PD Opinion

October 18, 2009

Tradition abounds at St. Rocco’s

When the Italian American Association of Luzerne County processed from St. Rocco’s Church to the statue of Christopher Columbus on South Main Street last Sunday following the 11 a.m. Mass it was the fourth procession from the Tompkins Street church in the past two months.

Each one, in its own way, has been a gala event, dear to the hearts of those involved.

And while each has had a unique flavor, many of the same St. Rocco’s parishioners have participated in all four, most notably the members of Paci’s Band which, as it has every year for decades, provided the music for each event.

The Columbus Day procession, at 32 years old, is the baby of the four. Especially when compared to the Mother of the Rosary procession staged for the 87th consecutive year two weeks ago.

But even the celebration noting the Feast Day of the Mother of the Rosary was not the longest running of these traditions. The Mother of Sorrows procession, begun and continued by descendants of immigrants from Serradifalco, Sicily, goes back 95 years. That was staged on Sept. 20.

The first of the four, the procession on the Feast Day of St. Rocco, patron of the church, held on Aug. 16 this year, noted its 89th anniversary.

On that day, cries of “Viva, San Rocco” can be heard throughout the Oregon section of Pittston as the members of the Mutual Aid Society carry on a tradition started by their grandfathers and great grandfathers.

As we note these vibrant ceremonies and the dedication of those who keep them alive we cannot help but be puzzled at the thought that St. Rocco’s Church is one of those slated eventually to be closed.

Did we not just publish a story upon the completion of a million dollar renovation at the beautiful church, a project completely paid for, we are told?

In his remarks during the ceremony at the Columbus statue last Sunday, Atty. Michael Lombardo, Pittston councilman, made a plea that St. Rocco’s Church be kept open if not as a fully functioning parish, at least as a house of worship.

Given the obvious spirit of the parishioners, it does not seem too much to ask.

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