Celebrating 50 Years...The 50th Anniversary in 1968 was a time for joyful celebration culminating on November 30th and December 1st. The Dinner Dance took place at Raymond Hall at Providence College and the Sunday 11:15 am Mass was a Concelebrated Mass of Thanksgiving.

The following pages contain excerpts of the sermon from the 50th Anniversary Mass and a variety of photos that appeared in the 50th Anniversary Book.

The 1960s were again a time of war, and the parish lost two sons during the Vietnam conflict. Their stories are on page 52.

This photo serves as a reminder that, fifty years ago, the altar was against the marble backdrop and the priest faced the crucifix while celebrating mass. The repositioning of the altar took place in the 1970s.

Our parish story is (for now) almost halfway done. We hope you have learned some interesting facts and have

enjoyed your trip down memory lane.

Note: The top part of this page is blank since it deals with 1967.

Excerpts from the Sermon delivered by Joseph L. Lennon, O.P., Vice President for Community Affairs at Providence College

on the Occasion of the Golden Jubilee - December 1, 1968

“[W]hy all this jubilation? The Book of Leviticus (15: 8-11) gives the answer. The Lord said, “And thou shall sanctify the fiftieth year . . .for it is the year of the jubilee.” So the Israelites took God at His word. The fiftieth year was set aside as a time to “swing” – a time to live it up in song and mirth and laughter; a time, moreover, to thank God for leading the chosen people into the Promised Land. Sadness was to be banished; joy was to prevail. Debts were blotted out; enemies were reconciled. A happy spirit of peace on earth, good will towards men filled the hearts of all.

So the Jews had cause to glee, but what about St. Pius? Isn’t it somewhat ironical that we celebrate this anniversary at the very time when the Church itself seems to be coming apart at the seams? Good Pope John opened the window to let in some fresh air; instead he let in a hurricane. Whichever way we look, the Catholic world we know seems to be turned upside down. The Pope is derided for being hopelessly out of date, heresy parades under the guise of theological speculation, Canon Law is hooted as Pharisaic legalism, conscience is appealed to, as if it were formed in a vacuum apart from the teaching guidance of the Church. On every side, we see the Church in crisis, in revolt, in upheaval. The prophets of doom proclaim this as her last agony and Catholics ask in bewilderment, “What is the Church coming to?”

Indeed, the Church we love has become a public whipping boy. She is assailed for being corrupt, authoritarian, bureaucratic, rigid, irrelevant, and one ex-priest, outjudasing Judas from the rostrum of a Catholic college campus, screeches that the “institutional” church – Pope, cardinals, bishops, priests, and laity - - can all “go to hell.”In the context of this revolutionary situation, Catholics ask, “Why bother being a Catholic?” The answer to this question is crucial for every parishioner of St. Pius. It strikes at the core of your life. Who are you? Do you want to be the kind of person and parishioner you have been for the past fifty years? Should you change your style and teach your children to conduct themselves according to standards different from those you have followed? This is a decision intimately personal – a decision that affects your very identity as a Catholic. That identity governs your reactions to life itself. Why? Because it has to do with such questions as: What does God want of me? What is my role in the mission of the Church? What values should I live by and promote in my family and in society?

Perhaps the question: “Why bother being a Catholic?” can be best answered by looking at the way this parish developed. During the past fifty years, two principles stand out: continuity and change. I say “change” because the St. Pius of 1968 is so different from that primitive parish of 1918 that it is hard to believe the transformation that took place in such a brief span of half a century.

The physical growth alone is quite phenomenal: from humble beginnings in the little chapel on the first floor of Harkins Hall, Providence College to the red brick church and school on Elmhurst Avenue in 1928, to this magnificent temple of God. From a handful of parishioners in a semi-rural farming neighborhood, to a thriving, large parish in the suburbs.Yet size and members tell us nothing about the faith that sparked this growth. Throughout all the changes, there was a continuity of spiritual purpose and Christian practice. This is what makes the St. Pius of today identical with the St. Pius of yesteryear. Indeed, it is in this holy place that the words of Jesus Christ are fulfilled: “Where two or three are gathered in my Name, there I am in the midst of them.”

Our Lord was not telling us that God must be worshipped only in churches built of brick and mortar. But He did want to emphasize that we are social beings, and so are obliged to worship Him together, in a group, as a society. We do not live in isolation. It is only in communion with our fellowman that we save our souls. As John Donne says, “No man is an island, entire of himself.” That is why no man ever goes to heaven or to hell alone; he always brings with, or goes with, somebody else.

No parish thrives without good priests. We’ve had them here. “Faith comes through hearing,” says St. Paul, so they preach the word of God. Indeed, they are avant garde enough to read Bultmann, Cullman, Bonhoeffer, Kierkegaard, and Barth, but the chief inspiration for their preaching comes from Aquinas, the doctors of the Church, and papal announcements.

Here’s one more point about the priests: They have moved solidly in the spirit of the Ecumenical Council. They have kept abreast of changes. They have tried the new, but have not thrown out the good in the old. The priests of this parish have felt no need to turn the Church into a circus in order to keep the people coming. The Rosary is

still very much “in,” even though Bible vigils are not “out.” The old hymns are still sung, even though the “now” songs of the Church are heard, and the guitar Masses with the big beat are given their chance. Mary, our Mother, is still honored in familiar devotions, but experimentation in new forms of the liturgy are encouraged. Parishioners dialogue with God, with their priests, with one another, and with their non-Catholic brethren, not in surreptitious rites of the underground church but in the open, joyful adoration of the overground, universal church. It is a parish suited for the modern age because it keeps attuned to the Church of the Ages.

All this foo-for-rah, however, should not hide the forty-years work of the Blauvelt Dominican Sisters. Are they old nuns with the new look? New nuns with the new look? Or the same nuns with a forward look? They may have wanted to march on Selma, picket the chancery, blockade the mayor in his chambers, but putting first things first, they have been busy, busy, busy, filling our youngsters with sound doctrine and solid teaching, so that these children, growing to adulthood, have manned the posts of civilization as representative Catholic men and women. Perhaps we should call them “astronaut” nuns because they go into orbit, launched from the pad of a seven-hundred-year tradition of learning. They offer a space age education with a “tomorrow” viewpoint, but their feet are firmly planted on the ground of common sense, for they realize that nothing is accomplished tomorrow without the work of today and yesterday.

But now we come to the nitty-gritty of this celebration: the parishioners. A parish rises no higher than the nobility of its people. Noblesse oblige!

You have conducted yourselves in keeping with your dignity as Catholics. “By their fruits, you shall know them.” Look at the number of vocations which have come from the homes of this parish - - to date, thirty-seven priests, three Christian Brothers, twenty-five Sisters, five seminarians. Surely, our chests should swell with pride at this statistic. Blood will tell! A cliché, yes, but it does point up the fact that good families produce good people – loyal people and loyalty is a flame that warms the cockles of the heart. Indeed, the loyalty of long years is a beautiful and tender part of life. This parish has borne loyal witness to Christ for fifty years. It is a history of fidelity – fidelity to your obligations as parents, as Catholics, as citizens.

But God has especially blessed you, because of your loyalty to Him in the Holy Eucharist. Our Lord will not fail you, because you have not failed Him in the way that counts most. St. Paul says, “I can do all things in Him who strengthens me.” We are all strengthened by God’s presence in our midst., on our altar, when we gather in unity at the Banquet of Love, when He comes to us as the Bread of Life so that we can truly say with St. Paul, “I live now, not I, but Christ liveth in me.” Indeed, it is through us Christians, “other Christs,” that our Lord’s presence is declared, and His work continued in the world.

On this fiftieth anniversary, St. Pius Parish faces its “moment of truth.” It stands eyeball to eyeball with its future. What that future will be, I cannot say. I am no prophet. But I do say this: whatever trials the Catholic Church faces today, she has faced and overcome yesterday and what made out fathers strong in faith and practice should not find us timid and insecure. We are not Pollyannas, nor are we pessimists; we are simply Christians, with a confidence rooted in the recognition that men and events pass, God and His work endure.

