Back to Exponent Menu Printer Friendly Page   LOCAL FEATURES Friday, April 12, 2002 St. Stan’s marks 100th year ‘Small parish but big family,’ parishioners say By Joyce O’Connell Special to the Catholic Exponent While keeping alive the traditions handed down from their Polish ancestors, the parishioners of St. Stanislaus Kostka in Youngstown are moving into their second century welcoming other Catholics who appreciate the warmth and closeness of a small parish. It’s a small parish but it’s a big family, say parishioners, many of whom have been members all their lives, continuing to attend St. Stan’s long after they moved out of the area. They come from a rich heritage of hard-working immigrants who helped build a steel industry, a community and a church which centered their lives. The strength of the parish comes from the people who are devoted not only to their parish but to one another. At the same time, the parish faces the challenges of its inner-city location, many of its parishioners now living in the suburbs. To celebrate, a special 100th anniversary Mass will be held at noon June 9, with Bishop Thomas J. Tobin concelebrating with Father Edward J. Neroda, pastor. Dinner will follow at 2 p.m. at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Hall, Youngstown. The Centennial Year opened with the dedication June 3, 2001, of a newly built shrine dedicated to Our Lady of Czestochowa. In August, a church picnic was held and in November the annual feast day celebration included Mass, dinner and entertainment provided by parish children. On New Year’s Eve, the parish held a Mass and dinner with polka music to officially ring in the Centennial Year. Religious faith that’s not just centered in church but also in the home has been a strength of the parish, said Father Neroda, pastor since 1980. It is the people and their devotion to their faith and to each other that sets the parish apart and keeps members coming back, even if it means a considerable drive for Sunday morning Mass, he added. Under Father Neroda’s leadership, parish ministries have grown. The St. Stanislaus Senior Citizens Group has a full roster. There is an active parish council and St. Vincent DePaul Society. Father Neroda was also responsible for renovating the church and purchasing a grand pipe organ. One of the more visible outreaches is the parish pierogi sale, where volunteers meet four days a week, nine months a year to make and sell pierogi, which has added substantially to the financial wellbeing of the parish for many years. The sale has become a festive time of work and fellowship where volunteers pray, sing, and work together, their pastor said. Bill Jones, president of Parish Council, who became a member 30 years ago at the parish where his wife grew up, said there is outstanding camaraderie among parishioners. When Jones and his wife were involved in a bad auto accident, they not only received an outpouring of cards and prayers from fellow parishioners, but the people they worshiped with made a schedule and every night during their recovery someone supplied them with dinner. People have been generous in their financial support of the church and with their time, Jones said. The council is active in everything from social events to Christian education to an involved finance committee, he said. Victoria Longava has belonged to St. Stanislaus all of her 89 years. She was married there, as was her granddaughter. Her sister, Sophie Zajac’s wedding ceremony, about 1902, was held in the hall because the church was under construction. Mrs. Longava’s father worked in the steel mills and her family spoke Polish at home. When she went to school, she wrote her name in Polish. “We have a wonderful group of nice parishioners,” she said. It is the friendliness and closeness of the people that makes her say “as long as I live I’m still going to be a parishioner.” One of the younger parishioners, Melissa Danus, 15, a sophomore at Cardinal Mooney, has been a member almost half her life, but feels the same sense of being rooted and belonging. “I love it at this church,” she said. “You can come in and know everybody, say ‘hi’ to everybody. I need that kind of togetherness. Kids my age who belong to a small parish find security in their parish.” Miss Danus is involved as an altar server, choir member and in “trying to help build up the youth ministry.” By belonging, she gets the benefit of older parishioners’ experience and memories of their heritage, something “my generation didn’t get the chance or privilege to do.” The family atmosphere at St. Stan’s is illustrated just about every Sunday after the Polish Mass, when parishioners stay for up to 45 minutes, talking and catching up, said permanent Deacon Mike Schlais. They are in no hurry to get to their individual homes because they are at home in their church where they have created a community. “We’re not just parishioners, we’re friends,” said Schlais. Even the pierogi sales, which require great donations of time and energy, are good times. The volunteers “don’t look at it as a strain because they enjoy being here with friends,” he said. The challenge of attracting more, especially younger members, will be met once people realize what St. Stan’s has to offer in the way of a sense of belonging, he said. “We have so much fun being together and there’s an energy,” he said. “I feel at some time, some way, it’ll attract people.” The traditions flow into a deep spirituality which visitors are welcome to witness at any time, Schlais said. The advantage of a small parish is that every single child, every youth ministry student is known, and every child can be involved, said Carol Hummer, Coordinator of Religious Education. One of the organists, Ms. Hummer has a degree in music and elementary education. St. Stan catechists have been involved for many years and are dedicated enough to attend workshops to further their education, she said. Currently, three sets of siblings teach CCD with a combined