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During this time, the North Borough YMCA had acquired the Odd
Fellows Hall. As this was the property best suited for the
location of the
new church, repeated attempts to purchase the property resulted
only in
failure. Perseverance was rewarded, however, when in March of
1953, Father
Smith succeeded in purchasing the property for the parish.
On April 26, 1951, a drive to raise funds for a new church was
inaugurated at a dinner at which Father Francis Clifford, Pastor
of St.
Scholastica’s Church, Aspinwall, gave the address. On July 27,
1953,
Casimir Pellegrini, a Pittsburgh architect was commissioned to
draw plans
for the new church. Initial plans were studied and considered by
Father
Smith and the church committee, which consisted of Victor
Ackerman, Thomas Guehl, Joseph Lang, Herbert Scheller, George Sinclair and James
Vaughn. In
January 1954, a new committee was elected, consisting of Victor
Ackerman,
Martin Carroll, Henry Loedding, Paul and Thomas Reilly and
Walter Summers.
These men continued the work of their predecessors, critically
inspecting
the sketches and plans submitted by the architect and making
suggestion for
changes.
The church bell was removed from the steeple of the old church
and placed in the tower of the new church on June 1, 1955. The
bell was
cast by Meneely and Company, West Troy, New York, in 1896 and
placed in the
old church that same year.
The new church was dedicated on Saturday morning, December 10,
1955 at a Solemn Pontifical Mass celebrated by Bishop John F.
Dearden who
was assisted by Father Aloysius Reilly. O.F.M., the brother of
Paul and
Thomas Reilly of this parish. The preacher was Father William E.
O’Donnel,
C.S.Sp., and two former pastors, Father Schiffgens and Father
Schenning,
were Deacons of Honor. Father Robert N. Puhl, C.S.Sp., a native
of our
parish, was Deacon and Father Charles C. Behl, C.S.Sp., a former
assistant
here, was Sub-Deacon. The Master of Ceremonies was Monsignor
Jacob C.
Shinar assisted by Father William J. Crowley, C.S.Sp.
The parish continued to grow to well over 600 families and had
over 1,900
people, with 350 children in grade school. This necessitated the
removal of the
stage in the auditorium which also served as a gymnasium and
the division
of this entire area into three rooms. One of the rooms was
completed and put into service in 1957. Later the other rooms were finished so
that there
were eight classrooms, an activity room and a library.
Although advised by his doctor that he should take things
easier, Father Smith’s nature was such that he had to be active
at all
times and he continued to work long hours. With the help of a
substantial
legacy, the debt of the parish was paid off only a short time
before Father
Smith’s sudden and unexpected death on September 6, 1958. Father
Peter
Gross, C.S.Sp., who had come to Sacred Heart Parish in 1948 and
who was the
acting assistant of the mission in Glenfield, was appointed
acting pastor
by the Bishop.
On November 1, 1958, Father Vincent G Kmiencinski, a veteran of
33 years of pastoral experience in Bay City, Michigan was
appointed pastor
of Sacred Heart. It as not long before Father Vincent, as he was
best known
as, endeared himself to the parishioners, especially the
children. Father
Vincent, a lover of sports, organized the parish’s first
Athletic
Association and grade school football teams in 1959 and 1960.
Father Gross’s manifold duties at St. Mary’s in Glenfield
required the major part of his time so that the amount of help
he could
give the pastor was limited. It was necessary to have two
visiting priests
from Duquesne University every weekend since, in addition to the
two Masses
at Glenfield and four at Sacred Heart, a mass was said at the
mental
hospital at Dixmont. One of these visiting priests was Joseph A.
Healy,
C.S.Sp. The Parishioners soon looked upon Father Healy as a
member of the
parish and he spent much, if not all, of his free time at Sacred
Heart.
Hence, when the Bishop requested the parishes throughout the
diocese to
establish units of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, it
was Father
Healy who established our official unit on Sunday afternoon,
September 13, 1959.
Under Father Vincent, Baccalaureate Services for all graduating
high school students of Sacred Heart and St. Mary’s churches
were held
annually. The first of these services was on Sunday, June 12,
1960. The
following year, June 11,1961, Father Healy celebrated the
Baccalaureate
Mass and Bishop Wright delivered the Sermon.
Under Father Smith there began a cordial atmosphere between the
Protestant clergy and non-Catholics within the confines of the
parish.
Father frequently was in demand as a speaker for community
affairs. Father
Vincent continued this work, which was climaxed by a “Good Will
Sunday” on
February 19, 1961. This included an open house with guided tours
of the
church and explanations of Church furnishings, Catholic ritual,
customs and
practices followed by informal discussion and question period.
Hundreds of
people, Catholic and non-Catholic and members of the Protestant
Clergy were
present. Since this was the first such event in the diocese,
representatives of other parishes came to observe and study the
procedure.
A second Good Will Sunday was held on April 1, 1962.
The heavy burden on Father Vincent and Father Gross was reduced
when Father Leonard Tuozzolo, C.S.Sp., was appointed as
assistant pastor in
September 1961. Interested in sports for both the young and old
of the
parish, Father Tuozzolo soon became a favorite of most of the
parishioners.
It was thus a shock when it was announced in August 1964 that
Father
Tuozzolo was being transferred. A farewell party was given for
Father
Tuozzolo at which his successor, Father John P. Skaj, C.S.Sp.,
was
introduced to the parishioners. Since the inception of the new
Liturgy of
the Mass was on November 29, 1964, Father Skaj was instrumental
in
directing the parishioners and instructing the commentators
through the
various changes so that Sacred Heart had become a leader and an
example for
other parishes.
In 1966, Sacred Heart celebrated its Diamond
Jubilee, having 655 registered families comprising 2070 souls.
That same
year, Father Vincent celebrated his Golden Jubilee in the
Priesthood when
the whole parish and community came out in multitudes to honor
this dearly
beloved priest at many occasions held for him by his friends. He
was held
in such esteem that the Provincial feared an uproar if he
retired him at
the age of 77. The Solomon’s decision was to let Father Vincent
stay in the
parish when he retired in 1968 for another ten years as Pastor
Emeritus,
which he spent by remaining very much involved with the
parishioners.
Father Vincent G. Kmiencinski died at the age of 93. |
