[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 142 (Friday, October 10, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2025]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[[Page E2025]]


             TRIBUTE TO ST. STEPHEN'S ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BILL PASCRELL, JR.

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 10, 2003

  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I would like to call your attention to the 
accomplishments of an outstanding institution. St. Stephen's Roman 
Catholic Church, located in Paterson, NJ, recently celebrated its 100th 
anniversary at the Wayne Manor on Sunday, October 12, 2003.
  As a lifelong resident and former mayor of Paterson, I cannot think 
of another organization that has meant more to the community than St. 
Stephen's Roman Catholic Church. For the past 100 years, the men and 
women of St. Stephen's have given generously of their time, talents, 
and energy, and have made an indelible mark on countless people's 
lives. I feel that it is only fitting that St. Stephen's be honored in 
this, the permanent record of the greatest freely elected body on 
earth.
  The history of St. Stephen's Roman Catholic Church is a long and 
colorful one. Incorporated ``in abstracto'' as St. Stephen's Polish 
Roman Catholic Church on December 14, 1903, the first vespers service 
was held in the basement of St. Michael's Church in Paterson. One year 
later, St. Stephen's pastor, Rev. Joseph Zielinski, purchased the 
former Methodist Episcopal Church on Beech Street together with 12 
nearby lots with the intention of building a permanent structure for 
the Church and surrounding outbuildings. The building project was not 
undertaken, however, until 1909--a year after a terrible fire destroyed 
the Beech Street church and all of its contents.
  In the aftermath of the fire, St. Stephen's built a combination 
church and school, as well as a rectory on their property, adding a 
convent for teaching sisters seventeen years later. Over the years, the 
parish grew exponentially, and numerous improvements were made as the 
property and the church underwent numerous renovations. On November 15, 
1962, tragedy struck when a disastrous fire completely destroyed the 
church and school building. For the next 6 years, services were held in 
various venues until, Easter Sunday, April 14, 1968, when the first 
Mass was celebrated in the new St. Stephen's Roman Catholic Church.
  Throughout its history, the work of the congregation of St. Stephen's 
has been inextricably intertwined with the history of the city of 
Paterson. As the needs of the community surrounding the parish have 
changed, St. Stephen's parish has shown a remarkable ability to adapt 
to reflect its needs.
  Originally founded as a church to serve the Polish people of 
Paterson, St. Stephen's has gradually evolved into a multicultural 
parish that welcomes the cultural diversity of its congregation. 
Celebrating masses in Polish, English, and Spanish, St. Stephen's has 
played an integral role in the lives of all of the members of its 
community: it has reached out to local children by permitting the Head 
Start Program to use its school building for classes, it offers a 
nutritional center and leisure club to the senior community who reside 
at the nearby Governors Towers, and it has turned over the occupation 
of its convent to Straight & Narrow--a local drug and alcohol 
rehabilitation center.
  Mr. Speaker, as you can see, the men and women of St. Stephen's 
epitomize the noble spirit of community service and volunteerism that 
we all strive to achieve. The sense of altruism and spirit of 
humanitarianism demonstrated daily by the congregation of St. Stephen's 
is living proof of the difference that a handful of people can make in 
the lives of many.
  Mr. Speaker, the job of a U.S. Congressman involves so much that is 
rewarding, yet nothing compares to recognizing the members of 
exceptional institutions such as St. Stephen's. I ask that you join our 
colleagues, the people of the city of Paterson, and myself in 
recognizing the men and women of St. Stephen's Roman Catholic Church 
for 100 years of ministry to the community of my hometown, Paterson, 
NJ.

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