By Jack Brammer
Kentucky Lantern
MAYSVILLE — Jerry Lundergan, a well-known Lexington businessman who once was state Democratic Party chairman, envisions days when thousands of visitors from around the world will walk in a six-acre garden in the historic village of Washington in his hometown of Maysville.
Lundegan, who will formally unveil the plans June 3, wants to replicate the Garden of Gethsemane near Jerusalem where the New Testament says Jesus prayed the night before his crucifixion.
Lundergan has commissioned a sculptor in Italy to create life-size bronze statues of Christ and the main characters in the 14 Stations of the Cross, representations of events in the Passion of Jesus Christ, from his condemnation to burial.
A 70-foot cross, equivalent to a seven-story building, will tower nearby. It will be positioned to reflect sun rays during the Easter season onto Station 12, depicting Jesus dying on the cross.
Excavations are underway for the spectacular religious display in front of the Saint Patrick Cemetery in Washington on U.S. 68 about five miles south of the Ohio River. It will include a visitor’s center.
Land is being cleared along U.S. 68 in Mason County for a religious display and garden depicting the Stations of the Cross. The garden site is in front of the St. Patrick Cemetery in the historic village of Washington. ((Kentucky Lantern photo by David Stephenson)
Asked how much the project will cost, Lundergan said it is privately funded by the Lundergan family and receives no tax dollars. “This is a way for my family to do something to show our love for the church and community that mean so much to us.”
Lundergan said that the price of admission will be minimal if any — in contrast to other religious attractions — the Creation Museum and Ark Encounter — in Northern Kentucky. Visitors may leave donations, which will be used to maintain the garden and support St. Patrick Church and school in Maysville, Lundergan said.
Family venture
Lundergan grew up, was baptized and married in St. Patrick Church. He attended St. Patrick School. He will be buried someday at St. Patrick Cemetery along with his wife, Charlotte Lundergan.
Actress and singer Rosemary Clooney, who was born on Front Street in Maysville in 1928 and died in 2002, is buried there. She was the aunt of international movie star George Clooney.
The historic cemetery includes the tombstones of early immigrants from Ireland.
The Bishop of Covington, the Rev. John Curtis Iffert, has leased land to Lundergan, who will give the entire garden to St. Patrick Church once it is completed.
Lundergan, 78, owns several companies in Lexington in the food services and hospitality industry and emergency disaster services.
Lundy’s Catering provided food services at the Woodstock revival, the Kentucky Derby, Indianapolis 500, Pope John Paul II’s celebration of mass with 350,000 in San Antonio in 1987, and presidential inaugurations for Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama. The Lundergans are close friends to former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
President Joe Biden pardoned Lundergan earlier this year for his conviction on federal campaign finance charges involving unreported donations to the 2014 U.S. Senate campaign of his daughter, Alison Lundergan Grimes.
Lundergan served time in prison and a halfway house. Lundergan emphasizes that the garden project is a family venture. Charlotte and he have five daughters and 10 grandchildren.
To launch planning for the garden project, Lundergan contacted Betty Vento of Mentor, Ohio, an expert on religious statues. She and her husband run Mosack’s, a Christian gifts and book store.
Capturing the ‘spirit of Gethsemane’
“I think this is a fabulous project, nothing like it, I believe, in the United States with bronze statues,” said Vento. “I understand there is a Stations of the Cross garden in Puerto Rico but it is circular. This one will be on a pathway.”
She said Lundergan called her almost five years ago to pursue the project. “We have moved forward with it and are very excited about it.”
Lundergan commissioned bronze statues by sculptor Reto Demetz. His family business, the Demetz Art Studio, is one of the world’s leaders in producing ecclesiastical art. The studio is located in Ortisei, a small village in Val Gardena, nestled in the Dolomites, the famous mountain range in the heart of the Italian Alps. The studio was founded in 1872.
During the last decades, it has reached worldwide fame for its modern religious sculptures as well as its traditional artworks.
Lexington landscape architect John Carman, of the firm CARMAN, said that when Lundergan first called he was not sure he would have the time to devote to designing the garden. “But it is such a wonderful project, quite unique, I am Catholic, so I was all in,” he said. He worked a year on the design.
Carman said the garden will be a replica of Gethsemane.
“The real garden is in a different part of the world, with olive trees. Olive trees do not grow well here.” But visitors “will see a beautiful garden with a lot of flowers and shrubs, some trees, that will capture the spirit of Gethsemane.”
A public groundbreaking ceremony for the project is scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday, June 3, at the site.
Christian ministers in Mason County have been invited to attend.
The target date for completion of the project is Easter Sunday, April 5, 2026.
A celebration Mass will be held at the church the Thursday before Easter. A Good Friday program will be held at the stations and an Easter sunrise service will offer praise at the garden.
Jack Brammer is a native of Maysville and has been a reporter in Kentucky since 1976, He writes for the NKyTribune and for the Kentucky Lantern, where this story first appeared. It is republished with permission. Brammer is a member of the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame.