1998 – Fiftieth Anniversary of Holy Trinity Parish
1998 marks the 50th anniversary of Holy
Trinity Parish. Its church, on the corner of Ardmaer Drive and Maple Street, stands
as not only a place of worship and solace, but also as a monument of faith in God
and of witness to Christ's mandate:". . . go make disciples of all the nations.
Baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."
(Matt. 28 18-20). Reflecting on the past fifty Golden years of existence, parishioners
may rightfully boast: "This is our Faith. This is the faith of the Church. We are
proud to profess it . . ." (Rite of Baptism)
Spring of
1938 – A Humble Beginning
Zealously tended by Father Margerum, administrator
of Saint Bernard's Church in Raritan, New Jersey, the seed of faith took root and
emerged to blossom in the Spring of 1938. Aware of his parishioners' traveling difficulties
to Sunday Mass at St. Bernard's, Father investigated the possibility of having Sunday
Mass celebrated locally. The search proved to be short-lived, however, since the
Tolbirt family on Oak Street, Bradley Gardens, gladly offered their spacious basement.
Grateful to Mr. Joseph Tolbirt, a non-Catholic, and his wife Frances, a devout Catholic,
the small community of approximately one hundred twenty people assembled each Sunday
to hear Mass offered by Father Margerum or by one of the Vincentian Fathers from
Saint Joseph's Seminary in Princeton, New Jersey, which at the time supplied week-end
assistance at Saint Bernard's. Transportation for the visiting priest from Princeton
was very often provided by a parishioner who would drive the Father from Princeton
and back again even in winter's inclement weather.
Furnace trouble at the Tolbirt home made it necessary to transfer Sunday Mass to
the Bradley Gardens Volunteer Fire House on Brahma Avenue where it continued until
the construction and completion of the new church. Meanwhile, Father Cornelius McGonigle
had succeeded Father Margerum as pastor of Saint Bernard's. The new pastor with
his weekend help from the Vincentian Seminary continued the work begun by his predecessor.
To help the priest prepare for Sunday Masses, zealous and faithful parishioners
would make sure there were clean linens for the altar and that the altar was properly
set.
At a meeting held at Saint Joseph's Rectory, East Millstone, New Jersey, on June
19, 1948, Holy Trinity Parish of Bradley Gardens was assigned formal boundaries.
Present at the meeting were the following pastors: Father Stephen I. Buividas of
Holy Trinity, Bradley Gardens; Father Edward P. Atzert of Saint Joseph's, East Millstone;
Father Joseph Miller of Saint Bernard's, Raritan; Father Robert J. Graham of Immaculate
Conception, Somerville; Father Joseph Kurtz of Mary, Mother of God, Flagtown; and
Monsignor James S. Foley who presided. Through mutual agreement, it was established
that Holy Trinity encompass the following territorial boundaries: North - South
of New Jersey State Highway 28 from Raritan Borough line west to Hunterdon County
line; East - Raritan Borough line from New Jersey State Highway 28 to the Raritan
River; South - Raritan River to the North and South Branch Junction to Old York
Road, West to the Hunterdon County line; West - Hunterdon County line from New Jersey
State Highway 28 South to Readington Road.
First Mass
at Holy Trinity’s Formal Altar
Masses were celebrated each Sunday at the
Firehouse (Brahma Avenue) until September 25, 1949, when the auditorium of the present
church was completed and Mass said there for the first time. But it was not until
October 30, 1949, that Mass was said at the main altar of the completed church.
That Sunday, Father Stephen celebrated High Mass at eleven o'clock. The music, taken
from the Mass of the Angels, was sung by the parish choir and directed by Mrs. Pauline
Urban, the church organist. Of course, the day would have been more solemn had Bishop
Griffin been present to lay the cornerstone and to bless and dedicate the new church.
Because of grave illness and his untimely death these ceremonies were postponed.
Holy Trinity
Officially Blessed
It was not until Holy Trinity Sunday, June 4, 1950, that the late Bishop Griffin's successor, Bishop George W. Ahr, performed the long-awaited ceremonies: the laying of the cornerstone and the blessing and dedication of the church. Holy Trinity, incidentally was the first church dedicated and blessed by Bishop Ahr as bishop of Trenton. The event was celebrated with the first Solemn High Mass, Corem Espiscopo, the main celebrant being Father Stephen I. Buividas, assisted by Father Joseph Miller as deacon, and Father Edward Blazka as sub-deacon. The sermon was delivered by Father Emilio Cardelia, pastor of Saint Joachim's Church, Trenton, New Jersey, and the Master of Ceremonies was the Vice Chancellor, the Very Reverend James Hogan.
