Abbey Church

From Foundation to Faith

Constructed from August 1997 to August 1998, the Abbey Church of St. Augustine of Canterbury was designed and built by the architectural firm of Prisco, Serena, and Sturm of Northbrook, Illinois. Edward Webb served as the project architect, with John Stryker as project supervisor and Ronald Slotkus as project manager for Frederick Quinn Corporation of Addison, IL.

Sculpture and Woodcarving
  • The statue of St. Benedict and the crucifix in the apse (installed in 1999) were designed and created by Anna Koh and Jeffrey Varilla of Chicago.
  • The carvings on the entrance doors and the Stations of the Cross in the ambulatory were designed and crafted by George Hoelzeman of North Little Rock, Arkansas.
  • The choir stalls were made in part from the original choir stalls of the first Abbey Chapel, crafted by Br. James Blanford of Marmion Abbey. They were rebuilt and refinished by Woodwork, Unlimited, Inc., of Streamwood, IL.
Liturgical Furnishings
  • The altar, ambo, and holy water fonts, made of Minnesota limestone, were designed by Edward Webb and created by Galloy and Van Etten, along with Rigali Studios of Chicago.
  • The paschal candle and altar candlesticks were designed and made by Fr. Anthony Brankin of the Archdiocese of Chicago.
  • The tracker pipe organ was designed, fabricated, and installed by Martin Ott of St. Louis, MO, in 1998.
Stained Glass and Iconography
  • The stained-glass windows in both the Lady Chapel and the Blessed Sacrament Chapel were designed and crafted by Claire Wing and Associates of Dallas, TX.
  • The antiqued statue of Our Lady of Einsiedeln in the Lady Chapel was carved in Italy.
  • The icon of St. Joseph was painted by Peter Pearson of Jeanette, PA.
  • The icon of Blessed Columba Marmion, installed in 2005, was written by Br. Claude Lane of Mount Angel Abbey.
  • The icon of the Old Testament Trinity, installed in 2009, was written by Oblate Martha Piorkowski, with a base made by her husband Pete Piorkowski.
  • The four icons on the pillars near the holy water font at the church entrance are of Serbian provenance and were gifts from St. George’s Church in Aurora.
  • The processional cross and cloth tapestry of St. Augustine of Canterbury were gifts from Fr. Donald Walpole of St. Meinrad Archabbey, who was also the original artist of the Abbey Chapel in 1952.
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