November 2, 2022 436 PM
Courtesy of University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History. El Corazón Sagrado de la Iglesia de Jesus (the Sacred Heart of the Church of Jesus) in Ruidosa, Texas was built in 1915.
RUIDOSA — This Saturday, the Friends of the Church of Ruidosa will host their second annual Community Day in Ruidosa. The event will kick off at 2 p.m. and go until 7 p.m., with lots of free food, drinks, and performances along the way.
Friends of the Ruidosa Church is a non-profit organization dedicated to restoring El Corazón Sagrado de Jesús Church, an early 20th-century adobe church located in the remote town of River Road. The church is notable for its arches, which are the largest standing adobe arches in Texas.
The last Mass in the church was celebrated in the 1950s. The structure was all but abandoned by the Diocese of El Paso: Pinto Canyon resident Donald Judd intended to purchase and restore the building, but those plans never materialized. they specified.
In 2019, the Diocese deeded the property to Presidio County to begin the restoration process. The Friends of the Loud Church took over and began raising money for the effort. That project has grown into regular adobe-making workshops, fundraisers, and community festivals.
As part of their efforts, the Friends have been collecting oral histories from the time and inviting the pivotal families of Ruidosa to return and remember their hometown. This year, Marfa Public Radio will lend recording equipment and expertise to try to collect more oral histories of life in Ruidosa and the church.
Las festividades de este fin de semana contarán con un baile de apertura de los Matachines de Santa Teresa, un grupo de baile tradicional que representa a la Iglesia de Santa Teresa en Presidio. El Cariño de la Radio, el alter ego de Jacqueline Del Olmo de Mira Marfa, pondrá la banda sonora durante el resto de la tarde con la ayuda de los Roswell, un equipo de música country bilingüe de Nuevo México.
El evento también contará con un altar comunitario construido por Jacquelin Zazueta de Marfa, así como una instalación de esculturas a gran escala del artista Miguel Valverde de la ciudad de Chihuahua. Parte del equipo de Ruidosa viajó a la ciudad de Chihuahua para ver el estudio de Valverde y preparar la escultura para su envío.
Para la miembro de la junta Clara Bensen, el viaje al oeste fue un gesto importante. “Realmente queríamos que fuera un evento transfronterizo este año”, dijo. Pasar la escultura por la aduana fue un desafío, pero la gente de ambos lados del río ayudó a transportar la pieza con éxito.
Aunque la mayoría de los residentes nacidos y criados en Ruidosa se han mudado, el grupo espera que la iglesia restaurada sirva como un espacio comunitario en los años venideros. “El objetivo mucho más grande es crear este sitio cultural en la frontera”, explicó Bensen. “Es muy significativo ver a todos unirse”.
The Community Day of the Church of Ruidosa will take place from 2:00 p.m. at 7 p.m. on Saturday, November 5. The church is located in Ruidosa on FM 170, just south of the intersection with Pinto Canyon Road. People coming from Marfa in high-rise vehicles can take Pinto Canyon Road to the site; otherwise, the church is best accessed by taking FM170 north from the Presidio.
