Loudonville parish marks silver jubilee

Experts are constantly advising families that want to strengthen their ties to spend more quality time together.

In keeping with that philosophy, the 25th Anniversary Committee of St. Francis de Sales Church in Loudonville is sponsoring a year of events designed to produce a more closely knit parish family.

"Our main objective since we began planning our parish's silver anniversary a year and a half ago has been to bring the parish community closer together through cultural, social and spiritual activities," explained Gloria Clark, co-chair of the anniversary committee. "So far, we've been very successful."

Helping to reach that goal have been Rev. David E. Noone, pastor; anniversary committee co-chair Ed Prince; and representatives of a wide variety of sub-committees.

Beginnings

Originally a parishioner of the old St. Frances de Sales Church on Exchange Street in Albany (which dates to 1883), Mrs. Clark has attended the newer Maria Drive location since its doors opened in 1972.

A complete history of the church will be contained inside a commemorative booklet being prepared by the parish's Heritage Committee, led by Barb and Peter Pettit. Also inside will be portraits of nearly all registered members of the parish, numbering between 1,200 and 1,400 families. The exact number will be known once volunteers conducting a parish-wide census complete their task. Results of the census will also assist the church's Evangelization Committee in locating individuals and families who may no longer be active in parish life.

"There's a good possibility that our 25th Anniversary Evangelization Committee may have much ongoing work to do in the future," reflected Mrs. Clark.

Coming together

Organizers have been gratified to see a combination of familiar and not-so-familiar faces at anniversary functions, most of which have been designed with young families in mind.

"We tried to plan the bulk of our activities so there would be no cost or only a very slight cost to parishioners. We wanted everyone to feel they could participate," Mrs. Clark said.

The anniversary year, which began last January, won't conclude until the Feast of St. Francis de Sales on Jan. 24, 1998. Also being celebrated this year is the 30th anniversary of the pastor, Father Noone.

"We started on a spiritual note, and we hope to end on a spiritual note," said Mrs. Clark. That includes a Mass celebrated by Bishop Howard J. Hubbard at 11 a.m. on Oct. 5, followed by a closing prayer service in the New Year.

(Also in the works is a keepsake cookbook, which is expected to include about 300 "favorite family recipes" contributed by parishioners and priests. Also on the schedule: a golf tournament at the Town of Colonie Golf Club on August 8 and a dinner dance at the Holiday Turf Inn in September. At the dinner, "A Bonanza of Baskets" will be raffled off in a silent auction. The baskets range from a wheelbarrow filled with gardening tools and supplies to those with gourmet, golfing and even "back-to-school" themes.)(AH)

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