As yet, Father Stephen had no rectory. It
was still necessary for him to board at the homes of his parishioners. When the
Church was completed, he moved into its damp uncomfortable basement, which was his
living quarters until the Fall of 1952 when the rectory was completed and dedicated.
With the church and rectory completed, the parish was well on its way to meeting
future spiritual and physical challenges. Among these was the reduction of the debt
incurred by the construction of the church ($74,500) and the rectory ($58,042).
In diminishing this debt, the jointly sponsored fund raising efforts of the newly
formed Altar Rosary and Holy Name Societies were needed. Bazaars, card parties,
raffles, and merchandise clubs were put to use. All this was highlighted by the
annual musical comedy, 'Breakfast in Hollywood' written, directed and staged by
talent discovered within the parish.
Religious
Education for the Young
While Holy Trinity parishioners, under the
sponsorship of the Church Societies, were actively engaged in helping their pastor
finance the newly erected buildings, the need for religious education for the young
became apparent. To fulfill this need, Father Stephen invited the Parish Visitors
of Mary Immaculate, who were already working at Saint Bernard's and Saint Ann's
in Raritan since 1939, to play their vital role in his parish. In 1948, led by their
superior, Sister Mary Monica, the Sisters began teaching the children of Holy Trinity
at the facilities provided by Saint Ann's Parish. Their efforts bore fruit. On May
16, 1948, the Sisters witnessed their first Holy Communion class receive the Eucharist
for the first time, and on November 4, 1950, after much preparation, their first
Confirmation class received the Holy Spirit. As was quite obvious, the Sisters lived
up to Father's expectations.
After four years of untiring service, including building a church and rectory, landscaping,
and creating a spirit of cooperation among his people, Father Stephen was assigned
as Catholic Chaplain at the New Jersey State Prison in Trenton. He was succeeded
by Father James Murphy of Saint Mary's Church, South Amboy, on September 19, 1952.
On that same day Father Stephen left for his new apostolate.
Parishioners, when describing Father Murphy, fondly referred to him as "an Irishman
with an easy smile and lots of vitality, challenging every problem with a kindly
graciousness." During this time, Bingo was started as an important fund raising
endeavor. With his parishioners conducting Bingo in the basement of the church and
by his own careful fiscal planning, he was able to pay off debts incurred from earlier
construction and landscaping. His stay as pastor of Holy Trinity was terminated
on May 6, 1956, when he was assigned to Saint Joseph's Church, Beverly, New Jersey,
as its pastor.
Renovations
and Expansion
With the appointment of Reverend John W.
McMullin as administrator on May 7, 1956, and pastor on June 11, 1957, an era of
renovating and expansion began. As with all buildings, the church needed repairs
and remodeling. Father immediately pursued his plans. After renovating the church,
he furnished the rectory. In order to encourage devotion to Mary, he had a shrine
built. The area was also beautifully landscaped to give the parish grounds a devotional
and pleasant atmosphere. Within a few months, the adjacent land owned by the Pomaleau
family was purchased for $9,000.00 in order to enlarge the church property and to
provide ample parking space.
In the early 1960's the existing religious education program was expanded in order
to compensate for the lack of a parochial school. With the blessing and encouragement
of the Pastor, the guidance of the Parish Visitors, the cooperation of responsible
and devout lay parishioners, the program received a great deal of emphasis and provided
many activities, including a well organized summer religious school for children
of the elementary level. Besides teaching religion, the program extended itself
into arts and crafts and various physical education exercises.
In 1967, the religious education program was officially incorporated into the Confraternity
of Christian Doctrine (C.C.D.), with Sister Clotilde of the Parish Visitors as its
Director. She zealously strove to improve the curriculum and to raise its standards
by encouraging the lay teachers to attend lectures and courses leading to the Confraternity
of Christian Doctrine Teaching Certificate.
As yet, nothing substantial was organized for those of high school age within the
parish. Sensing this need, Sister Clotilde, with the assistance of interested adults,
organized a C.Y.O. program, thus bringing the youth together for religious, athletic
and social activities.
Groundbreaking for Parish Center
As industry moved into Bridgewater and Branchburg
areas, residential development was on the increase. Almost overnight, the church
with its seating capacity of two hundred and twenty-five people became too small
to accommodate the influx of new parishioners. The need for larger facilities for
Mass, C.C.D. classes, C.Y.O. activities, social functions and fund raising projects
was quite obvious, especially to those actively involved in them. The most practical
and most economic solution at this time in Father McMullin's mind was to build a
Parish Center, large and convenient enough to be used for every one of the above-mentioned
activities. Deciding this to be the best move, ground breaking took place on November
24, 1967. Among those witnessing Father McMullin turn over the first shovel full
of dirt were the parish's trustees, John Fowley and Felix Ardin.