Do you want the answer to the question, “Why bother being Catholic?” Then focus your eyes on the lives of those who lived and died in this parish. They wore their faith like a medal of honor. They were deeply conscious that they were members of the Body of Christ, that this Body, and that we are all, therefore, profoundly interrelated. It is this sense of identity with the Church that we all need to cultivate. Renewal cannot succeed without it. Any parish runs downhill when this identity is lost.

We have enough of, “Why doesn’t the Church do something” type of Catholic. We need more of the kind of Catholic who says, “The Church can act only if I act in and through her.” Indeed, each one of us should be willing to say, “This is my Church, the Church I love. If it does not accomplish its full mission, I hold myself, in part, responsible. I feel within myself an urgency to make myself, by the way I live and act, a more authentic living witness to Christ and His Church to the world.”

With this kind of spirit, St. Pius, like the Church itself, will forge ahead in the next fifty years. In spite of present upheavals, we shall witness a sunrise, not a sunset; a second spring, not an autumn; a rebirth of fresh life ever springing up anew, because we have unshakeable certitude that “if these works be of man, they will run their course and have their end; if they be of God, no power on earth can overthrow them!”

Rosary and Altar Society Offi cers 1968-69: President, Mrs. Albert Lilla; Secretary, Mrs. Olinda Nocera; Vice President, Mrs. Francis Garvey; Treasurer, Mrs. Henry Murray

Blauvelt Dominicans at Saint Pius School in 1968: Sr. Agnes Michel, Sr. Joanne, Sr. Lucina, Sr. Laurentia, Principal, Sr. Stephen Marie,

and Sr. Jordan Marie

Holy Name Society Offi cers 1968: President, David T. Kearns; Vice President, Angelo Cataldi; Secretary, Henry Murray;Marshal, Joseph Masson, Moderator, Fr. James Murray, O.P.

Th e Boys’ Choir 1968 - note that some are in robes and some wear crosses. See the article on page 48 to fi nd out why.In 1968 school enrollment was 317.

Sergeant Harold Anthony Cox, known as “Buddy,” served in the U.S. Army. He was the son of Trudy and Harold Cox of College Road and the brother of parishioner Pat Owen. His tour of duty in Vietnam began in October of 1968. He died in ground fi ghting in the Province of Binh Th uan on July 7, 1969. He was 22 years old.

Sergeant Peter Charles Syintaskos left Mount Pleasant High to join the U.S. Army in February 1966 and trained to be a paratrooper. In Vietnam for only one month, he died in a non-combat vehicle crash in Saigon on July 14, 1967, at the age of 19. He was the son of Peter and Maria Syintaskos of Berkshire Street.

A school Christmas Program

Sergeant Harold Anthony Cox

Sergeant Peter Charles Syintaskos

In 1971 St. Pius welcomed back one of its own. Fr. Charles A. Farrell, O.P., a member of the fi rst graduating class of 1934, returned to St. Pius as its pastor.

Fr. Farrell did three things that impacted the parish and lasted long aft er he left . First, he welcomed Brother Denis Swann, O.P., to the parish in 1971.

Brother was the keeper of the keys and a smiling, welcoming presence when people came to church. He knew everyone’s names and what they did, and he had a knack for making everyone feel special. His funeral program quoted a parishioner: “He knew all our names.”

Secondly, Fr. Farrell converted the former church into the gymnasium it is today. Th is conversion enabled the school to strengthen its physical education program and provided an oft -used practice facility for the parish’s strong basketball program.

Finally, Fr. Farrell founded Club Dominicana. Th e club sponsored monthly socials for up to three hundred people and off ered trips, weekly card games, and dance classes. Spiritual activities included special Club Dominicana Masses and an annual Communion Breakfast. Th e club continued to be active for more than twenty years.

In April 1971 Jon Carew, musical director, staged a multi-media devotional service of the Resurrection, which included readings, musical selections, and fi lm clips. Th e Dominican Concert Choir and the Aquinas Boy Choir both took part.

