April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
ST. ANTHONY, SCHENECTADY
Parish celebrates centennial
He was reflecting on the hard work and dedication of Italian immigrant parishioners who, a century ago, succeeded in establishing the first Italian parish in the city.
Founded on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1902, St. Anthony's was born as the result of a small group of Italian-Americans who wanted to form a worship community in Schenectady to honor their heritage. They raised $4,000 to purchase a vacant Protestant church and named their parish in honor of an Italian saint, Anthony of Padua.
Italian flavor
The first pastor was Rev. Don Giavonni Bencivenga, who came from Alvignano in the province of Caserta, Italy. The first Italian pastor in Schenectady, he celebrated the first Mass at St. Anthony's in Italian. In the 100 years since then, parishioners have endeavored to hold onto their heritage."Parishioners try to keep connected to their roots because it is very important for them to hold on to their traditions," explained Rev. John Medwid, the first "non-Italian" pastor of St. Anthony's.
He has been there for six years and admits that even if he is not Italian by birth, his stomach definitely is of the Roman persuasion because "I love Italian food."
Heritage held
Father Medwid told The Evangelist that, as in years past, every Sunday at the 7:30 a.m. Mass, "some songs are still sung and some parts of the Mass are still spoken in Italian."Throughout the year, the parish sponsors numerous pasta dinners, bake sales and the annual St. Anthony's Festa, a weekend celebration in June to the patron saint.
"There is always lots of Italian food, and everyone has a great time," Father Medwid said, adding that the Festa is the "primary fundraiser for the parish." The annual celebration attracts "thousands of people from all over. It's the biggest event of its kind that I know of."
Growing
During its early years, the small parish quickly grew as many Italians settled in upstate New York. Rev. Michael A. Bianco became the second pastor of St. Anthony's in 1916. He would remain there for the rest of his priesthood: 53 years, until his death in 1969.In 1921, due to the growing parish population, a new brick church was built to replace the small wooden structure.
In 1958, a parish school was established and operates now with grades pre-K through sixth.
DeFranco years
"I spent 16 years at St. Anthony's as an assistant pastor," recalled Father DeFranco. "That was between 1939 and 1955."Father DeFranco returned to St. Anthony's in 1969 as pastor and remained until 1981. (He now resides in the rectory, assisting Father Medwid with the Mass schedule and various parish activities.)
The brick church, which took three years to complete, was built by small donations made by Italian families in the parish, the priest recalled. "People then didn't have much money," he recalled, but "they gave what they could."
St. Anthony's parishioners have been spending the entire year celebrating their centennial, with an itinerary that included a Silver Tea in the spring, the annual Festa in June and a parish-wide golf classic in August.
The highlight of the celebration was Sept. 15 when Bishop Howard J. Hubbard celebrated the anniversary Mass. Father DeFranco delivered the homily.
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