By mid 1968, the $170,000 structure was completed and ready for use. Sunday Masses
were now offered in the Center. The parish Bingo was no longer held at the Firehouse
on Old York Road but in the spacious, comfortably air-conditioned Parish Center.
Meanwhile, weekend associates from Religious Orders, such as the Redemptorist, Dominicans,
Jesuits and Capuchins, assisted Father McMullin in attending to the spiritual needs
of the people. These men contributed a great deal to the spiritual growth of the
parish by baptizing, hearing confessions, offering Mass, preaching, and involving
themselves in other religious and social activities in the parish such as C.C.D.
and C.Y.O. The impact some of them made will always be felt and we pray rewarded
by God.
1969 brought to Holy Trinity a note of sadness because it was in that year that
the Sisters of the Parish Visitors departed from the parish. After serving the parishioners
of Holy Trinity for twenty-one years by bringing solace to the poor, knowledge to
the children and good example to all, they were recalled to their Motherhouse in
Monroe, N.Y., for assignments elsewhere. Of course, the memory of their encouraging
words and friendly smiles will always remain fresh and vivid in the hearts and minds
of those who knew them.
A New Phase
of Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (CCD)
With the departure of Sister Clotilde, Mrs.
Olga Wichowski was assigned Director and coordinator of the elementary C.C.D. program.
At the same time, Father Peter Niosia, a Capuchin weekend assistant, accepted to
moderate and teach those belonging to the High School C.C.D. program. In September,
1971, a new phase of the C.C.D. program was launched. Father McMullin had asked
Father Peter for Brothers from his friary to help coordinate and direct the program.
That year, Brothers Sam Frapaul and Vincent Fortunato, both Capuchin seminarians
for the priesthood, injected new enthusiasm in the teachers and added a spirit of
solidarity to the program.
One other phase of the C.C.D. program had to be considered, that of the high school
level. Not having had much success with Sunday evening classes and lectures, a different
approach was considered and tried with much success. Father Peter, as Moderator,
and Mrs. Mary Kuhns, as Director and coordinator, set up scheduled planned activities
so as to organize and create a closely knit Youth Group, while Carol Ann Grissler
prepared and directed the choir for the Sunday liturgy. The focal point of the program
was the 10:00 O'clock Sunday Mass which became completely youth orientated. With
readers, ushers, offertory participants, choir singers, etc., taken from among the
high school (8th to 12th grades) registrants, the program became real and relevant,
creating a closely knit group of parishioners.
With the approval and encouragement of Father McMullin, the men of the parish organized
two important spiritual movements, annual retreats and Nocturnal Adoration. Both
efforts were sponsored and promoted by the Holy Name Society. Rosarians also organized
and sponsored spiritual activites such as evenings of recollection held annually
at the Cenacle in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Vatican
II Changes
Vatican II, with its spirit of renewal and
updating, brought about many ritualistic, liturgical and administrative changes.
Among the most significant administrative changes was the creation of the Diocesan
Pastoral Council. This Council, along with the local Parish Council, extended to
laymen the opportunity to take a more active and a more meaningful role in the Church.
Holy Trinity, besides lay trustees, now had laymen acting as delegates to the Pastoral
Council. The first to be appointed as delegate to this Council was James Dowden.
Dominic Zagari was named as alternate.
In August, 1972, Father McMullin was notified that he had been assigned to Saint
Elizabeth's Church in Avon, New Jersey. Father William J. Hewitt of Saint Magdalene's
Church in Flemington was named his successor. On September 8, 1972, Father Hewitt
was officially installed as Pastor of Holy Trinity in an evening ceremony presided
over by Monsignor John Torney, The Episcopal Vicar of the area. Father Hewitt expanded
the programs for the youth of the parish. He formed a Boy Scout Troop, a Co-ed Explorer
Unit and a champion marching drill team "The Phanton Regiment."
In an effort to further develop the spirituality and leadership skills of the youth,
Father Hewitt sponsored a Youth Hostel during the summer months in Lavallette, N.J.
where the young people attended daily Mass, studied scripture, performed works of
social ministry and enjoyed recreation under the guidance of Father Hewitt and husband
and wife leadership teams. He expanded the C.C.D. program, placing great emphasis
on teaching the chief doctrines of the faith and he started a diocesan certification
program for the continuing education of religion teachers.