Charles Albert Farrell, O.P1971 - 1976

Th is Club Dominicana bulletin announcement is one of many that parishioners saw in the 1970s and 1980s. People knew a good time

would be had at these gatherings.

Th e Journal-Bulletin article below tells of an All Saints School Mass from 1974. Families provided the costumes, and the selected students knew the story of their saint. Many can recall similar All Saints Masses throughout the years.

Growth and Growing Pains...In 1976, our country’s bicentennial year, Fr. William Leo Patten, O.P., was named pastor. Th e parish and school refl ected patriotic thoughts. Th e photo is of Betsy Ross, but the title refers to another group who staged the tea party. Th ey gathered the fallen leaves to use for their “tea” in the tableau.

1976 unfortunately brought about an internal rebellion in the parish. Many changes had come about because of Vatican II. It was a welcome change for some but too much change for others. Th e music program quickly became a scene of strife. Th e liturgy committee, headed by Fr. Vincent Watson, wanted to embrace the changes the council documents seemed to imply while the choir felt the new music was trite and inappropriate. Jon Carew, director of music, reluctantly agreed to make changes at all masses except the 11:15 am Sunday Mass at which the choir sang. Fr. Watson felt this one mass was too much of a performance and that the congregation should be allowed to participate. Neither would budge and fi nally Mr. Carew threatened to resign. Th e pastor, Fr. Patten, sided with Fr. Watson, and Mr. Carew with the entire choir left aft er the Christmas Masses in 1976. Mr. Carew’s immediate plan was to provide music, with most of the choir members, at a soon to be announced Latin Mass in the Diocese. Th is event adversely aff ected the parish for quite a few years.

William Leo Patten, O.P1976 - 19821976 - 1982

Late 70s and early 80s in St. Pius Parish...

Th e Donnelly-Johnson Golf Tournament was founded in 1988 in memory of two St. Pius School students who had passed away - Tricia Donnelly and Tricia Johnson. Th eir families turned personal loss into a positive force by lending their names to this tournament. Proceeds help parish families provide for Catholic education. Th is tournament lasted until 2013.

1979 was a banner year for girls’ sports. The Cheerleading Squad placed in States and went to New England Regionals, and the Girls’ Midget Basketball Team won the State Title. In 1980 the parish celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the School as well as the 62nd Anniversary of the Parish. The anniversary program included a week’s worth of celebrations centered on the feasts of St. Catherine of Siena and St. Dominic.

The week began with a special Alumni Mass on Sunday, April 27th. Below are some photos of alumni from this 50th Anniversary school celebration. Classes organized by graduation year all processed from the school to the church for the Alumni Mass. The procession itself must have brought back many memories for the classmates. An Open House in the school followed this Mass. Some other events during this week-long celebration included a special Mass in observance of the 600th Anniversary of the death of St. Catherine of Siena. Members of the Blauvelt Dominican community served as lectors. A musical - “Tell It As It Is” - was put on by the school students, and a Parish Family Day Outing occurred on Saturday. The Dinner Dance at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet took place to honor all priests, sisters, and brothers who have served at St. Pius Parish.

From left to right: Sr. Marita Heaton, Sr. Catherine Dunn, Sr. Shirley Jeffcott, assisting at Bay View;

Sr. Gabriele Clune, Ministry to the Handicapped; Sr. Cecile Lavan, Adult Education Director; Sr. Jean

Graffweg, Sr. Rose Albert Malloy, Principal; Sr. Bernadita Gillis, CCD Program Director

Front left to right: Fr. Paul C. Curran, Sub-Prior; Fr. Clifford Davis, Fr. William Leo Patten, Prior;

Back row from left to right: Rev. Raymond D. Corr, Rev. Vincent

Watson, Brother Denis Swann

Fr. Bernard Kenny presided at this baptism in 1982 in the priory chapel.

A Look at St. Pius V Parish in the 80s... ... and in the 90s

The 1990s...Brother Denis was a part of it

all and Armand Batastini was still coaching

winning teams.

