By Chris Schoen

Recently, the St. Mary’s Parish sold the former convent to the Friends of St. Mary’s of Guttenberg (FOSM). The convent served as a dormitory for nuns who were teaching at the St. Mary’s School, but it had gone largely unused for several years. FOSM is a local 501c3 non-profit organization formed in April of 2023 in response to a plan to demolish the building. The goal has been to preserve and improve this historic building. The two-story brick structure was constructed in 1926 and is one of four buildings that contribute to the St. Mary’s Catholic Church Historic District, along with the church, rectory and high school.

Since FOSM’s inception, the organization has invested over $80,000 and some 2,000 volunteer hours to rehabilitate the building for reuse by the greater Guttenberg community. Nearly all of the funding has been through generous donations by parishioners and other community members and numerous fundraising events. Volunteers hosted a St. Mary’s Alumni Dinner and a Lenten fish fry, have worked cookout weekends at Bender’s Foods and provided dinners at Germanfest and RAGBRAI. For the winter holiday seasons, volunteers held the Festival of Trees event and made and sold frozen lasagna. One small grant was awarded by Alpine Communications, and FOSM was the grateful recipient of several significant Donor-Advised Fund grants made anonymously.

Improvements to date include a new roof and gutters, new windows on the first and second floors, new appliances for the first-floor kitchen and installing a modern, energy efficient HVAC system to replace the old boiler and radiator system. Immediate plans include bringing the plumbing and electrical wiring up to code.

Now that FOSM has title to the convent and the lot upon which it sits, the group will begin remodeling the second floor to create an apartment. Guttenberg faces a chronic housing shortage, and this much needed rental space will pay for the building’s expenses such as heating and cooling, electricity, internet, liability and fire insurance. The first floor, which includes a kitchen, large conference room and three other large spaces, may eventually become available to the entire community to use for social and business meetings, classrooms, retreats and other similar activities, continuing a mission of service. 

The former convent is a treasured part of the parish’s story and a valuable component of the architectural history of Guttenberg. Appreciation goes out to everyone who has helped FOSM to keep the former convent standing and to give it new life in service to the public. When the community comes together, great things may be accomplished that honor the past and enrich lives for generations to come.