A truly inspired and uplifting celebration of the 100th anniversary of St. Alphonsus Parish took place on the weekend of Sept. 14/15. I begin by congratulating two of the key organizers, Chrissy Pompei and Sandra Talarico who made this a celebration of the heart. (Fr. Dino Benedet was also on the original committee but health issues kept both him and Fr. Stan Liska from attending.)

Briefly, there was a wonderful banquet for clergy, sisters and long-time parishioners on the Saturday evening, about 75 people in all, and it provided a wonderful time for re-connecting, for stories, and for memories. A 30-ft-long collage of pictures and articles along the basement wall traced the parish from its origins to the present, with pictures of Redemptorists and laity at worship, at play and at countless gatherings.

Then, on Sunday morning, the church was packed right into the choir loft. The bells were rung before and after the Mass. Archbishop Richard Smith led the community in prayer and preached a fine homily on Christ as the cornerstone of the family of faith; he built on the pictures in the program where parishioners removed and opened the cornerstone, the present church being built in 1952, to capture some of the planned mementoes from the beginning. A wonderful choir, reminiscent of many choirs of the past, carried us through the liturgy.

After Mass, three speakers presented their memories of life in the parish. I point out especially Cecilia Winton (“I am 94!“). She reminisced back to the old wooden church from 1924-53, where she was baptized, to St. Alphonsus school and the Sisters who taught there, and up to the present with the countless gatherings for bazaars, holy days, OLPH Devotions, etc. Chrissy Pompei then spoke about being part of five active generations of St. Al’s parishioners and growing up in that living legacy. Finally, Caroline Gough, introduced by her six-year-old daughter Jane, spoke about being a relatively new parishioner and finding a warm and wonderful welcome for her family.

The Redemptorists were well represented by Frs. Ray Douziech, Dave Louch and myself. Delightful was the opportunity to share with a number of Sisters from various congregations who have had close ties with Redemptorists: Sr. Fay Tremblay, scic; Sr. Anne Collins, scic; Sr. Mary Clare Stack, uj;and Sr. Anne Rajotte, csj. Several of the former diocesan pastors joined in the celebration: Patrick Basca, Fr. Tesfou, Fr. Martin Carroll – (pardon my spelling) as well as the Basilians, especially Fr. Glen MacDonald, the present pastor.

The reception after the Sunday Mass was simply magnificent. And one of the things that stood out was how much the congregation of the parish is now a mini-United Nations! For example, about 30 members of the Ethiopian community were there in their brilliant white, Sunday-go-to-church garments. Also I was impressed how many young families find their home at St. Al’s.

There are many more highlights and details to share but I will close with the famous dictum, “You had to be there!”