Good works in progress at Queenship of Mary
Parish focuses 25th anniversary on community building
In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit — Ephesians 2:22
By Chris Donahue
Staff Writer
PLAINSBORO — In their respective journeys to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Diocese of Metuchen and Queenship of Mary Parish have walked side-by-side for nearly 25 years, both experiencing the joys and challenges that accompany growth.
To further its mission as a Catholic Christian community, the diocese has focused its Silver Jubilee on its first diocesan synod, while Queenship of Mary Parish is focusing its 25th anniversary celebration on the scriptural passage, “In Him you are built together” (Ephesians 2:22).
A significant part of the parish’s quarter-century celebration is its sponsorship of two building projects: Mary’s Garden for its outdoor statue of the Blessed Mother and a Habitat for Humanity house for a family in need.
According to Father Robert W. Medley, pastor of Queenship of Mary, the projects are a tangible symbol of the parish’s goal to build community among parishioners as well as the surrounding area.
Mary’s Garden, which is scheduled to be completed in May, will provide a place for prayer and reflection on parish grounds.
Construction of the three-bedroom house in East Windsor, which will be built by volunteers from the parish, begins in the spring and is expected to be completed in August. Tithing and in-kind donations will help pay for the entire project, which will cost about $75,000.
“I did not want the year to be about just patting ourselves on the back,” Father Medley said. “I really wanted this to be a year of gratitude to God for what he has done for us so that we can also then move forward to the future.”
The parish, which comprises about 1,250 registered families, began its anniversary celebration Oct. 22 with a procession.
About 300 parishioners processed from Community Middle School — where Masses were celebrated in the late 1980s before Queenship of Mary Church was built — to the church for an evening prayer service.
“It was a good witness for the community,” Father Medley said, “and it was a great, great day for us.”
It also seems fitting that Bishop Paul G. Bootkoski will close the diocese’s first synod with an evening prayer service at Queenship of Mary Church Jan. 31, 7:30 p.m. An image of the stained glass dove window located in the church’s sanctuary was used to create the synod’s logo.
Other anniversary-related activities include a parish picnic in September and a commemorative Christmas ornament that will be available in the fall.
On Oct. 21, Bishop Bootkoski will return to Queenship of Mary as principal celebrant of a Mass to officially mark the parish’s 25th anniversary and to begin its next 25 years as a Christ-centered community. The Mass will be followed by a reception and dinner dance.
Young, diverse and growing
“One of our strengths is that we are young in more ways than one,” Father Medley said. “We are young in the sense that we are just 25 years old this year, but if you look at our community, there are a lot of young families.”
Father Medley said he has never been a part of a parish where there were so many people in their 30s and 40s who have children in elementary school.
“It is also very ethnically diverse. We have a lot of Filipinos, Asian Indians, Hispanics, and Africans,” he said. “West Windsor and Monroe are still growing. Plainsboro is trying to restrict its growth, but we can still attract people.”
According to Sister of Christian Charity Mary Rose Mroz, pastoral associate, the strength of the parish is the people.
“There is a sense of not only community where people want to get together — every social event we hold seems to sell out — but also a sense of spirituality and wanting to know God and know about their faith,” she said.
What makes the parish special, she said, is parishioners’ sense that they are part of a larger community. “There is a sense that we need to build up the local community and the world and whatever areas we can. They realize that God has given us so much. It is always about sharing what God has given us,” she said.
With the dual desire to give back to the community as well as to build a further sense of community, Father Medley said the parish’s anniversary projects were carefully selected.
“We looked for a project where we could do a lot of things hands-on. I didn’t want to ask parishioners to just donate money,” he said.
“Habitat for Humanity is local and there are so many opportunities for involvement in not only the building but in choosing the family, developing the architectural plans, event planning, publicity, even making sandwiches for workers.”
Master builders from Millstone Basin Habitat for Humanity will oversee the construction, said Regina Finn, a member of Habitat Committee as well as the parish’s Anniversary Committee and Pastoral Council.
Applications for the house have been pared to about 15 families, who will be interviewed in February, she said. The family chosen for the home must be able to meet the mortgage payments.
“It is a leg up, not a hand out,” Finn said. “The goal is simple, decent affordable housing.”
Donations of time from parishioners who are architects and an owner of a tile company have helped defray costs, too, she said. To help raise money for the house, a Square Dance and Barn Raising fundraiser will be held at Town Center Elementary School Feb. 3, 7 p.m. Tickets are $7 per person; $25 maximum per family.
“What I am gaining from it is learning how people come together for a common goal,” she said. “To run a parish or to complete a project like this there are many kinds of gifts being called up.
“We are also raising awareness of poverty as well,” she continued. “We are reaching out to adults and the youth group to get involved as well.”
Finn, a catechist, talks about the project with her class. “Who knows who will move forward and take on a project like that in the future,” she said.
“I love this parish,” Finn said. “It is an amazing parish and is growing. I’m excited for the fact that everyone is getting involved in the Habitat project and it comes back to God. The power of this group is amazing.”
Dick Tyson has been a member of the parish since 1988, serving as a lector and extraordinary minister of holy Communion. He also serves on the Pastoral Council, the 25th Anniversary Committee and is co-chairman of the Anniversary Dinner Dance subcommittee.
“My wife, Helen, and I raised four children here and found the parish community to be a very friendly, loving community; one that we have thoroughly enjoyed being involved with,” Tyson said. “We have watched it grow from before the church was built.”
A building spirit
Once the dust settles from all the anniversary celebration activities, Father Medley said he hopes the spirit of building continues to burn brightly.
“The hope is that people don’t just get involved in one event, but it becomes an impetus for further involvement in the life of the parish,” he said.
Since Father Medley arrived at Queenship of Mary Parish in 2003, he has introduced tithing and established an 11-member pastoral council. Now that major building repairs have been completed, Father Medley hopes to begin work on a parish center soon.
Queenship of Mary Parish: Growing together
The Diocese of Metuchen was 11 months old when then-Bishop Theodore E. McCarrick established Queenship of Mary Parish on Oct. 22, 1982. The parish was dedicated under the patroness of the diocese.
“It’s a beautiful title and it’s also a distinctive name for a church. It definitely gives us a great connection to the diocese,” Father Robert W. Medley, pastor, said.
Originally founded to serve the people of Cranbury and Plainsboro, Queenship of Mary began as a mission of St. Cecelia Parish, Monmouth Junction. The first Mass was celebrated in the Wicoff School, Plainsboro, in November 1982, according to parish archives.
Land for a church (known as The Cooper Tract) was bought at Scudders Mill and Dey roads in 1984. Father Frank Piazza was named the first administrator in October 1986 and a rectory on Linden Lane was bought in May 1987, when Father Piazza was named pastor. Because of the continued growth of the parish, Masses were moved to Community Middle School, also Plainsboro.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held for Queenship of Mary Church Nov. 20, 1988, and on Aug. 20, 1990, the new church was dedicated by then-Bishop Edward T. Hughes.
After the departure of Father Piazza, Father Edward J. Struzik was named the second pastor of the parish Oct. 8, 1991. A new rectory at 16 Dey Road, closer to the church, was bought in May 1996 and an office complex was soon added. A bronze statue of Our Lady and Child was unveiled and dedicated Aug. 24, 1997 to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the founding of the parish.
When Father Struzik moved to a new parish in 2001, he was briefly followed by Father Edward Flanagan. Father Michael Saharic was appointed administrator Oct. 14, 2001.
Father Medley was named administrator in August 2002 and was installed as pastor June 29, 2003.
The church underwent renovations in 2003 and 2004.
Father Struzik, now retired from active ministry, said the number of registered families grew from about 700 to 1,600 during his 10-year pastorate.
“It truly was a challenging parish,” Father Struzik said. “The church had been built and dedicated, the pastor had left his vocation. I had to walk into this with the emotions left by his departure. There was a need for healing. I told them to, ‘Be patient with me and take our time with each other. I know you are hurting, but we will get over it.’
“It was a fairly young parish; a dynamic parish because it was upscale and affluent,” he added. “People were commuters, going to New York, etc., so it was a very active place.
“Every single week you knew you were going to get a new family. You had 80 to 90 baptisms and about 30 weddings in the course of a year. You could count the number of funerals on one hand.
“The religious education program was a challenge because of the influx of people. We really had to struggle to find enough time and space in the days of the week.”
Father Struzik said he was particularly proud of the growth of the Boy Scouts in the parish and its leadership. He recalled that 13 boys earned Eagle Scout Awards during his pastorate.
The parish also established a Knights of Columbus council and Father Struzik served as its charter chaplain.
— Chris Donahue
*The attached/referenced article was originally published in The Catholic Spirit, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Metuchen, and is protected under U.S. and international copyright law