[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 114 (Wednesday, September 3, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1644-E1645]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE PARISH OF THE NATIVITY OF THE 
                 BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, WILLIMANSETT, MA

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. RICHARD E. NEAL

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, September 3, 1997

  Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, it is a privilege for me to 
have this opportunity to congratulate both the Roman Catholic Diocese 
of Springfield and the Parish of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin 
Mary in Willimansett, MA as they celebrate their 100th anniversary. 
Representing and serving the parishioners of this church is indeed an 
honor. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary has responded 
tremendously to the needs of its ever expanding faith community. 
Providing a strong foundation of Christian values for its spiritual 
community and offering a forum for Christian worship, this parish has 
generously given 100 years of devoted service to the residents of 
Willimansett and beyond. I am proud to share the history of this fine 
parish as I submit the following historical notes in the Congressional 
Record.

   PARISH OF THE NATIVITY OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, WILLIMAN- SETT 
                             (CHICOPEE) MA


                            HISTORICAL NOTES

                             THE FOUNDATION

       Until 1894, Catholics living in Willimansett travelled 
     either to Holy Name Parish, Chicopee Center, or to Saint 
     Joachim's (now Saint George's) in Chicopee Falls, to fulfill 
     their religious obligations. In the summer of that year, 
     however, representatives of local families petitioned The 
     Right Reverend Thomas Daniel Beaven, Bishop of Springfield, 
     to establish a mission church in the village. The Bishop 
     readily agreed to their request, and delegated Father Alexis 
     Delphos, Pastor of Saint Joachim, to found the mission. 
     Father Delphos rented Perreault Hall, on Olivine Street, as a 
     temporary chapel. On Sunday, December 23, 1894, three Masses 
     were said in the chapel, the first by Father McCoy, Pastor of 
     Holy Name, the others by Father Delphos.
       The following year, the catholic population of Willimansett 
     had grown sufficiently to consider establishing a parish with 
     resident pastor. September 1st 1897, Bishop Beaven named 
     Father Hormisdas Hamelin as pastor of the new parish, which 
     would serve the Catholics of the districts of Willimansett 
     and Aldenville. September 12, 1897, Sunday within the Octave 
     of the patronal feast, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin 
     Mary, Father Hamelin was officially installed in his new 
     parish.


                            THE EARLY YEARS

       During the twelve years he spent in Willimansett, Father 
     Hamelin was to oversee the construction, in 1898, of a parish 
     church as the corner of Chicopee and Newton Streets; in 1901, 
     that of a rectory. Soon, the pastoral needs of the two 
     districts required the opening of a mission church in 
     Aldenville, and the naming of a curate, Father Peter Higgins.
       In 1909, Father Hamelin was named to the pastorate of Notre 
     Dame Parish, in Adams. He was replaced by the Reverend Doctor 
     James Francis McGillicuddy, who served as pastor of Nativity 
     until 1916. Father McGillicuddy purchased the church bell 
     which has since been placed in the bell tower of the new 
     church. He was replaced by Father Emilien Delage, who 
     remained Pastor until his death in 1919.
       Father Delage was succeeded by Father Louis Arthur Simard. 
     From the time he arrived at Nativity, Father Simard began a 
     campaign to build a parochial school. To this end, he 
     obtained title to the land adjoining the rectory, between 
     Newton and Division Streets. On September 5, 1922, Our Lady 
     of Mount Carmel School was opened, under the supervision of 
     the Sisters of the Presentation of Mary. At first, the 
     Sisters were lodged in the school, using classrooms converted 
     into chapel, community room, dining

[[Page E1645]]

     room and dormitories. In 1932, the school enrollment having 
     grown, every room was needed to provide classroom space. 
     Father Simard then acquired two adjoining properties on Saint 
     Louis Avenue (formerly Newton Street), to build a convent. 
     The Sisters moved into their newly built residence in October 
     1932.
       During the pastorate of Father Simard, the Parish of the 
     Nativity developed rapidly. In 1909, at the end of Father 
     Hamelin's pastorate, the Aldenville mission had become the 
     parish of Saint Rosa de Lima. In the `20s a number of 
     families of Polish ancestry had settled in Willimansett. In 
     1925, these families asked Bishop O'Leary to establish a 
     parish of their own. The Bishop asked the Franciscan Fathers 
     to take charge of this foundation. In April 1925, the new 
     church was dedicated as Saint Anthony of Padua Parish.


                       THE DREAM OF FATHER SIMARD

       The Catholic population of Willimansett continued to expand 
     during the `30s. In 1937, the parish numbered 4,500 souls. 
     Despite the fact that seven Masses were being celebrated 
     every Sunday, the church was hardly large enough to 
     accomodate its parishioners. Father Simard seriously 
     considered building a new church, to be erected between the 
     rectory and the convent, at the corner of Chicopee and Mount 
     Carmel. However, the difficulties of the times constrained 
     him to forego--or at least to postpone--the fulfillment of 
     this dream. Father Simard decided, instead, to restore the 
     existing church. The renewal project was launched in the Fall 
     of 1937. Soon, a newly redecorated church became a source of 
     joy and wonder for all the parishioners.
       Father Sauvageau was replaced as pastor of Nativity by 
     Father L. George Clermont. It was during his administration 
     that the Sisters of the Presentation, who had directed and 
     staffed Mount Carmel School since its opening, let it be 
     known that, due to difficult circumstances, they were obliged 
     to withdraw from the school. The parishioners of Nativity, 
     recognizing the immeasurable value of their parochial school, 
     decided to embark upon an ambitious project, one that, until 
     then, had been untried in the Diocese of Springfield. The 
     parish school would heretofore be staffed and directed 
     entirely by lay persons. This challenging venture has been 
     quite successful. Under the principalship first of Frederick 
     Becklo, and since September 1980 of Kathleen Hill, Mount 
     Carmel School continues to provide for our young people a 
     solid basis formation in the secular subjects, and a stable 
     formation in Christian values.


                          THE DREAM FULFILLED

       In 1974, his health failing, Father Clermont retired. 
     Father W. Donald Fournier, who had been his curate, became 
     pastor of Nativity. It was he who, at long last, saw the 
     fulfillment of the dream shared by priests and parishioners 
     of Nativity since the time of Father Simard: the building of 
     a new parish church. [The government sought to take the land 
     occupied by the church built by Father Hamelin for the 
     building of Interstate Route 391. The monies offered for the 
     expropriation of this property were sufficient, in the 
     judgement of diocesan authorities, to launch the construction 
     project. An enthusiastic building fund campaign by the 
     parishioners, generously supplemented by gifts of donors, 
     brought in sufficient funds to complete and furnish a 
     magnificent new church and a spacious parish hall. On 
     Pentecost Sunday, May 25, 1980, His Excellency Joseph F. 
     Maguire, Bishop of Springfield, presided at a Concelebrated 
     Mass marking the dedication of the new Nativity Church, in 
     which the Liturgy has been celebrated since Holy Week 1980.]
       In November 1980, Father Fournier answered his country's 
     call, and began a tour of duty as a Chaplain in the U.S. 
     Navy. He has been replaced by Father William Paquin. 
     Beginning in December 1980, Father Paquin assumed the 
     pastorate of Nativity. With the assistance of his curate, and 
     the valuable support of the Parish Council, Father Paquin 
     strives to provide for the spiritual needs of his flock, to 
     maintain the parish buildings, to promote the generosity of 
     the parishioners, to encourage among the faithful a genuine 
     spirit of community--of family.

     

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