Our Lady of Consolation was built by parishioners. The historic Catholic church, with 52 members, is located on the Vattman Church grounds about five miles south of Kingsville. The annual Thanksgiving Day picnic will be held Nov. 26. Dinner will be served from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m.(Photo by Gloria Bigger-Cantu). Driving along the vast country fields there appears, amidst the sky, a cross atop an elegant church that was created with sand bricks and painted pink, almost reddish, as seen from the distance.

Flanked by two sturdy palms, the historic church, Our Lady of Consolation, stands serene and peaceful, enveloped by the skyline during a semicloudy day. When a visitor views the inside of the church, one wonders how many stories could be shared from the ancestors of the parishioners. How many happy moments occurred such as baptisms, confirmations, communions and how many sad moments such as funeral services were conducted throughout the years?

The carved crucifixion scene of the high altar in Our Lady of Consolation church was brought from Germany. The resilient community continues with its traditions such as hosting their 95th celebration of the historic Vattmann Community Thanksgiving.

Our Lady of Consolation members continue to share their bond for their church, for the members, and for others during the historic Vattmann Community Thanksgiving set for Nov. 26, 2009. The family activities center around the Thanksgiving dinner that begins at 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. The dinner menu consists of turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, and gravy; green beans, and garden salads, cranberry sauce, bread, coffee, tea, and dessert. Price will be $11 for adults and $6 for children. Other entertainment and events include a turkey shoot, arts and crafts, country store, raffle, silent auction, moonwalk, and fishpond. A bingo, a county/western dance, and hayride will also be held. The church grounds are located south of Kingsville on Highway 77 to country road 628 east five miles to the church and hall. The exact address of Our Lady of Consolation is 204 Palm Avenue, Riviera, Texas 78379.

Proceeds of the event go to Our Lady of Consolation parish and its two missions that are Our Lady of Guadalupe in Riviera, and Sacred Heart Mission in Ricardo.

Historic Church

The history of Our Lady of Consolation coincides with the church’s first community Thanksgiving was celebrated in 19l4 in a grove of mesquites beside a small lake directly behind the present location of the Vernie Hubert home.

Our Lady of Consolation Catholic Church Parish originated sometime in 1908 predating the establishment Vattmannville. Prior to 1908 priests, Father Goebbles, Father Satsoma, Father Toujas, and Father Shunk traveled from Kingsville to have mass in the homes of the early settlers.

The Kuntschers, Mays, Ordners, Durbins and Hoelschers settled before Vattmannville was platted. Father John Shunk was the first pastor, while Brother Lenz, served as his housekeeper.

After Father Shunk died, Father J.J. Hoellman arrived from Beckmeyer, Illinois, in 1914. Today Father Peter Anthony serves as the priest and administrator.

“Our Lady of Consolation Church was built by parishioners and stands today as a tribute to their strong belief in God and their commitment to the future of the Vattman community and America,” according to information presented by the parish.

“It’s a very dignified church and people are very reverent because of the closeness to God,” expressed Goldia Hubert, whose family have been long time members.

She and her husband the late Dr. Pat Hubert and their nine children are lifetime parish members.

“I remember attending mass before we went to school,” said her son John Hubert. “We had catechism every Wednesday night.”

“The farmers in agriculture depend on God,” Goldia Hubert said.

She said farmers have closeness to the land because it involves hard work, long hours, and often a gamble with the crops.

There remains a lot of closeness to religion and there is a lot of daily attendance to church.

“When I go to church I feel I am home,” Goldia Hubert said. “Everybody is friendly and there are a lot of extended families.” The parish has about 52 families today.

“The church belongs to the whole community, and it draws us back together when we leave and it keeps us together in good times and bad times,” said John Hubert who stopped by his church in Vattman during a recent interview in Vattman.

He serves as the District attorney for Kenedy-Kleberg Counties.

Hubert is the youngest child of the late Dr. Pat and Goldia Hubert.

Church Features

The front of the church has a statue of St. Anthony just beneath the bell tower. A Grotto of Our Lady of Fatima is situated on the church grounds. At one time the church grounds included a school, convent and community hall, and rectory. The community and convent buildings still exist and are utilized by the parishioners for church activities.

It is obvious that John Hubert is proud of his church. He discusses the interior beauty of the inside with its unique crucifixion scene of the high altar that was brought from Germany through the efforts of Father Hoellmann. The crucifixion scene is believed to be one of the two carved by Aloys Lang, who played the part of Christ in the Passion Play at Oberammergau.

John Hubert points to the stained glass windows located alongside the church and three in the balcony area. The stained windows were inscribed with the family names of the people that donated them. The names are S.A. and L.L. Huff, Joseph and Josephine Kuntscher, Frank Scheider, Henry Schonefeld, Lous Unterbrink and Cornelius Yaklin, August Boensch, Henry Forsthoff, Leo Yaklin. Anne Hubert donated the window above the front of the church and the altar rail.

The side windows were added in the 1930’s and were ordered in Germany.

The Austrian painting of Our Lady of Perpetual Help was located in the niche by the church vestibule in 1927.

Parishioners’ Work

A hurricane destroyed the original church in 1916 except for the bell. The bell remains in the church today.

At that time Father Hoellmann wanted to make sure that the new church could withstand a hurricane and decided the structure would be constructed with bricks. The parish members were assigned to make the bricks from the beach sand that was plentiful in the area.

The parishioners’ bricks would be used inside and the outside bricks were purchased from a brick factory in D’Hannis, Texas.

The parishioners used Mr. Forester’s brick making machine. The Alvarados hauled the sand in wagons from the beach and each of the 18 families were assigned a certain amount of bricks.

Our Lady of Consolation, designed by Ignatius Loyola Underbrink, stands 100 feet long, 40 feet wide with a 25 foot arched ceiling. The church was completed in 1920 and the bell from the first church installed in its steeple.

People instrumental in building the church were Fred and Tom Yaklin; John, Ed, and Adam May; August and Frank Boensch; the Henry Schneiders; the Jospeh Kuntschers; Joe Kuntscher; the Herman Ordners; the Louis Unterbrinks; the Orlando Underbrinks; the Charles Remlingers; the Huberts; the Frank Schneiders; the Simon Virtzhums; the Casper Hoelschers; the Anton Dietz family; the N.T. Durbins; the Huffs; and the Herman Goodmans.

The community of Vattman was named after Father Edward J. Vattman. The Catholic priest served as secretary of the Catholic Colonization Society of America with headquarters in Chicago.

Theodore F. Koch, a promoter and land developer, founded the Riviera and Riviera Beach.

He traveled to Chicago to encourage people to move to this area in South Texas.

Koch succeeded in bringing settlers to this area. He eventually helped pay for the priests’ salaries.

And so, 95 years later, the family tradition continues with Vattman’s annual Thanksgiving celebration hosted by the families of Our Lady of Consolation.