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The town of Montclair did seek to help its new residents. In 1915, Miss Minnie A. Lucy, a dedicated social worker, was assigned to the George Washington School on Baldwin Street. Her main concern was to aid the mothers of the area in the care and hygiene of their children. Miss Lucy required each woman attending her classes to bring a baby to prove their need of her lessons. Several girls were known to borrow babies to attend, so popular were the classes. Miss Lucy improvised a nursery in the library of the school to prevent any other little ones from being left alone at home. Miss Lucy also sought to help the Italian women become acclimated to life in America. Illiteracy was commonplace in Italy so it was not surprising to find that most of the immigrants could neither read nor write. Five nights a week Miss Lucy held classes to teach elementary English, reading and writing. In order to create a relaxed atmosphere, Miss Lucy held monthly social gatherings, where the women were encouraged to speak English and learn American customs. She was considered a pioneer int e field of social work and her success was largely due to her sincerity, genuine kindness and concern for the Italian people. The First World War disrupted the lives of all and Montclair was not exception. The sadness of seeing sons of the parish march off to war was tempered by the pride that the United States was fighting an ally of Italy. The parish was growing. Reverend Alfonso DeSantolo had succeeded Father Lisa in 1915. That same year the parish was officially established as a corporation according to the laws of the State of New Jersey. Bishop O’Connor of Newark was the president; Monsignor John Sheppard, Vicar General of the Diocese, vice president; Father DeSantolo, pastor Secretary. The two lay trustees were Antonio Branca and Vincenzo Cordella. Father DeSantolo’s tenure, a small rectory was built. Reverend Francesco Castellano, who succeeded Father DeSantolo in 1925, found the accommodations insufficient. He noted in his report to the bishop that the house was so dilapidated and inadequate that he had to sleep in a rented flat across the street. Further, it was so small that the assistant was forced to live in a rented furnished room owned by “an American family a block away” at a cost of $15.00 per month. Parish life was vigorous during the twenties. Various societies served the spiritual and social needs of the people. There was a Sacred Hear League for Women, a mutual aid society called the Unione Cattolica Italiana for men and women, the San Rocco, San Donato and Mount Carmel Societies. For the young girls, there was a Little Flower Club, while the young men had a junior Holy Name Society and the boy had an Altar Boys club. Although religious education had been a part of parish life from the beginning, it was not formally organized until 1918. In that year, Miss Mary Walsh, encouraged by Miss Catherine Alworth, organized a full program of religious instruction centered on the Sunday School. She was assisted by Miss Kay Reardon, and her sister, Mrs. Mae Maher, Miss Dorothy Hector, Misses Margaret and Josephine O’Brien and Edward McDonald. Under Miss Walsh’s direction a Lay Apostate group was organized to provide instruction for children preparing for their First Communion and Conformation. For more than thirty years this saintly Lady labored for the children of the parish. The Sunday School met in two sessions, before Friday evening devotions and after the nine o’clock Sunday Mass. Miss Nellie Dockery, a devoted Catholic lady, “persuaded” youngsters that were in need of religious instruction, by standing at the back of the church basement every Sunday morning and escorting them down the church basement. In 1929, there were 450 students registered in the Sunday School. In 1932 Miss Walsh directed the preparation of 296 children for Confirmation. As age and ill health took their toll she trained here assistants, her “girls”, to continue her work. After a life of self-sacrifice, Mary Walsh died in 1955. The growth of the parish during the twenties had been encouraging. The small wooden church was soon inadequate to meet the needs of the people. Father Castellano hoped to build a new church and hall but the financial crisis of 1929 and the ensuing depression made this impossible. In 1929, the average Sunday collection was less than $100.00, and the Christmas collection was about $700.00. In the next year, Father Castellano reported to the Bishop of Newark that the parish was “impoverished.” He died on December 30, 1931. In 1932 and 1933, Reverend Gaetano Ruggiero and Reverend Leonardo Viccaro served as pastors. After brief stays at Our Lady of Mount Carmel both were transferred to other parishes.
An important part of the
parish life from the twenties until the sixties and especially important
during the dark years of the depression, were the annual feste. The feste
was the most authentic expression of Southern Italian culture exported to
the New World. The parish sponsored a festa in honor of our Lady of Mount
Carmel. The Societa di Sebastiano sponsored a festa in honor of their
patron, Saint Sebastian. During the festa Pine Street took on the aspect of
an Italian village fair. The houses were decorated with flags and banners.
The sidewalks and the open lots were filled with booths offering home-made
delicacies, religious objects and amulets to ward off the evil eye.
Meanwhile bands played arias from Verdi operas. A high Mass was celebrated
with a long panegyric in honor of the patron. When the host was raised, it
was saluted with a salva of fireworks outside the church. The statue was
then carried through the streets followed by the devout and the curious.
Every few feet the procession halted so that the faithful might pin money to
the ribbons garlanding the figure. For many of the people this was the most
important social occasion of the year, a release from the routine of daily
life, a time of material and religious extravagance. When the festa was
over, work began again. |
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