In This Issue: Catechumenate Consultative Bodies First Reconciliation The Pew Next to You Ulrich Henn Cathedral Art Cathedral Almanac

You will rarely see any of the Bungay family sitting in a pew in St. James Cathedral, as they are usually on the move with their ministries of ushering and serving at the altar. Rachel and Edgar are the parents and their children are Joseph, 16, Desiree, 13, and Phillipe, 12.

Rachel describes St. James as the family’s second home. “On Sundays we are always here.” Her St. James roots go back to her childhood, when her parents, Delia and the late Phillip Batalia, moved to the parish in 1975.

Rachel and Edgar met through mutual friends and were married in the Philippines in his hometown. However, St. James became their parish when they returned to Seattle. All the children have been baptized and made their First Communions here. Joseph was confirmed here last year.

The Bungay family: Rachel and Edgar with kids Desiree, Joseph, and Philippe.

When it came time for the younger Bungays to attend the Children’s Religious Education program, Rachel and Edgar came along to volunteer their help to Marianne Coté. Rachel is still teaching fourth graders this year, and Marianne says that Edgar has been her mainstay in moving all the children from Cathedral Place classrooms to classrooms at O’Dea High School and into the Cathedral for the 12 noon Mass and back again into classrooms. “Like herding cats,” Marianne said. The family and Marianne have become close friends over the years and last spring when Joseph was confirmed, he asked Marianne to be his sponsor.

While Rachel and Edgar are ushers at the Sunday noon Mass, Joseph, Desiree, and Phillipe are altar servers. Desiree is the lead server at the Noon mass and assigns the other servers their tasks. The three agree (without any coaching!) that they like to serve at Mass. Joseph said he likes the robes and all the different roles they perform. Desiree and Phillipe find serving at Mass makes it more interesting and satisfying.

This year the whole family volunteered for Great Music for Great Cathedrals, and Joseph even played Belshazzar in the Play of Daniel.

Joseph is a junior at Cleveland High School and Desiree and Phillipe attend Mercer Middle School on Beacon Hill. Desiree is vice president of her class and works on the year book staff.

While the Bungays save Sundays for St. James, they save Saturdays for Filipino Youth Activities and have for years. The boys are in the band—Joseph plays conga drum and Phillipe, the tambourine. Desiree is a member of the Drill Team. The Drill Team and Band performs at many annual parades and town festivals including Seafair.

This tight-knit family loves camping and road trips to mountains or the Washington and Oregon coasts. There is room for sports, too: Joseph loves biking and basketball, Desiree plays volley ball and Phillipe’s favorite is bowling.

The children’s plans for when they grow up? Joseph wants to be an architect, Desiree an attorney, and (at this moment in time) Phillipe plans to be a professional bowler.

When Patrick Martin first came to St. James Cathedral in the fall of 1988, he just wanted to sit in the back and blend in with the congregation. But that was not to be as two of his co-workers from North Seattle Community College were parishioners and more importantly ushers looking for more ushers. Those two ushers were Ralph Bruno, an instructor, and the late Chuck Giese, who had retired from public relations department at Boeing, and assisted at the college during registrations.

Patrick Martin

They chatted with Patrick every Sunday and would sometimes ask him if he would usher, which Patrick always declined. Then one crowded Sunday Ralph again asked him to help as they were short-handed and it was so busy. Patrick agreed and never looked back.

Now, fourteen years later, Patrick is the lead usher and doesn’t just “ush,” but works with his co-lead usher, Art Condes, and Sister Anne Herkenrath to direct a volunteer staff of 65 ushers. They plan what help is needed for every Sunday, major holy days, concerts and other special liturgical events like Archdiocesan ordinations and Chrism Mass. They make sure the ushers are trained in CPR. They are also involved in assisting at the outdoor processions for Palm Sunday and Corpus Christi.

The one exception: Patrick not usher at the annual Great Music for Great Cathedrals concert. He wants to be a part of it, so he signs on as a supernumerary for this incredible event of music, sight, and sound.

In the late 1990s the RCIA team invited Patrick to sponsor a person entering the Catholic church. He was involved in this ministry for several years and was a great innovator in encouraging these newest members not only to attend special events at the Cathedral but to volunteer as well.

Patrick came to Seattle when he entered Seattle University in 1954. He was born in Vancouver, B. C., and grew up in Victoria. His mother was an Irish Catholic and his father was Greek Orthodox. Patrick grew up Catholic and was an altar server beginning in the first grade. Patrick always liked attending Mass through grade school and high school in Victoria.

“Often youth groups would go on a hike or a one-day boat trip and a priest would start us off with Mass. I felt it kept us together.” At SU, Patrick soon became a fixture on Father Frank Logan’s student tours to Europe.

When Patrick graduated, he continued at SU in the Admissions Department working in registration and high school recruiting. He left in 1967 to join the Admissions Department of Seattle Central Community College on Broadway. He stayed with SCCS as Registrar and Director of Admissions at the Northgate Campus until retirement several years ago .

Patrick is the proud grandfather of nine. A favorite hobby is researching ocean liners. One time- consuming effort was building a scale model of the Queen Mary I!

Joan McDonell is a St. James parishioner and member of the Development Committee.

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