Hundreds of people have come to St. Mary’s Ukranian Catholic Church on Linwood Avenue since it was destroyed on Sept. 10, believing that it was miraculous the statue of the Virgin Mary wasn’t damaged by the explosion. The early morning explosion, which left the church in a pile of ruble, also spared the rectory in which Father Cyril Manolev and his family were sleeping. Manolev left the rectory with his pregnant wife, Suzana, and his three-year-old son, Alexandra, unharmed. Some of the people who have come to the site, just like other parishes and businesses throughout the state, have given donations to the church, which will help it rebuild. "It gives me hope a little bit that in the future we will again have a church for our people here," Manolev said. The destruction of the church, he said, happened just before they were going to get up to make perogies for the Ukrainian Day Festival in Stanford. Fifteen to 20 minutes later at least a dozen volunteers would have been cooking in the basement. Fedir Lazaar, he said, was just coming out of his car when the church, built in 1955 with funds from 140 families, was destroyed. About $8,000 has been raised for the future church so far, he said. "On the local [level] we’ll try to do our best," Manolev said. "We are grateful St. Andrews is helping us."

There will be a fund-raising dinner at St. Andrews Roman Catholic Church on Sept. 26, he said. The church is searching for a local place to hold a fund-raising concert that will feature the Hartford-based Ukrainian Dance Group.

Manolev, who was born in Macedonia and immigrated to the United States in 1995, hasn’t had a busy week just because of his church’s destruction and the following frenzy of interest. His daughter, Maria Anastasia, was born 3:33 a.m. on Sept. 14 at The William W. Backus Hospital in Norwich.

"I’m happy, of course I’m happy," Manolev said.

On Wednesday, Leo Glemboski, a retired judge of the town’s probate court, carried a newspaper report about the birth of Manolev’s daughter into the Colchester Quik Print, which is down the street from the church, to make copies.

One of the copies would be going to his sister in Arkansas, who like other people throughout the country, heard about the church’s destruction on the radio and television. Although the news coverage brought the church to the country’s attention, it also brought the town and its residents to the country’s attention.

Glemboski, who was interviewed for a television newscast for comment about the incident, was told by his brother in Glastonbury people were asking whether he was the town’s mayor. He said his brother called him and said, "Everybody’s been asking me if I have a brother named Leo?"

But Glemboski also struck a serious note in the Main Street print shop owned by Robin Lawson, saying that he has been with the church through the good and bad. And Sept. 10 was one of the bad times.

"And this is one of the sad experiences, I’m sorry to say," Glemboski said.

Lawson, who just finished making the copies for Glemboski, said you have to feel for parish members.

"If you can’t help out at this time, there is no other time to help,’ Lawson said.

Her business charged the church nothing for making the tickets for the Sept. 26 dinner and the service books. Nothing like Friday’s explosion, she said, has ever happened during the 14 years she owned the print store.

She said she saw the incident on the morning news and drove by the church on Tuesday. The people who have come to look at the statue haven’t interfered with her business, she said.

Mackey’s, a garden, pet and food and garden ornament supply center at 132 Linwood Ave., has allowed the people going to see the statue on the church to park in their lot as long as it isn’t too busy.

"A lot of people who have been coming through have been coming into the store," Cori Fortier, a senior sales clerk said as she stood behind the counter. "They’ve been coming down even today."

The people have been nice, she said.

She said they thought Friday’s explosion would have caused damage to the store, but it didn’t.

Larry Charbonnier came from a golf game to his job at Gano’s Power Equipment when he received a phone call that an explosion happened across from the Linwood Avenue Super Stop & Shop, which is across from Gano’s.

But he saw no damage when he arrived at the 120 Linwood Ave. store.

"We thought it was here first," Charbonnier said.

His store donated equipment to the church to help with the clean up.

He said a lot of people have come down, but they haven’t interfered with business. There was a constant flow on Linwood Ave. on Saturday.

"People are still walking around," Charbonnier said.

Trooper Jim Keeney said as he was stationed in front of the church that there hasn’t been any problems with the people who have come to the site to take pictures and pray.

"Most of the people have been very cooperative," Keeney said. "Today there has been 250 people who have stopped by."

And although do slow down to look at the church and there was work on water pipes damaged by the blast, there hasn’t been any traffic issues, he said.

People taking pictures, have also offered help, Bohdan Kachorowsky, the church’s cantor said. He was standing with his wife, Sonia, at the rectory’s parking from 10 a.m. on with only coffee in their stomachs.

"They offer help," Kachorowsky said. "They drop off donation."

They’ve received checks from $500 to $1,000, $100, $25 and $15 dollar bills. A tarp to cover the ruble was given to the church by Surplus Unlimited in Norwich.

But many people, such as Ruth and Nunzi Maio, came because they believe in miracles.

"I just felt, as they said, that it was a miracle," Ruth Nunzi said as she walked with her husband to the church.


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