By Nathan Achuk & Charles Molujin
BAU — On 4 June 2024, St Stephen’s parish celebrated the 80th birthday of Fr Josef Schmolzer, MHM (fondly known as Fr Sepp) after a Mass presided by Archbishop Simon Poh.
Fr Sepp has had a long history with the Bau-Lundu parishes where he served in the 1980’s. He had arrived in the Kuching Archdiocese in the middle of May for a three-week visit during which he had celebrated Mass at Corpus Christi and participated in the procession across Bau town in addition to Masses in the churches in the parish.
A potluck style dinner was organised by the St Stephen’s Church council attended by parishioners from the 49 churches at Father Joachim Pang’s Hall. During the dinner, Fr Sepp was presented with love gifts from all the churches that Fr Sepp had handed over to the parish council.
The story of Fr Sepp’s life and services in Bau was read by Vincent Eddy who highlighted the significant role played by Fr Sepp in the construction of the Catholic Memorial and Pilgrimage Centre (CMPC) at Mount Singai.
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