FOR ITS 60TH ANNIVERSARY this year, St. Nicholas Catholic Church in Laguna Woods is getting all dressed up.
Although dedicated in July 1967, the parish has a longstanding tradition of marking its milestone birthdays beginning on the feast of St. Nicholas, Dec. 6. It was on the eve of that day in 1965 when groundbreaking took place on the seven-acre site donated by Ross Cortese, founder of what was Leisure World, the next-door retirement community now called Laguna Woods where many members of the church’s 3,000 registered families live.
A COLORFUL NEW MURAL ON THE CHOIR LOFT OVERHANG OF ST. NICHOLAS CATHOLIC CHURCH WAS COMPLETED IN FEBRUARY. PHOTOS BY SCOTT SMELTZER/DIOCESE OF ORANGE
So, throughout 2025, St. Nicholas will be celebrating its 60th, highlighted by a Mass on June 29 that will be presided over by Bishop Kevin Vann on a weekend that will feature an international food festival representing the parish’s many cultures, including Vietnamese, Korean, Hispanic and Taiwanese.
Meanwhile, signs of beautification of the church are apparent – most recently a bright, colorful new mural on the choir loft overhang that was completed in February.
“It’s beautiful,” parishioner and parish volunteer Joanne Contino, placing flyers in the pews, said on a recent weekday morning after Mass. “I love the symbolism. And it just perks everything up.”
LIGHTENING THINGS UP
Major recent improvements to the church’s exterior and interior began when Fr. Martin Bui came to Saint Nicholas as parochial vicar in July 2022 and his subsequent appointment as parochial administrator in 2023.
Long-awaited facility maintenance and upgrade projects were undertaken, including a new audio/visual system, repainting the exterior and repairing damage to outside wooden beams caused by termites. Recently, exciting changes have been happening in the sanctuary.
FR. MARTIN BUI LOOKS AT MURAL AT ST. NICHOLAS CATHOLIC CHURCH IN LAGUNA WOODS ON FRIDAY, FEB. 28.
Two large screens for audio-visual presentations were installed for congregants to see from anywhere in the 750-capacity church, and a new ambo and presider’s chair were installed on the altar.
“When I came here,” Fr. Martin said, “people would tell me, ‘Father, this church is very dark.’”
That’s changing.
In addition to the new mural, a new retablo — dominated by white marble — will replace the large, walnut-colored wooden wall behind the altar table. The tabernacle will be relocated from the Adoration Chapel to the sanctuary, making it a focal point for the congregation.
BEAUTIFUL MURAL
For now, all the attention is on the new mural, a fresco painting that is 43 feet in length and 4½-feet tall. It replaced the same dark wooden motif seen behind the altar table.
Fr. Martin ringed the mural in lights that can be changed with the flick of a remote button to reflect the Church calendar (red for Pentecost, green for ordinary time, purple for Lent, etc.).
“I wanted it to be bright and cheerful and I always looked at the Ascension as our hope,” said Fr. Martin of the mural, which includes stations of the cross on both sides.
“What I tell people is we all must go through our journey here on Earth and we must carry the cross, just like Jesus. When you look at Jesus’ Ascension into heaven, it reminds you that before that He had to carry the cross first.”
He added, “The parishioners seem to love this. They say it’s so grand, beautiful and angelic.”
ARTIST IS NEW PARISHIONER
The mural was created by Ash Avila and her business partner, Roger Montenegro, owners of A Mano Art & Design LLC, which has done a lot of restoration work in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
The two recently relocated to south Orange County and Avila became a parishioner of St. Nicholas. Fr. Martin happened to be looking for an artist to paint a mural when the two met. Avila and Montenegro covered the choir loft overhang in wood panels, slathered them with Venetian plaster, then used gesso as a primer that helped the acrylic paint adhere better. It took them 2 ½ weeks to finish the mural, which depicts saints and other faithful on either side of Jesus. Look closely, and you will notice a bespectacled, grain-haired man with a hand outstretched to Jesus.
That man is Gabriel Ferrucci, a longtime and prominent supporter of the Diocese of Orange who has been a parishioner at St. Nicholas for 41 years. Ferrucci paid for the bulk of the church renovations and Fr. Martin dedicated the mural to him.
“He said he didn’t want to be in the mural, but we put him in it anyway,” Fr. Martin said with a laugh.
Said Ferrucci: “I truly appreciate the beautiful mural completed at St. Nicholas, as any form of art greatly contributes to the spiritual enrichment of our shared house of worship.”
Ferrucci said he’s most excited about the relocation of the tabernacle from the Adoration Chapel to the sanctuary.
“The relocation will offer the opportunity for everyone to revere and adore the Blessed Sacrament from anywhere in the church,” he noted, adding that the current Adoration Chapel will be transformed into a larger and improved sacristy.
“This enhancement, among others, is something I’ve hoped for the most during my 41 years here at St. Nicholas and finally such a hope is becoming a reality — thanks to Fr. Martin Bui,” Ferrucci added.