Tulsa Pastor Voyages to 'The End of the World'
ANTARCTICA — Father Stuart Crevcoure, pastor of the Church of St. Mary in Tulsa, was joined by fellow priests, Father Fr. Kevin Poecking of the Diocese of Pittsburgh, Pa. — a friend from Seminary — and his brother, Father David Poecking, also of Pittsburgh, vacationing at the bottom of the world.
Father Crevcoure started off his trip to the Antarctic earlier this month with a day spent in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina. While there, he toured the Metropolitan Cathedral, which was Cardinal Bergoglio’s cathedral as Archbishop of Buenos Aires before he became Pope Francis. Father Crevcoure also paid visits to the Church of St. Ignatius which is the oldest church in Buenos Aires, Church of St. Catherine of Siena, and the Church of St. John the Baptist.
Father Crevcoure and his fellow priests ultimately set sail for the southermost continent from Ushuaia, Argentina, in the Tierra del Fuego at the tip of South America — the world’s southernmost city.
"They call this place 'The End of the World,' where the Andes Mountains meet the archipelago of Cape Horn," said Father Crevcoure in a
Facebook post documenting his travels. While there, he visted the Salesian parish Church of Our Lady of Mercy in Ushuaia. "Lovely to see people coming and going in prayer," he noted.
From there, they boarded the expeditionary vessel, the Viking Polaris, and 350 passengers to begin sailing the sometime treacherous Drake Passage to Antarctica. The ship safely arrived in Dallmann Bay near the abandoned Melchior Antarctic station. From there they toured islands and inlets, viewed glaciers, icebergs, penguins, cormorants, seals, humpback whales, and more aboard Zodiac and kayak excursions.
As of yesterday, Father Crevcoure was in the return voyage phase of his travels and celebrated a challenging Sunday Mass at sea.
"Well, today was another first: celebrating Mass in the bow of a ship in rough seas," said Fr. Crevcoure in a Sunday Facebook post. "I did manage to keep my balance all the way through, but advised the passengers joining us to stay seated for everything."
He is scheduled to be back in Tulsa by midweek. To view Father Crevcoure's photos and videos of the trip posted on social media,
click here.