This Month in Provincial History

Maria Hayes Features

Notable events for the month of December include:

One Year Ago
Dec. 7, 2014 — Several hundred people gathered at St. Stephen of Hungary Church in New York City to recognize the parish and the Franciscans’ 80 years of service there. In January of that year, the Province announced its decision to return the care of the parish on East 82nd Street to the Archdiocese of New York. On Nov. 2, the archdiocese announced the parish would be one of 112 parishes that would merge to create 55 new parishes. St. Stephen’s closed on Aug. 1, 2015 and merged into nearby St. Monica Parish on East 79th Street.

Dec. 14, 2014 — Friars, sisters and partners-in-ministry gathered at Santa Ana Parish in Lima, Peru, to celebrate the Province’s half century of service in that country. Joseph Nangle, OFM, who in 1963 was the first HNP friar to go to Lima, and former mission superior Paul Breslin, OFM, as well as Christopher Dunn, OFM, Mariano Gagnón, OFM, Emerson Rodríguez, OFM, Carlos Sarmiento, OFM, Dac Tran, OFM, and mission superior Anthony Wilson, OFM, were in attendance.

Five Years Ago
Dec. 28, 2010 — The men’s basketball teams of St. Bonaventure University and Siena College squared off against each other in the first Franciscan Cup game. The Bonnies overcame a nine-point deficit to defeat the Saints, 82-79. The annual game was initiated by Sr. Margaret Carney, OSF, president of St. Bonaventure, and Kevin Mullen, OFM, then-president of Siena, to create a rivalry between the Province-sponsored schools. This year, the game will be played on Dec. 22 at the Times Union Center in Albany, N.Y.

30 Years Ago
Dec. 2, 1985 — A little over a year after a fire gutted the friary at Bishop Timon High School in Buffalo, N.Y., the friars moved into their newly renovated home. Their return was officially celebrated on Jan. 9, 1986 with a blessing of the residence by Bishop Edward Head. Friars, benefactors, pastors and associates of local parishes, and alumni were in attendance.

Dec. 20, 1985 — Fire broke out at New York City’s Project CREATE, destroying the 10,000-square-foot facility, which served as an outpatient clinic for clients. CREATE operated out of storefronts until the city sold the current clinic/administrative building at 73 Lenox Ave. to CREATE for one dollar. The low price for the abandoned building was due in part to the urban blight of the 1970s. The renovation of the building was supervised by Ralph Perez, who has served as Create’s executive director and CEO since 1992.

40 Years Ago
Dec. 16, 1975 — The late Alcuin Coyle, OFM, was appointed president of the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. He served for six years, enlarging the school’s corporate membership and bringing several distinguished scholars to the faculty. (The Province’s post-novitiate formation program is moving to Chicago next year. Simply-professed friars will study at CTU.)

— Compiled by Maria Hayes

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