Fr. William Terence O’Shaughnessy was the pastor from 1982 to 1985. During that short time, his focus was a restoration campaign that would help with the many projects our 22-year-old church building now needed. Th e campaign was quite successful, and gave rise to plans for many projects. See a section of the Restoration Campaign brochure above. During Fr. O’Shaughnessy’s time as pastor a guitar group was formed and began playing at the 10 am Mass.

Fr. Edward Louis Martin, O.P., replaced Fr. O’Shaughnessy as pastor in 1985. Funds from the successful Restoration Campaign enabled repairs and restoration for the church roof and the mosaic Stations of the Cross. Water damage and the building’s settling had adversely aff ected the Stations.

In this era, four additional priests assisted with parish duties, making it possible to provide parish outreach in so many more areas. One such area Fr. Martin wanted to develop was outreach to the poor. By joining the parish’s eff orts to those of the local Smith Hill Center, both were better able to provide food, clothing, and furniture to those who needed it. On October 13, 1991, the Food Pantry at the Smith Hill Center

was dedicated to Fr. Martin in honor of all he had done. Fr. Martin hoped to encourage the personal involvement of the parishioners in many other ways as well.

Active parish groups at the time were Club Dominicana, the Legion of Mary, the St. Pius Prayer Group, and the Committee for Parish Unity. Th e school, under the leadership of Sr. Rose Albert, fashioned stronger ties with Providence College by recruiting education majors to help with remedial work. It also developed a creative drama program.

Wm. Terence O’Shaughnessy, O.P.1982 - 1985

Edward Louis Martin, O.P.1985 - 1991

In 1990 the parish discerned a need to develop a religious education program for children with special needs. Parishioners looked into available options, and the Special Religious Education Program began at St. Pius. Th is Special Religious Education banner proclaims “Joined by hands, hearts, faith and Jesus.”

In 1991, aft er having been an associate pastor at St. Pius for two years, Fr. Kenneth Raymond Letoile, O.P., became pastor. Like Fr. Farrell, Fr. Ken was a graduate of St. Pius School.

Father Ken gently encouraged the parishioners to grow in their faith. In his fi rst year as the pastor he introduced the parish to the idea of faith sharing groups. Many small groups formed that fi rst Lent, and some continued for many years. A few of these original faith sharing groups still meet to this day. Th e success of the faith sharing groups spread to more people getting involved in other ministries and the parish came alive in new ways.

In 1992 Fr. Ken invited Sr. Shirley Jeff cott, O.P. to return to St. Pius School as principal. Enrollment, which had peaked at 410 students in 1962 had been declining. By 1968 enrollment was 317 and the decline progressed rapidly through the 1970s as many residents of Providence moved out of the city. By 1990 enrollment had hit of low of 155. Sr. Shirley was ready for the challenge that awaited her.

As the 75th Anniversary drew near, a signifi cant addition to parish life occurred when David and Teresa Martinez accepted positions at both the church and school as Music Director and music teacher respectively. Th eir enthusiasm, strong faith, and musical talent further enlivened the parish. Th ey transformed and expanded the existing guitar group into a talented choir. Th ey also formed an exceptional Children’s Choir, and introduced a Bell Choir. Th is newspaper photo shows some of the Children’s Choir and Bell Choir performing at the State House in December 1993.

Kenneth Raymond Letoile, O.P.1991 - 1999

While some members of the LaSalle Faith Sharing Group have changed over the years, this is one of the orginal groups that

continues to meet to pray together and to reach out to others.

In anticipation of our 75th Anniversary, Fr. John Allard of the Diocese of Providence led a four day Isaiah 53 Parish Mission. Each day’s theme — God’s Love, God’s Mercy, Reconciliation, and Eucharist — inspired the design of pulpit banners. At the end of the retreat, these banners were combined into a four-paneled quilt which was hung in the church in time for the 75th Anniversary Celebration.

Shown here are members of a faith

sharing group delivering a tree, food and gift s to a family it had adopted that

Christmas. Action is the fruit of prayer.

We invite you to continue our St. Pius V Church story in the next fi le highlighting the 25 years

leading to the Centennial Celebration.