Volunteer preserves legacy of closed Schenectady parish

When St. John the Baptist Church, Schenectady, closed in June, the volunteer efforts of a local woman assured that every artifact - from th most sacred to the most mundane - found refuge with institutions, outreach programs, organizations and needy people near and far.

A member of neighboring parish St. John the Evangelist, Bonnie Choy started attending liturgies and social events at St. John the Baptist about a year before the closing in support of a family friend who was facing some difficult transitions.

Many were familiar with Ms. Choy's experience in running an auction hall, liquidating estates and working as the marketing coordinator of the tri-annual Manhattan vintage clothing show.

So it was natural for Rick Johnson, long-time president of St. John the Baptist's parish council, to ask Bonnie if she would inventory the church's assets, which is part of the closing process.

Mr. Johnson told The Evangelist: "Everything that remained after the Diocese's guidelines were completed found a new home where they could be useful, instead of just throwing things into a dumpster."

Ms. Choy said it was a challenge to disburse the items from the church, school and rectory in a way that "acknowledged and respected the fact that everything in the three buildings represented someone's donation of time or treasure over the years. We also wanted to be 'green' and not load the landfill with things that others needed and could use."

Many churches and schools in the Albany Diocese received supplies and furnishings. But there were some unique destinations, as well.

Ms. Choy recalled with gratitude the help she received from a homeless man whom people in the area know as "Ben." Ben helped her stack classroom desks, chairs, blackboards and other school resources on pallets and shrink-wrap them in preparation for their journey to a Piarist school in Kentucky.

These tuition-free, college-preparatory high schools are run by members of a religious order that takes the traditional vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, plus a fourth vow to dedicate their lives to the education of youth.

Some liturgical items like vestments and chalices not claimed for use in diocesan parishes were sent to the Diocese of Sunyani in Ghana, western Africa, where new churches are being built. The number of Catholics has tripled on the continent in the last 30 years.

Other artifacts found a home at a new Catholic parish in Richmond, Va., which purchased its worship site from a pentecostal church that had closed. "How's that for a switch!" Ms. Choy remarked.

She also told the story of a gentleman who attends a local Scripture study group, who asked if he could have the 220 bibles from the classrooms to give away. He let Ms. Choy know that he had them distributed within five weeks, having offered many to passengers on his weekday CDTA bus commute.

Ms. Choy said that, for her, the most touching moment was in giving a statue of the Blessed Mother from one classroom to a local woman who would daily visit the parish's large outdoor statue of Mary.

The woman had been distraught when she learned that the figure was going to be moved to a church in downstate New York. When she got her own statue, Ms. Choy said, "She was thrilled, and so grateful!"

Additional recipients of items included organizations like the Hibernians, Head Start, the Salvation Army, a women's shelter, a hospitality center, the City Mission, the Schenectady Light Opera, youth ministry programs, schools and families with special needs.

With the help of many individuals and groups, Ms. Choy said that they were able to distribute everything "literally down to our paper clips and the last of our coffee and tea."

She mentioned that even all the photos and videos in the parish's archives are being scanned and preserved.

Another significant effort in preserving the parish's legacy was the making of a documentary DVD depicting highlights of St. John the Baptist's closing liturgies and homilies, testimonies of parishioners about what attracted them to St. John's and comments by Mary Pidgeon, the oldest parishioner, who was the last to exit the church and lock the doors.

The DVD also features a brief history by local author Walt Chura, who described the community's Irish roots. All registered members of the parish were to receive a copy.

The videographer for the project was Matthew Rogowicz, a parishioner who is in his junior year at the Rochester Institute of Technology's school of film and animation. He told The Evangelist that when he learned "that the oldest Roman Catholic church in Schenectady was closing, I knew that I would have to make a film about our wonderful St. John's."

He added: "The subject matter was so strong, and there was such a rich history....I knew that this was a film that had to be made."

(12/17/09) [[In-content Ad]]