Windows smashed for second time since spring

Windows were smashed at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church for the second time since April over the weekend, and Jasper RCMP are turning to the public for assistance.

Parishioners arrived for mass the morning of Sept. 21 to find that two coconut-sized rocks had been thrown through two windows on the north side of the building, into a hall just off the oratory. “What the culprits did was take one of those rocks you can find anywhere in Jasper, and threw that right through the window,” said Const. Nick Zouroudis. 

Earlier this year, in April, one window in the same area of the Pyramid Lake Road church was broken in a similar way, using a rock.

Though vandalism is common, Zouroudis said this stands out because it’s two incidents at the same place in a relatively short period of time. “It kind of oversteps that line,” he said. 

So far, the RCMP has no leads. “It’s in a part of the town, it’s so dark there and there aren’t really any homes just around that area,” Zouroudis said. “Whoever did this... you could do it and leave right away and nobody would notice.”

Whether the vandalism was random or a deliberate attack remains to be seen, but Zouroudis said he must consider the situation from all possible angles. “Because it’s the second time I wonder myself if it’s somebody against the church,” he said. “You’ve gotta start asking yourself, is that really what’s happening?”

He said destruction like this is wrong no matter where it happens. “But this gets a little more personal, you’d think a church would be off limits,” he said.

The church’s pastor, Donatus Ihekwoaba said he suspects the damage was done by mischievous youth. “I’m not sure anyone has malicious intentions,” he said. “I think it was maybe young people who don’t have enough to do.”

It’s obvious though, he said, that the rocks were thrown deliberately. “This was not something that was accidental,” he said, adding he’s seen people hanging around near the church at night. “Anything could happen.” 

To repair one window in April cost $175, and though Ihekwoaba hasn’t yet received the bill he expects the church may pay up to four times for this set of repairs because the rocks broke through two panes of glass each.

Ihekwoaba, who has been in Jasper for two years, said he is praying for whoever vandalised the church. “I hope they have a change of heart and find something better to do,” he said. “And the community and the church forgives them for their mistakes.”

Anyone with information about either incident is asked to contact the Jasper detachment RCMP at 852-4421.