MASSACHUSETTS
Wisconsin Gazette
Written by Lisa Neff, Staff writer
Oct 5, 2012
James Fairbanks and Alain Beret saw potential in the property – 44 rooms, 26 acres and community zeal for preservation. The stately though deteriorated mansion in Northbridge, Mass., seemed an ideal location for an inn or a special events.
But despite an offer and a deposit, the seller – the Worcester Diocese of the Catholic Church – backed out of the deal.
The diocese says the deal-breaker was money. The couple claims it was discrimination.
The vacant property at the center of the controversy most recently hosted the Oakhurst Retreat and Conference Center, an office for the church’s youth ministry.
Before that, beginning in 1973, the mansion was the site of the House of Affirmation, a retreat for “troubled priests” founded by the Rev. Thomas A. Kane. In a notice in a church-affiliated newsletter from decades ago, Kane announced that the center was at “the service of all priests and religious who are not embarrassed to become a more fulfilled and healthier person.”
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