Springdale Township church hosts annual creation of sawdust carpets for Feast of Corpus Christi

A damp parking lot made for a good canvas Sunday morning at a Springdale Township church.

Our Lady of Victory on Low Grade Road again hosted Guardian Angels Parish’s annual Feast of Corpus Christi celebration, which included the creation of colorful sawdust carpets.

It previously was held at Holy Martyrs in Tarentum and moved after the church was closed in 2022.

About 100 people participated, creating 15 carpets that measured 12 feet by 15 feet, said Tom Babinsack, parish business manager.

The families and friends participating used wood chips the parish provided and colored in a cement mixer. There were 19 colors to work with.

Unless one was there Sunday to see the carpets in person, “You don’t get the feel of how big they are,” Babinsack said.

“People come all day to look at them,” he said.

While the rain held off for much of the day, the wind was another matter. Coping with that required having people like Tom Due of Tarentum frequently hose down the carpets so they wouldn’t blow away.

The event included an open house and service.

The parish is reaching out to the community to let it know the church is still there, Babinsack said.

“We’re trying to incorporate all of the former parishes into Guardian Angels and keep the traditions going,” he said.

Following the service, the carefully planned, intricately made and lovingly admired carpets were to be blown apart with leaf blowers and shovels. The sawdust will be used for mulch, Babinsack said.