 Later that same year, he returned to New York to ask for financial aid for the Bahamas to complete the rebuilding of two churches destroyed by a hurricane.In 1940, he attended the annual Catholic Mission Sunday at St. Patrick's Cathedral, where he occupied the seat of honor opposite the Archbishop's throne.On January 15, 1941, the Prefecture Apostolic was elevated to the Vicariate Apostolic of the Bahama Islands, with Kevenhoerster becoming its first Vicar Apostolic.