This article was written by Fr. John Gracey for print in the official publication of the  Roman Catholic Diocese of Fresno, Central California Catholic Life.

The Other Side of the Mountains by Father John Gracey                                                      

For anyone who travels and visits the many and wonderful Churches which have been built to the praise and glory of God over the centuries, both locally and abroad, beyond the inspiring architecture, the beautiful stained glass windows leave an impression that is captivating to the eye and enriching to the faith of the Church. Windows served two purposes, first to bring light into the building and to keep the elements out, but they also taught lessons to the faithful. Images of the old testament and new testament, the sacraments and images of tradition and faith, the windows had images that taught the largely illiterate people of that time simple lessons that could be learned by studying the windows and the images they presented.

     Following this tradition of faith, Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Bishop has a new stained glass window over it's main entrance which is both beautiful and inspirational in it's depiction of faith and local history. At the top of the window, positioned in front of the mountains which surround the city of Bishop is an image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, the patroness of the parish. Next in line, following down the window is an image of St. Theresa of the Infant Jesus, beloved patroness of the Diocese of Fresno. The next image is that of Father John J. Crowley, first pastor in the Owens Valley, who served two separate terms as pastor to the far flung people of Inyo County.

     Beneath that is an image of the first parish in the Owens Valley, Santa Rosa Parish in Lone Pine, established in 1919. Beneath that is a cross which depicts the memorial marker on Highway 395 outside of Ridgecrest, which marks the location where Father Crowley was killed in an auto accident in 1940. Throughout the entire window, winds an image of the Owens River, which is such an important river of life to the people of Inyo County, and the people of the San Fernando Valley who receive the water via the famous Los Angeles Aqueduct.

      Admired immediately by the people of the parish, this window replaces the original which was designed to be a temporary window , a simple design of rectangles of colored glass, installed when the church was built in 1968. Though the original window had long served it's purpose, time and the elements had deteriorated it to the point that it needed to be replaced. The frame was rotted and cracks in the glass had progressed to the point that they were meeting each other and chunks of glass were falling out. The window, which should be a beautiful inspiration for many years to come, is dedicated to the people of the parish of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, who through their generosity made it a reality.