A walkable rosary

A dignified, yet larger-than-life tribute to the Virgin Mary encircles a small patch of land outside Spirit of Life Catholic Church in Mandan.

With the month of October in the Church year devoted to the Holy Rosary, there are few places that offer the opportunity to literally walk the journey of Jesus Christ through the eyes of His beloved Mother Mary. In the green grass and fresh air, nestled in a secluded area off the parking lot, the public is invited to pray and walk the devotional at their leisure.

The Rosary Walk, measuring 75x100 feet, offers the faithful an outdoor setting to seek intercession and comfort from the Blessed Mother. The large-scale beaded devotional seen today is the third version of the Rosary Walk on the church grounds.

The original Rosary Walk consisted of a stone formation inside a wooded area behind the church, said Dave Trnka, a member of the Knights of Columbus Spirit of Life Council 1468. It was completed in 2006 with help from an Eagle Scout project and provided a special place to pray in private away from city noise.
 
Yet, Ed Helbling, a Knights member, envisioned more for the site, said Knights member Ryan Bleth. While the rock formation gave a natural environment to pray, its stones became misaligned. In 2009, the Rosary Walk was upgraded in the same location with the very large wooden rosary built and designed by Helbling (who has since moved out of the state). It was installed by the newly chartered Knights Council members and loyal parishioners. It became the new Council’s first visible project.

"The Knights are involved in Mary and devotion," Bleth said. "We decided to offer it as another means of prayer.”

Helbling, described as a faithful man, was a member of the Bismarck-Mandan Woodturners. He applied his skill to his passion. For months, Helbling toiled to replace the rock formation with handcrafted and polished beads on his special lathe. Each bead is likened to the size of cantaloupe. Helbling provided all the bead materials upfront and the chains to support them.

"It was a prayerful thing for him," said Bleth."The beads are made mostly of pine. Ed did the work and refinished them so they could endure the elements."
 
Fellow Knights and parishioners also cleared trees, installed lighting and drilled the posts to hang the chains linking the mega beads. The volunteers installed station markers to mark the mysteries of the Rosary and prepared concrete posts.

Dan Frank, another member of the Knights, purchased and donated metal benches for people to rest and pray, a statue of Mary with an arched trellis—placed prominently in the center—and the metal Corpus of Jesus for the Rosary Walk cross.
 
Trnka said the Rosary Walk found its third location about three years ago in a southeastern part of the church grounds in a cleared area. "We moved it when the new rectory was built. We wanted a place outside that was open." 

Member Raymond Morrell said the construction crew at the rectory site were generous and loaned equipment to make a clearing for the existing rosary site.

"We took it down and redid it all. It was a puzzle to put together,” Trnka said.

Bleth said the Rosary Walk has been a popular finish for the local Walk for Life involving Mandan’s three Catholic parishes—Christ the King, St. Joseph and Spirit of Life. “They say the Rosary to end the walk.”
 
The Knights of Columbus members continue to maintain the Rosary Walk today. Trnka has done his part in the upkeep of the large beads, buying his own lathe for replacing "to figure out how to do them."

Father Todd Kreitinger, pastor of the parish, said he personally uses the site to pray for petitions. "It is a visible expression of one of our devotions." He witnesses various groups, individuals, homeschoolers and families use the site.

"It's been a visible connection to the parish," Bleth said.