On Thursday, Aug. 29, at 5:30 p.m., a group of people will gather, one last time, to say good-bye to one of the grand dames of Roman Catholic Churches in Maine, St Louis Church.

Withstanding fire, floods and hurricanes, but not the ravages of time, it has stood on the hill in New Auburn since the early 1900s. Standing with us during good times (baptisms, first communions, confirmations and weddings), and sad times (such as funerals).

Some would say that a church is the people, not a building, and that may be true, but I don’t know that it applies to a building such as this.

Step inside the church with its “way of the cross” stained glass windows and architecture and it tells a story of who we are, and where we have been as New Auburn Roman Catholics, something those storefront churches could never do.

Lately, in a lot of obituaries of older people, I have seen them being listed as former members of some closed church in the area, like St. Mary’s, St. Joseph, St. Patrick’s and, now, St. Louis. For us in New Auburn we may be moving on to another building, but our hearts will still be in that church on the hill.

Goodbye old friend.

Bruce Geoffroy, Auburn