The spacious grounds at Queen of Heaven Parish in Uniontown are home to two new shrines, thanks to a pair of Eagle Scout projects.
Conor Edwards and Luke Moorhead, Queen of Heaven parishioners and Eagle Scout candidates, worked with Father David Durkee, pastor, to develop and build the new shrines, which he blessed recently. Father Durkee also participated in the scouting program as a youth and achieved the Eagle Scout rank.
Queen of Heaven’s property features a variety of sacred spaces and shrines, including large outdoor Stations of the Cross and a remembrance garden. The newest additions to the parish’s nearly 17-acre property are a Shrine to St. Luke, which was Luke’s project, and a shrine to newly canonized St. Carlo Acutis, Conor’s project.
Luke, 15 and a student at Lake High School, worked on his project during the summer, along with members of Boy Scouts and Eagle Scouts from Troop 334. Luke began scouting at age 7 when he joined the parish Cub Scout pack. He is the fourth Eagle Scout in his family.
He met with Father Durkee to plan and implement the project, which began in July. Father Durkee helped with pre-clearing of the wooded area to make way for a concrete pad and walkway for the new shrine, which sits atop a hill behind the parish’s Perpetual Adoration Chapel, opposite the path to the Divine Mercy Chapel in the woods and before the St. Teresa of Avila Shrine.
Materials used for the St. Luke Shrine were donated by an anonymous donor, including the St. Luke statue, which is from Argentina. It arrived in October and was installed prior to the shrine’s blessing.
Work on the St. Carlo Acutis Shrine got underway in late September, with Conor and about two dozen scouts from Troop 334.
Conor, 17, is a student at Green High School.
The St. Carlo Acutis Shrine includes a concrete walkway, pavers, plaques with quotes from the millennial saint, a plaque with his picture and signage. It took about three months to complete the project. Materials for this shrine project were funded by four families from the parish.
The master plan and layout of the spiritual retreat on Queen of Heaven’s grounds was developed over time by the many Eagle Scout and other projects suggested by Father Durkee.
“These projects were built for all to experience peace, joy and happiness on holy ground and provides a refuge, a quiet place to pray and feel comforted,” Father Durkee said.
Queen of Heaven, which celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2024, began as a mission of St. Francis de Sales Parish in Akron. Father Durkee has been pastor since 1999.