LONG VALLEY Bishop Serratelli celebrated the 30-year history of St. Mark the Evangelist Parish here — one of the youngest parishes in the Diocese and a small rural faith community, blessed with a big sense of family and welcome. On his pastoral visit April 29, the Bishop not only gifted St. Mark’s with his presence, but also gave the parish another present that was well-received — the announcement that he had elevated Father Marcin Michalowski from its administrator to its pastor, and also from administrator of Our Lady of the Mountain (OLM) Parish, also Long Valley, to its pastor.
For the 30th anniversary Mass, Bishop Serratelli served as main celebrant and homilist and blessed a new icon of St. Mark, donated by the local Knights of Columbus council “that reminds us of this great celebration,” said Father Michalowski, one of several priests, who was a concelebrant of the liturgy, along with Father Javier Bareno and Father Slawomir Tomaszewski, both St. Mark’s and OLM’s parochial vicars; Msgr. Joseph Goode, retired diocesan priest and former St. Mark’s and OLM pastor; and Msgr. Brendan Madden, retired priest, former St. Mark’s administrator and a weekend assistant at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Flanders; Father Michael Drury, pastor of St. Luke Parish, Long Valley; Father Zig Peplowski, pastor of St. Cecilia and Sacred Heart parishes, both in Rockaway, where Father Michalowski served as parochial vicar for six years, before his transfer to St. Mark’s and OLM; and Father Kevin Corcoran, the Bishop’s priest-secretary. A reception followed the Mass.
“The anniversary was a happy day for St. Mark’s parishioners,” Father Michalowski said of the faithful, who filled the modern-style church for the anniversary Mass, showering Bishop Serratelli with their signature brand of hospitality. “St. Mark’s is a dynamic and alive parish. It’s like a family. Many of the original parishioners, who put the parish together, still worship here and tell me stories from the beginning. Our parishioners are hard-working and do what they can to keep the parish in good shape. They consider St. Mark’s a home,” the new pastor said.
Most of St. Mark’s 450 families tend to be younger married couples with children and remain eager to volunteer; but the rural Morris County faith community serves all age groups. Outreaches include its 50-Plus Club, Bible studies, Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and such liturgical ministries as altar server, extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, greeter, lector or a member of the music ministry. Social outreaches include a caring ministry, composed of volunteers who are ready to respond to an immediate need of any of the parishioners or refer them for help, and a ministry to Heath Village, a senior community. Mass is regularly celebrated there and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion bring the Eucharist to residents, said Father Michalowski.
Young people can deepen their faith through religious education, peer ministry and Vacation Bible School. They also can get involved in many of the liturgical ministries, as well as in Scouting or CYO, said Father Michalowski, who also cited the work of the parish’s pastoral advisory council, finance council, building and grounds committee and Knights of Columbus council.
One parishioner, who felt that family feeling on her first visit to St. Mark’s, was Melissa Heike, a member for the last five years with her husband, Bruce, and their nine-year-old daughter and seven-year-old son. She chairs St. Mark’s pastoral advisory council, participates in music ministry and delivered a talk about the parish’s history and her own reflections during the reception. A high-school teacher, she was encouraged to join St. Mark’s on the recommendation of one of her students and after her first visit for 8 a.m. Mass one day.
“I was mortified because we were late, but Father Goode said, ‘Take your time. We will wait for you,’ ” said Heike, who noted that the guitarist and cantor that morning had captured the attention of her son, then two years old, who would clap and exclaim “All done!” when they finished playing. “St. Mark’s is all about family. This is a place where I can grow my children, who are the Church, in the faith,” she said.
The history of St. Mark’s began with the celebration of Mass with 75 of the faithful in a variety of locations, including Schooleys Mountain Firehouse and OLM’s rectory basement. In 1986, Bishop Rodimer established St. Mark’s as a mission of OLM for the northern section of Washington Township. In 1988, Father Edward Collins was named St. Mark’s founding pastor, after the mission was elevated to parish status — as the youngest of Long Valley’s three Catholic faith communities — on April 25, the Feast of St. Mark.
Bishop Rodimer came to St. Mark’s in March 1991 to bless the $1.2 million Family Life Center, which houses a large hall, a chapel, offices and meeting and social rooms. He returned in March 2002 to dedicate a more than $2 million church.
A member of St. Mark’s buildings and grounds committee, during the construction of the church, Kevin Fleming, a local contractor, remembers first attending Mass in the parish hall, which accommodated only 340 people, when he became a parishioner 25 years ago. The church expanded St. Mark’s sense of welcome by increasing seating to 800, said Fleming.
“From the first time we walked into the parish hall, there was an immediate ‘hello,’ from St. Mark’s parishioners. When we would go back, people would recognize our faces,” said Fleming, a married father of two daughters, both college graduates. “St. Mark’s has always had the reputation of being family oriented and tight-knit. In the 25 years that I’ve been here, it has kept its core values and family feeling,” he said.