Mount St. Mary's Bell Will Ring For Christmas
EMMITSBURG, Md. (AP) -- Mount St. Mary's University President Thomas Powell says repairs to a fire-damaged chapel will likely be finished in time for the bell to ring for Christmas.
School officials say the work is nearly done, five months after lightning struck the steeple of the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception in Emmitsburg.
Powell says repairs to the 100-year-old tower cost nearly $500,000.
The chapel is a focal point of the Catholic university about 45 miles northwest of Baltimore. The bell is traditionally rung several times a day as a call to religious services.
Powell says he aims to resume a tradition of allowing exceptional students to sign their names on an interior wall and ring the bell with a mallet.
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