Long before she became one of the most recognizable women in Louisiana, Gayle Benson was a parishioner and reader at Masses at St. Louis Cathedral, spending most Sundays assisting the priests and congregants who oversee one of the city’s most historic landmarks.
On a muggy Sunday in mid-August, she was fulfilling that role again, reading from the altar “A Letter from Saint Paul to the Ephesians” from Ephesians 5:15-20. “Brothers and sisters: Watch carefully how you live, not as foolish persons but as wise, making the most of the opportunity.”
That passage seemed especially poignant as Benson, a philan-thropist, businesswoman and the owner of the New Orleans Saints and New Orleans Pelicans sports teams, has embarked on an effort to restore and renovate St. Louis Cathedral. Also known as the Basilica of St. Louis King of France, it is the oldest Catholic cathedral in continuous use in the United States.
To Benson and many other Catholics in Louisiana, it is a revenant place of worship. But Benson also recognizes the cathedral’s cultural significance both in New Orleans and in the nation as a whole. A church has been on this site since the 1720s, though the current building dates to between 1849 and 1851.
The cathedral is the centerpiece of New Orleans’ most historic public spaces, Jackson Square, and for centuries, the sight of the church flanked by the Cabildo and Presbytère has been the most instantly recognizable image of the Crescent City.
As Benson leads the renovation effort and fundraising drive, she is rallying the larger community to acknowledge the building’s historic importance as well as its religious significance. “The heart of New Orleans needs your heart,” she has said.
The goal is to raise $75 million, which would include $45 million for the restoration and repairs to the church, $10 million for the renovation of the rectory, $10 million for an endowment for long-term maintenance, and $10 million for an endowment for operational expenses.
Between Masses on that Sunday back in August, Benson discussed the campaign, the need for renovations, and her personal connection to the church. She met her future husband, Saints owner Tom Benson, at the cathedral in 2004, and the couple renewed their vows there before his death.
However, before she even met Tom Benson in person, Gayle Benson, back in the early 2000s, was part of a group fundraising money to fix the cathedral’s roof. “I had sent him faxes seeking donations for the roof,” she said, adding that he did not immediately respond, and she was initially unimpressed.
He was a “tough businessman,” she said, laughing. “But he was a good man.” Once they became a couple, he was a big supporter of her philanthropic work.
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
What do you love most about the cathedral and what inspired you to lead this charge now?
Although it’s just a building, I feel like God is here, and I feel like you feel His presence here. But it’s also that we can’t lose this building, and we can’t lose the Cabildo or the Presbytère, either. All three of these buildings together are so important to New Orleans.
When I’m reading (at Mass), it’s such an honor and privilege to be here (on the altar). When I’m in town, I read at both Masses, the 9 and 11 (a.m.) …
After Tom died, it took me a few years to get on my feet, to say the least. For the first years, I had to think about what I could do to preserve his legacy. And then, when I came up with this idea (to restore the cathedral), it just felt right because there’s so much need here.
You met with the French Ambassador to the United States, and he connected you with the architects and engineers working to restore Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. You then flew the group working on St. Louis Cathedral to France, and they toured Notre Dame with its restoration experts. Why was that important to you?
I felt like if I could get Notre Dame and this building connected, we could collaborate. When we went there, they had a meeting with us. They spoke to us about the things they did to restore Notre Dame. … I felt it was a way to connect both places and learn from them.
Why do you think the broader city, not just the Catholic community, should support this effort?
This building is used as a backdrop for everything. So why would you not preserve this place? This place matters. It’s not about a Catholic church. It’s a building in need of restoration, and it deserves to be restored. People say to me, ‘It doesn’t look like (St. Louis Cathedral) needs anything.’ But, I say, ‘Think about the windows at your house. They need to be reglazed. The floors need to be redone, the lighting needs to be redone. Everything needs to be redone.’ The work here, it’s not just cosmetic. It’s serious stuff, and if we don’t take care of it, it will continue deteriorating every day. It needs help.
What does historic preservation mean to you?
I feel like we are here enjoying things that people have left for us, and it’s our obligation to carry that on. If we don’t take care of these places, we will lose them, and we will lose them for future generations. We should always aim to leave things better than we have had them.
Learn more about the campaign to restore St. Louis Cathedral at www.ourcityourcathedral.org.
