A once-abandoned Catholic church in Sperling has found new life, thanks to one father’s love and grief.
On June 30, the Bilodeau family hosted an open house and fundraiser at the historic Sperling Catholic Church, drawing a crowd of friends, neighbours, and supporters. While many came to see the extensive restoration work done on the building, most attended to honour the family’s connection to the church—and the memory of four-year-old Maxwell Bilodeau.
Originally constructed in 1896 as the Waddell School, the building became a private residence in 1910 when a larger school was built in the community. It was later purchased by the Catholic parish, moved into Sperling, and transformed into a church. Paul Bilodeau’s great-grandfather, Joseph Delaloye, built the church’s front belltower.
The family’s ties to the church run deep. Paul’s grandparents, Alice Delaloye and Emile Bilodeau, were the first couple married there. After the parish closed in 1971, Alice bought the property and planned to renovate it with her second husband, Charlie Bell, after moving from Winnipeg. Bell passed away from bone cancer before the renovation was complete.
In 1979, Alice donated the building to a local seniors’ group, The Golden Group. They gave the building a new foundation and modest upgrades, reopening it in 1981 as a community gathering place named Golden Corner.
Decades later, in 2023, the group disbanded and listed the building for sale. Paul and his father, Art Bilodeau, purchased the property—bringing it back into the family. At the time, Paul’s son Maxwell had just completed 10 months of chemotherapy after undergoing surgery to remove a brain tumour at the age of two.
“He wasn’t expected to survive the surgery and his oncologist thought the cancer would come back during chemotherapy,” Paul said. “He miraculously recovered from surgery and handled chemotherapy well with no recurrence. He was doing unbelievably well, so we got him into preschool that fall and I started working on the property. This was my way of giving back to the universe for Maxwell’s miracle recovery.”
But in March 2024, Maxwell was diagnosed again and died on Sept. 27.
After taking time to grieve, Paul returned to the church and began a full restoration in Maxwell’s memory.
He gutted the interior to the studs, insulated the space, redesigned the kitchen, and added a closet for laundry. He built a new staircase to the belltower balcony, expanded the balcony floor, and redesigned the top of the tower.
The building, now named Maxwell’s Golden Corner, will serve as a spiritual retreat or family getaway listed on Airbnb and other rental platforms. It features a full kitchen, bathroom, and two queen-sized Murphy beds.
During the open house, Paul’s daughters, Maya and Ella, ran a lemonade stand in memory of their brother—raising $5,066 for CancerCare Manitoba.
“It meant a lot to me and my father and my daughters and my wife, as well,” Paul said. “Just trying to raise a little bit of money for CancerCare and to have people come out and see Maxwell’s memorial.”
Dozens of people with ties to Sperling showed their support, including local MLA Lauren Stone and councillor Al Rowe. Paul and Art Bilodeau both gave speeches, and Paul cut the ribbon.
“It was really nice to see,” said Paul. “A lot of people came that used to live in Sperling. Young and old. Almost everyone went up in the tower and rang the bell and took pictures. There were multiple people in their 80s that went up and reminisced about the old times in Sperling.”
