Becoming the “Old Cathedral” in downtown, Lincoln

The Diocese of Lincoln was established by decree of Pope Leo XIII in 1887. However, there was no official Cathedral until our Church was dedicated as the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception on December 8, 1911.

Our church remained the Cathedral for the Diocese of Lincoln until 1965. Afterwards, the church became known as St. Mary Catholic Church.

Restoring the “Old Cathedral” in downtown, Lincoln

In 2021, the church building underwent an architectural assessment, helping prioritize the parts of the building that were in most need of repair. From that assessment, a 4-phase restoration plan was created.

We have completed phases 1 and 2. We began phase 3 in the Fall of 2024, and we began phase 4 in June 2025.

Phase 1 (Completed in 2022): The West Side

Phase 2 (Completed in 2024): HVAC and Electrical

Phases 3 & 4 (In Progress): Exterior and Interior

Donate to the “Old Cathedral” in downtown, Lincoln

Thank you for donating to St. Mary! If you have questions about your donations, please contact Riley in the parish office: 402-435-2125.

Yearly contribution statements are mailed out each January for tax-deductible donations. For this reason, please be sure to include your name, address, and contact information with your donations.

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Phase 1: The West Side (Completed in December 2022)

West Side Ground Breaking, August 11, 2022.

Stairs have been removed. Progress is underway with sealing the foundation.

The retaining wall going in on the west side.

Interior west entrance was removed so that the west side confessionals could be expanded.

West side entrance was closed off, allowing for an expansion of the confessionals. This is why our west confessionals have stained glass windows.

Confessionals under construction.

The benches/kneelers being installed in the west confessional.

Expanded west side confessionals.

A new Mary statue was installed on the west side where the entrance used to be.

This statue is made of marble, is 6 ft tall, was made in Italy, and weights 1650 lbs.

Phase 1 Construction Goals

Improve the west side of the church to prevent water entry around the foundation.
Install new flashing and re-line the gutters to keep water out of the brick cavity.
Remodel the confessionals.
Install the statue of Our Lady and the Infant Jesus.

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Goal: $355,000

Phase 2: HVAC and Electrical Upgrade (Completed in 2024)

Our capital campaign for phase 2 was entrusted to Mary, Mother of the Church.

Our 61 year old heating and cooling systems were failing.

The electrical systems were updated to increase capacity and electrical output.

Unfortunately, we went the entire summer of 2024 without airconditioning because of construction.

Phase 2 Construction Goals:

Install a modern heating and air conditioning system.
Install a transformer and a new, modern electrical panel.
Install a modern alarm system.
Raised the ceilings in Flynn Hall and installed LED lighting.

School Debt Repayment:

As of 2023, the loan on our school exceeded $1.3 million. The Diocese of Lincoln has held this loan at 0% interest since the 1990s. The Diocese of Lincoln also proposed a loan forgiveness plan: they will forgive $2.50 for every $1 we pay back (this loan forgiveness remains in effect until 2028). So, 71% of the loan ($930,575) can be forgiven by the Diocese of Lincoln if we pay back $372,230.

Statistics for Phase 2’s Three-Year-Pledge Campaign:

(These numbers were updated on October 29, 2025)

Number of Donors

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Remitted Pledges ($2.09million/$2.5million)

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Suspended Pledges ($17,245/$2.5million)

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School Debt Paid ($372,230/$372,230)

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Construction Loan Paid ($270,000/$270,000)

St. Mary is also now debt free! We paid off our phase 2 construction loan ($270,000) on August 8, 2025, and we retired the thirty-year school debt (which exceeded $1.3 million) on September 30, 2025. Praise God!!

An anonymous donor gifted our parish with the remaining $83,499.71 needed to pay off our school’s debt. This donation retired our parish’s 30-year $1.3 million debt, as well as concluded our financial goals for the $2.5 million Opening Doors to the Heart of St. Mary capital campaign, which the parish launched in October 2023. Fr. Walsh presented Bishop Conley with the final payment on October 7, 2025.

With the final payment of our school debt, we concluded the “Opening Doors to the Heart of Mary” campaign and have begun a new campaign: Arise and Become the Voice of Mary. The fundraising goal of this new campaign is $4.1 million. Donations to the “Opening Doors” campaign will now be rolled over to the “Arise and Become” campaign.

Phase 3: Exterior | Phase 4: Interior (In Progress)

“Come to him.… like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2: 4-5)

Arise and Become the Voice of Mary

The theme for our upcoming capital campaign has been emerging in our hearts for several months. Being located in the heart of the political, economic and entertainment center of our city, Mary belongs here, to strengthen those who live and work here, to preserve the religious freedom of our constitutional republic, to help other Christian communities who worship in this area to persevere in their efforts. This building enables her to gather, strengthen and console her children.

With the intention to place our work again in her hands, we selected this theme because our church communicates who Mary is.

The total cost of this campaign is $4.1 million. There are four goals that will be accomplished with this support:

1. Remodel Flynn Hall
2. Restore the exterior brick
3. Install an elevator and improve ADA accessibility
4. Support Pius X High School

For more details, please view our case statement by Clicking Here, or view our Campaign FAQ by Clicking Here

Flynn Hall Remodel ($1,104,313)

When we restore the Sanctuary, we will need an alternative place to celebrate Mass. This alternative place is Flynn Hall!

Last summer, we raised the ceiling of Flynn Hall when we replaced the HVAC system and fixed the electrical wiring (see our Phase 2 Restoration).

Currently, Flynn Hall is not a suitable place to have Mass because it is not ADA accessible. We plan to bring the bathrooms up to ADA compliance, upgrade the audiovisual system, repair the damaged floor tiles, replace appliances in the kitchen, and build new storage space.

June 18, 2025

August 19, 2025

September 12, 2025

October 16, 2025

Basement Design

Exterior Restoration ($1,713,653)

Repairing the exterior of the Church will keep water from entering and damaging the interior Sanctuary.

The interior walls and ceilings of our Sanctuary are visibly damaged due to faults in the exterior brick and mortar. By repairing the brick and mortar, we will prevent further moisture and water entry, which will protect and preserve the future restoration work we plan to do in the Sanctuary.

For more details, please view our Exterior Restoration FAQ by Clicking Here

Northwest Corner

West Exterior

South Exterior

Elevator and Ramp Installation ($966,261)

Currently, there is no ADA compliant handicap access to the church basement. A commercial grade elevator and an ADA accessible entryway ramp will improve access to the sanctuary and to Flynn Hall.

This elevator will be placed by the southeast corner of the church, and it will not disturb the three Marian-themed stained-glass windows on that side. The St. Mark window will be backlit, so that it can remain visible to those who are inside the church.

Elevator Location and Design

Pius X High School Campaign: Parish Assessment ($319,354)

As part of the Pius X family of parishes, we are committed to supporting improvements at Pius X High School. St. Mary’s assessed portion represents 3% of the parish phase of their campaign.

Currently, St. Mary has several parishioners in attendnace at Pius X High School. Our support will ensure the success of much-needed and long-overdue facility upgrades that will benefit current and future students.