing and building on the current site.
Among the artifacts in the church are stained glass windows, purchased by Mrs. Beach, that once hung in the First United Methodist Church in Tucson. Other artwork and statuary were donated by friends, and came from Germany, Italy and California. The altar was created from stone from the Santa Rita mountains. St. Rita’s is believed to be the only US Catholic church dedicated to the memory of a Japanese citizen.
Between 1935-68, St. Rita’s was a mission served by Franciscans and diocesan priests from nearby parishes. It was elevated to parish status in 1968.
Population in Vail has exploded in the last two decades. Census figures in 2000 showed a population of 588; in 2010, the population was 10,208. No updates were available in 2016. To accommodate the growth, the parish erected a multipurpose building that is used as a church for weekend Masses. The shrine is used for 8 a.m. daily Mass and a 1 p.m. Spanish-language Sunday Mass.
St. Rita’s was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.
Hiteman recalled a family story involving Mayer and Mrs. Beach. Mayer had contract polio as a child, which left him with a disfigured right foot. Mrs. Beach arranged him to have surgery on it, which eventually gave him relief.
Father Martin Martinez, current pastor, also spoke about the changes that have taken place in the building. He noted that only recently had he learned that lines for natural gas to provide lighting in the church still resided in the walls, although they were empty and had not been used for years.
Father Martinez said he takes seriously his role in maintaining the upkeep of the building. “I feel I have the obligation and responsibility to safeguard the shrine.”
 
Editor’s note: To make a donation or to recount a historic story involving the church, call the parish at (520) 762-9688.