From left to right, the family of the late Jo Nell Malone/VanRenterghem who served as inspiration for the Grotto: son John VanRenterghem, son-in-law Matt Trapani, daughter Lauren Trapani, husband Jack VanRenterghem, daughter Caroline DiNardo, and son-in-law Richard DiNardo.
During the years of WWII, with all the young men and some of the young women gone off to serve their country, the parents, wives, children - indeed all of their relatives and friends - worried about their safety. The parishioners made a prayerful promise that if, through the mercy of God and the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, they all returned home safely, a grotto would be built in thanksgiving. The war eventually ended and families were reunited. Not one of those serving was lost, and so the parishioners bought the beautiful statue you see today, and built a stone grotto between the church and hall, as a place of prayer and remembrance.In the late ‘40s and early 50’s a young girl, Jo Nell Malone, from San Antonio, would look forward to the end of the school year, when she would spend happy summers with her grandparents, John and Olga (Russek) Malone, in Skidmore, where she also spent many weekends throughout the year. Jo Nell attended Mass in Skidmore with her beloved grandmother Olga, and having a special devotion to the Blessed Mother, would often pray at the grotto. She and Jack Van Renterghem met in college in Detroit, married, and eventually moved to Illinois.
Sometime during the ‘60s, the grotto, which apparently had never been inscribed as a memorial, except in the hearts and memories of the people, was demolished and the statue was moved to a place inside the covered entrance to the new parish hall. Soon after that, it was practically forgotten, being out of the way, and it was only some of the parishioners from that time that remembered the statue as a memorial to the Skidmore veterans.
In later years Jo Nell would make annual visits to the original homestead in Skidmore, wanting her family to know their Texas and Skidmore roots, and on one such visit lamented to her husband about the loss of the grotto and the obscure location of the statue. In 1988 Mr. Reeys Falcon bought the homestead and immediately became close friends with the family. There was special bonding in particular with Jo Nell as her father, Harold Malone, from whom Reeys bought the homestead, had been friends with Reeys’ father, Blas Maria de la Garza Falcon, in Skidmore in the ‘30s and early ‘40s. The family visits from Illinois continued.
December 2003 brought great sadness to the family and Mr. Falcon when Jo Nell died suddenly. The family came to Skidmore in October 2004 to bury her ashes next to her father’s grave in the family plot at Evergreen Cemetery. It was then that they visited the Church and Jack mentioned to Reeys how Jo Nell had felt about the loss of the original grotto and how he would like to look into building a new grotto as a memorial to his wife of 46 years, and move the statue back out into the open.
The family asked Mr. Falcon to design the grotto and he started the process of securing approvals for building it. He also supervised the construction which was done by Alfonso Garza Concrete Contractor of Beeville. In August 2005 construction was completed; the statue was treated with special rosins, epoxies and sealants in an effort to restore it to its original appearance and protect it from the elements. Other concrete attributes, specially selected to carry out the simple, classic design of the grotto, were similarly treated. Nothing was left to chance and even the location of the grotto centered in front of the fanned branches of the tree behind it is part of the overall design. Landscaping and lighting will be added later this year. Mr. Falcon suggested the granite marker read in tribute, rather than memorial, so that Skidmore veterans, past, present and future, would be included.
The grotto, a gift to our Church and the answer to many hopes and prayers, will become a landmark for Skidmore at Immaculate Conception Church for all people to see and appreciate for years to come. It is a lasting and fitting tribute, a place for prayer and meditation, and a thing of beauty for our community. --Submitted by Reeys Falcon
Reeys Falcon composed music for the dedication ceremonies
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