St. Rose of Lima Parish kicks off 140th anniversary with Mass, projects

By Tanya Connor
The Catholic Free Press

NORTHBOROUGH – St. Rose of Lima Parish kicked off its 140th anniversary year Sunday with a Mass that included a variety of celebrations.

The pastor, Father Juan D. Escudero, returning for the first time after several weeks of post-surgery recovery, was welcomed back with applause. He noted that that day the parish was celebrating the Baptism of Jesus, the end of the Christmas Season, the official welcome of those preparing for the sacraments of initiation and the parish’s 140th anniversary.

Anniversary steering committee members were introduced, and pastor and parishioners blessed them with hands extended. Committee co-chairpersons Richard and Hilary Carlson (longtime, active, members), spoke about anniversary projects and encouraged fellow parishioners to participate in them.

After Mass, 8-year-old Riley Proulx eagerly showed The Catholic Free Press how she did so, pointing out a heart-shaped display with 140 transparent pockets affixed to a wall in the church, so people can “watch as our heart grows at St. Rose.” The challenge is for parishioners to perform a total of 140 acts of service each month this year and write what they did on cards to put in the pockets. The pockets are to be emptied in time for the next month’s good deeds and saved for future acknowledgment.

Riley’s card was in pocket Number 1. Her service was helping committee members – her parents, Scott and Megan Proulx – make the display. (Before everyone left, five more cards had been added.)

Nicholas and Janet Cappello told The Catholic Free Press about an anniversary project they’re spearheading: the timeline of the parish’s history, posted on hallway walls, which leaves space for parishioners’ stories and photos, and accounts of anniversary events. The Cappellos collected the initial material, and T3 Expo LLC, which their daughter Elena Howard works for, did the timeline’s final layout, printing and installation.

Among other anniversary celebrations, some of which are annual events, are the following.
“Hospitality, Evangelization, Accessibility, Restoration, Teaching” – a gala with food, dancing, auction, grand prize drawing and basket raffles, to “strengthen the HEART of our parish” – is scheduled for Jan. 31 at Charter Oak Country Club in Hudson.

Couples married at St. Rose are invited to “renew their vows” at Mass on World Marriage Day, Feb. 8. A senior citizens’ luncheon is set for April 23. The parish is to have an expanded role in Northborough’s Applefest in September, including a parish and town history given at the church and a “140 Saint Rose team” running in the 5K road race. There is a pilgrimage to France Oct. 4-13 with Father Escudero and Susan McGoldrick, faith formation director. A parish directory with photos, including ministries and parishioners’ families, has been made.
Preaching at the anniversary Mass, Father Escudero touched on the various celebrations of the day. He noted that Jesus came as a child in a humble manger, and embraced our sorrows and suffering on the cross so we can live a new life in and through him.

People gathered in a house for the first Mass in town, Father Escudero said, adding, “It happens again today – people, faith, bread and wine, and God shows up.”

The pastor talked about love going out into the world when Jesus began his ministry of healing, joy and restoration.

As the parish begins its anniversary celebrations, parishioners should not just look at the past, he said.

“We are stepping forward; we are going out into the world with that same message Jesus proclaimed,” which can change the world, he said. He noted that banners carried into Mass symbolized parish ministries.

To the catechumens and candidates preparing for sacraments of initiation he said, “Your desire to follow Christ gives new life and new faith to us. … So thank you for reminding us that God is still … building his Church.”

Father Escudero also thanked Assumptionist Father Dennis Gallagher, and said the parish would later celebrate his 30th anniversary of helping out there. The pastor also thanked those who helped with Sunday’s celebration.

“I’ve spent my whole life here,” Maureen Sargent, 79, told The Catholic Free Press at the reception after Mass. “It’s a home parish – all the people that you love and know and have grown up with.”

She recalled helping make parish floats for CYC parades held in Worcester. Other memories involved Father John Morrissey, pastor from 1935-1968, calling her brothers at a moment’s notice to serve Mass, and asking her to play the organ for a funeral after she’d had just one lesson. (She declined.)

“He was a man who would use any talents he saw,” and take a collection at weddings to raise money for the church, she said. He paid her and another high schooler $2 a week to count the collection money.

“The community means so much to me,” said Dr. John Zawacki, a parishioner for 50 years with his wife, Lee. “I don’t think I can move. People my age often leave and go south.”

A brief history

St. Rose of Lima Parish in Northborough is sharing some of its history for its 140th anniversary this year.

The following comes from parishioners Nicholas and Janet Cappello, who put together the timeline posted at the church, and from a parish booklet, and from “History of the Catholic Church in the Diocese of Springfield” by Father John J. McCoy, published in 1900.

In June 1843 Father James Fitton celebrated Mass for 13 “north of Ireland” Catholics in a house, still standing today, on Brigham Street in Northborough. He came annually for four or five years, then other priests came once every three months. As more Catholics came, Mass was celebrated in the town hall.

In 1883 and 1884 the church of St. Rose on Pierce Street was built. Northborough was a mission of Westborough until made a parish in 1886, with Father James McCloskey as first pastor. By 1900, Shrewsbury was a mission of Northborough.

Under the leadership of Father John Morrissey, pastor from 1935-1968, a new St. Rose of Lima Church was built at the present location, 244 West Main St., and dedicated in 1963.

This church was renovated and expanded and the Family Life Center added, and dedicated in 1999, under the leadership of Father James A. Houston, pastor from 1990-2021. During renovations, Masses were celebrated in the Algonquin Regional High School auditorium.
Among parish ministries and groups on the timeline are various types of religious education, men’s and women’s clubs, a parish thrift shop and community garden, and the parish helping to start the Northborough Food Pantry.