[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 52 (Thursday, April 15, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E670-E671]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                        ST. ALOYSIUS CENTENNIAL

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. PAUL E. KANJORSKI

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 15, 1999

  Mr. KANJORSKI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Saint 
Aloysius Church, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, on the occasion of its 
Centennial Celebration. I am pleased and proud to bring the history of 
this fine parish to the attention of my colleagues.
  Thirty-four families came to Father Richard McAndrew in 1899 with the 
request for their own church in South Wilkes-Barre. Father McAndrew 
petitioned Bishop Hoban for a new parish and on April 29, 1900, the 
Bishop came to lay the cornerstone for the new church building. As 
founding pastor, Father McAndrew helped in the first months until the 
parish's first official pastor was named, Father Thomas Brehony. Father 
Griffin, who was named as Father Brehony's assistant, later became the 
church's second pastor.
  In 1913, Father McCarthy was installed as the church's third pastor 
and would serve the parish for thirty-two years. By the end of World 
War I, the church had outgrown its original building, so a beautiful 
new gothic church was constructed and dedicated by the Archbishop of 
Philadelphia in 1927. Father McCarthy continued the expansion with a 
new rectory in 1938.
  When Father McCarthy died and Father Monahan took over St. Aloysius, 
he undertook the huge task of founding a school for the parishioners of 
St. Aloysius. Beginning with just a kindergarten, each year the school 
expanded a grade until there were eight grades. With the new school 
staffed by the Sisters of Mercy, the expansion of the school 
necessitated the expansion of the convent, so a new convent was 
dedicated in 1963.
  Tragically, Tropical Storm Agnes swelled the Susquehanna River in 
June of 1972 until it spilled its banks and flooded all of Wyoming 
Valley, including St. Aloysius Church and its parish buildings. The 
interior of the church was totally ruined and the parish was 
devastated. The Pastor at that time, Father Padden, undertook the task 
of restorting the buildings after the disaster. Over a million dollars 
were spent on restoration, using loans from the disaster relief 
programs in place at the time. The last payment on that money was made 
in 1992.
  In 1982, with Father Padden's retirement, Msgr. Donald A. McAndrews, 
the Director of Catholic Social Services, was appointed as sixth Pastor 
of St. Aloysius. Throughout his tenure, Msgr. McAndrews has continued 
the expansion and modernization of the parish. The parish's school, 
which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1998, now has an all-lay 
faculty and provides a quality education to 265 students.
  Mr. Speaker, St. Aloysius Church is part of a tradition of strong 
religious faith which is synonymous with the Wyoming Valley. Founded by 
thirty-four families, the church serves eighteen hundred families 
today. Its proud history is a testament to the importance of faith in 
our daily lives in Northeastern Pennsylvania. I am proud to join with 
the parishioners and with the community in wishing St. Aloysius Church 
the very best as it enters a new century and a new millenium.

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