Church parishioners, firefighters and community members in Coaldale took part in a two-part ceremony Sunday night at the St. Mary's Orthodox Church to bless 13 newly-installed spotlights aimed at the church's seven blue cupolas.

The two-part blessing service started with a vesper service held inside the church in honor of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk, who is also the patron saint of the first monastery built in Pennsylvania, located in Waymart. During the service, the Rev. Daniel Mathewson, who has been at the church for about six years, talked about the meaning behind the lighting and the cupolas."He was a light on the church for us," said Rev. Mathewson, talking about St. Tikhon of Zadonsk. "The cupolas, which are in the shape of our Mother of God's womb, represent the foundation of the church and ascension into heaven. We honor her as she helped bring to us the son of God, in the flesh, Jesus Christ."He pointed out that the four outer cupolas on top of the church, which is located at the corner of First and Phillips Streets, also represent the four gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.Continuing, Rev. Mathewson said, "Our church was saddened that numerous other churches have closed in Coaldale. So we thought we should continue to be a beacon and the light on the hill."Following the inside part of the service, Rev. Mathewson was raised 60 feet to the church's cupolas via the Coaldale Fire Company's aerial bucket truck. He then blessed the spotlights by sprinkling holy water on them.Parishioners of the church, which was founded in 1909, added that the new lights are specialized LED (light emitting diodes) that emit a high intensity light but only consume a little power. They added that there were never lights installed on the cupolas prior to these lights."The funds for the new lights came from the generosity of our parishioners," added Rev. Mathewson.He said the cupolas, which were slightly damaged from last year's hail storm, were repaired and painted a few weeks ago."They have to be repainted dark blue about every 15 years," said Rev. Mathewson.The reverend expressed the church's appreciation to Rick Laske for painting, Elk Lighting for advice and parishioners and council for coming up with the idea of placing lights. The lights turn on at dusk and turn off at midnight.Another blessing event is also taking place at the church this week. The church will host its St. Mary's Festival this Wednesday from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., which will consist of a pet blessing and many children's activities, such as a magician, food, games and related programs.For more information about the church, which is located at 217 First St., call (570) 645-2772, or view the website at

www.stmarysnativity.org