In providing service to his parishioners, Father Hewitt started a baby sitting program
at all the Masses. He enhanced the liturgy and encouraged devotion by organizing
choirs at each Mass as well as special musical groups such as the Brass Band and
the Boys Choir for festive occasions. He also started a Perpetual Adoration Society
and appointed several men of the parish as Eucharistic Ministers. As the number
of families grew in the parish, Father Hewitt brought in Father Damian Towey C.P.
and Father Stephen Horkin C.P. to assist him on weekends and Father Bernard Pagano
as Associate.
Further
Expansion of Holy Trinity Church
Continuing to provide for the needs of his
growing active parish, Father Hewitt opened the parish center for holding affordable
wedding receptions for parishioners. He purchased the Lucash property next to the
rectory for further expansion of the parking lot as well as providing an enclosed
garden for youth dances and cookouts for the parish youth and diocesan seminarians.
Father Hewitt, recognizing the ongoing growth of people moving into the parish,
hired the architects, Moran and Karlberg who extended the church doubling the capacity,
adding a new liturgical sanctuary and a wing for C.C.D. classrooms and meetings.
Ever mindful of his commitment to the community at large, he started the annual
St. Patrick's Day Parade that has brought the neighboring towns of Bridgewater,
Raritan and Somerville close together. He served as Chaplain to the Bradley Gardens
Rescue Squad, the local American Legion Post, the Bridgewater Police Department
and the Somerville Knights of Columbus. He also formed bag pipe band the "Trinity
Pipers."
In November 1985, Father Hewitt was appointed pastor of Our Lady of The Mount in
Warren, New Jersey, and Father Pagano was appointed temporary administrator of Holy
Trinity.
On Thanksgiving Day 1985, Father John Pringle, Associate Pastor of Saint Francis
of Assisi Cathedral, was appointed pastor of Holy Trinity and was officially installed
as pastor on January 19, 1986 by Rev. Monsignor Anthony Luisini, Episcopal Vicar.
Active
Parish Council Formed
In keeping with the spirit of the Second
Vatican Council, Father Pringle brought a collegial approach to being a shepherd
to the people. He immediately formed an active Parish Council which acts and serves
in an advisory capacity to him in studying or determining the existence of problems
or conditions that require change. The Council sets working priorities and recommends
actions on the spiritual and temporal needs of the parish and use of the parish
resources to meet those needs.
As a result of recommendations of the Council, Father Pringle made major renovations
to church structures and grounds. Roofs were repaired or replaced. Oil tanks were
removed to ensure compliance with new environmental requirements. The church parking
lot was completely resurfaced. Buildings were painted and further maintenance and
improvements are being planned. In addition, Father Pringle has been providing annual
"state of the parish" reports to the people, including budget and financial information.
Through the generous response of the people of the parish, Holy Trinity is free
of all debt and bills are being paid on time.
Continuing the traditions of the previous pastors, Father Pringle has put great
emphasis on providing religious education to the youth of the parish. He appointed
Mrs. Mary Ribaudo as Director of Religious Education expanding the C.C.D. and Youth
Group programs. He appointed Father Anthony Sirianni as chaplain to both groups
and Geri Cuthbert as Director of Sacred Music.
Continued
Growth for Holy Trinity Parish
The parish continues to grow as new housing
developments are being constructed and the spiritual needs of the parishioners are
being addressed. The R.C.I.A. (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) has been
implemented to prepare people to become full members of the Catholic Church. The
Social Concerns Committee is providing support to those people in most need of help.
The Respect Life Committee is providing support in all areas of pro-life activities.
Father John Pringle has expanded the Eucharistic Ministers Group to include women
and the Altar servers to include girls. He has provided support to the Holy Name
and Altar Rosary Societies and encouraged them to continue their great work. He
has created an environment that instills confidence in people to participate in
all areas of parish life. He has encouraged vocations and shared the confidence
of the Bishop by being the priest mentor for three transitional deacons who became
priests - Reverend Joe Hogan, Reverend Joe Celano and Reverend Michael Behuniak.
He has been a great friend and spiritual support to Father Sean Winters and Deacon
Mike Forrestall.
Golden
Anniversary Celebration
As our parish celebrates its Golden Anniversary and looks forward with optimism to the new millennium, we thank God for the blessings of the past fifty years and we recommit ourselves, as people of God, to continue our journey in faith trusting in the divine providence of God, the promise of eternal salvation of His Son and the love and protection of Mary, Our Blessed Mother.