Faith community marks century of service at Mass of thanksgiving

FORDS — The wet weather did little to dampen spirits of the faithful who filled Our Lady of Peace Church Oct. 27 for a Mass celebrating the parish’s 100th anniversary. Bishop James F. Checchio presided at the liturgy together with 20 concelebrating priests and assisting deacons.

 “It is always good to be back in Fords, even when you have to swim here,” said Bishop Checchio. “A hundredth-year anniversary is a pretty big deal, right? Think about what has taken place here during those 100 years. There were 3,600 couples united in holy matrimony. Many thousands of children were enrolled in Our Lady of Peace School and religious education programs. Many people participated or served in various groups like the youth ministries, The Knights of Columbus, sports ministries and so many others. We give God thanks for the blessings that have come to so many here in Fords throughout these 100 years.”

Our Lady of Peace Parish has a long and storied history. Families began moving into the Sand Hills section of the Fords Area immediately following the end of the Civil War. In those days, Catholic families had to travel to St. Mary Parish, Perth Amboy; St. James Parish Woodbridge, and St. Peter the Apostle Parish, New Brunswick, to worship at Mass. On Oct. 15, 1919, Our Lady of Peace was established as a mission parish of St. Mary Parish.

Eleven days later, Father William Cantwell, pastor of St. Mary’s, celebrated the new mission’s first Mass at Fairfield School. Land was then purchased on Amboy Avenue and the Knights of Columbus bought a temporary Quonset Hut, where Mass was celebrated and all parish activities held.

In 1927, additional land was purchased and the combination church/school building was built and dedicated Oct. 7, 1928.

That same year, Father Cornelius  B. Reagan was appointed the first resident pastor of the new parish. During his pastorate, the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur arrived to teach in the parish school, which opened in September 1930. Father Reagan was succeeded by Father John Larkin in 1932.

Five years later, Father Joseph Ketter became pastor of Our Lady of Peace. During his pastorate, a house was purchased as a convent and the Sisters of St. Joseph came to staff the school beginning in 1940.

In 1943, Father James Sheridan was appointed as pastor. He made improvements to the church grounds and the established the Mission of St. Margaret Mary in Bonhamtown.

Following Father Sheridan’s death during a church service in May 1947, Father John Grimes was named pastor. Father Grimes would later become Msgr. Grimes. The parish grew considerably during his tenure. In 1951, the Annex was purchased and renovated, and, in 1954, work commenced on the present church building, which was dedicated Aug. 14, 1955.

Father Grimes was succeeded by Msgr. Joseph R. Brzozowski in June 1956. Under “Monsignor Joe,” the parish continued to grow. A new convent, now the Edison offices of Catholic Charities, was built in 1962, as was the Junior High School building in 1968 and a new rectory in 1976. After serving the parish for 30 years, Msgr. Brzozowski retired in 1986.

For the next 23 years Msgr. Robert J. Zamorski led Our Lady of Peace. He eliminated the parish debt and completed many improvements to the church and property.

In 2009, Msgr. Zamorski was transferred to the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi and Msgr. Andrew L. Szaroleta was installed as pastor. He served until 2017, when Father Matthew R. Paratore, S.T.L., J.C.L became the eighth pastor of Our Lady of Peace.

The parish has 1,400 registered families and 160 children in its religious education program.
“The area has changed a lot since the church was built in 1955,” said Father Paratore. “After the war, Ford and Revlon had plants in the area and that drew a lot of people from West Orange and Newark. The population at the time became Polish, Hungarian and Italian.  Now there is a large percentage of Indian, Latino and Asians within the parish.”

Father Paratore said there are no plans for the near future as far as building projects or new ministries. He said he embraces the rich history of the church with an eye to the future challenges it faces.

“Demographics present a challenge for this parish. Five minutes in one direction is St. James. Five minutes in the other direction is the cathedral.

“Filipinos and Latinos make up a large portion of the younger parishioners and they have different cultures and traditions and as a result, different expectations of the church when they attend Mass. Finding a way to serve all of the interests of the different demographics within our parish is a challenge and it is one that the entire Catholic church faces as well.”