experience of 100 years. Parents of CCD and youth ministry students pitch in to help raise money, such as making and selling “paczki,” or Polish doughnuts, before Lent. For a quarter of a century Leo Killa has been sports director of the parish. The son of a Polish father who worked in the mills and an English mother, Killa attended St. Stan’s School. Although he doesn’t live in the parish vicinity now, he remains a member, as he has been all of his 77 years. Through the years, the sports program has produced many fine athletes and prominent citizens, said Killa. It started during the Depression when Father Dominic Mielcarek was working to keep young people occupied. It was so successful that in 1933, the St. Stanislaus baseball team won a national championship trophy. A big booster of the sports programs was Catholic War Veterans (CWV) Post 1222, said Killa. He recalls when a Quonset hut was used on South Avenue for sports and the days when the programs only included boys. Like many of the parishioners, Frank Sikora’s parents came from Europe and spoke Polish. Now preserving those traditions is important. His niece, Marianne Klimko, helped to preserve the Polish choir at the church. Not an altar server when he was younger, Sikora now serves at funerals and whenever he is needed. During funerals, hearing the old Polish hymns often gives a sense of comfort and closure to people, he said. There is a spirit of volunteerism that stems from the work ethic handed down from previous generations, he added. “I think we have a certain core of dedicated people that keep the others going,” he said. Thomas Rudnicki recalls his ancestors who worked in Youngstown’s steel mills for 25 cents an hour. They and their neighbors were ordinary people who couldn’t read or speak English but they were determined to build a church. “I’ve been here long enough to know there was a lot of money raised by these people,” said Rudnicki. Treasurer of CWV Post 1222 for more than 40 years, he said the post has donated thousands of dollars to parochial students. Attending eight years at St. Stan’s School was “one of the better times of my life,” he said. Polish was spoken in his home and he remembers his mother sitting next to him as he did his school work so that she could learn better English along with her son. An accountant by trade, Rudnicki now volunteers his time counting pierogi at the sale. He’s glad to have been a member of St. Stan’s for all of his 82 years and hopes to be a member for 15 or 20 more. Fleeing the persecutions and hardships of their native country, by 1902 more than 80 Polish families had settled in the Youngstown area to work in the iron and steel industry. A strong desire to worship in their native tongue led to the appointment of Father Charles Ruszkowski as administrator of the first Polish Parish in Youngstown on June 14, 1902. The small parish, which had been worshiping in the basement of St. Columba Church, raised enough money to purchase land on South Avenue where they built a rectory, convent and church the next year. In 1909, the parish invited the Franciscan Sisters of Chicago, under the direction of Sister M. Kaziera, to teach in the school. In 1922, with membership increasing, the congregation once again raised the money to build a new church, school, rectory and auditorium on Williamson Avenue under the direction of Father John Zeglen. During the Great Depression, Father Dominic Mielcarek helped parishioners with jobs and activities including drama clubs, movies and sports, resulting in the baseball championship. After WWII, Father John Grabowski organized the Polish Relief Committee and later held the office of Director of Displaced Persons in the Diocese. A third building program was undertaken by Msgr. Thaddeus Heruday, who was appointed pastor in 1964. New school offices, a teachers’ lounge and a full-size gym were erected. Msgr. Heruday, together with Sister Jeanne Marie, established a library as well as a fully equipped science room. Besides the accomplishments noted above during his pastorate (1980-present), Father Neroda has led the parish to push beyond its physical boundaries and try to beautify and uplift the surrounding neighborhood. Parishioners have also reached out to missions in Uganda. Beyond the very active parish council, other ministries have taken hold or been strengthened, including nursing home and hospital visitations and eucharistic ministry. And the mix of traditional and modern continues with two choirs that offer Polish and American music.   Back to Exponent Menu Printer Friendly Page   Other Articles of 2002   Christmas letter from El Salvador missions thanks diocesan Catholics   Bishop shares views, discussion with Central students   ETC slates Christmas specials throughout the season   My Favorite Christmas Memories   Guidelines on religious ed homeschooling are issued   Local Catholic radio station targets Feb. 1 date   HMs end 98-years of service to Salem St. Paul Parish   Learn ‘language’ of young, youth meet speaker urges   Bishop Tobin: Meeting in D.C. on norms was ‘anxious, tense, difficult’   Priests must ask one another the tough questions, speaker says   Catholic death and funeral rites   Deacons mark 25th with Mass, dinner, memories   Diocesan Ministry Convocation Speaker: Global solidarity, not globalization, should be aim   Jusseaume inaugurated as sixth Walsh president   Diaconate marks 25th anniversary with Oct. 27 fete   New norms sent to priests, deacons on Communion under both kinds   Ashtabula parishes are ‘one Catholic community’   Jusseaume to become Walsh’s sixth president   Charismatic speaker: ‘Church being tested in faithfulness’   Lutheran/Catholic covenant event draws 140 to Walsh   Canton St. Joseph Parish observes centennial celebration   HMHP CEO Michael Rowan   Stewardship speaker: It’s about gratitude and thanking God first   Imagination is key to resolving crisis, priests told   War with Iraq? 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