Our Lady of Czestochowa Church
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Photo: Original OLC School, Church and Rectory, courtesy of Museum records. |
Our Lady of Czestochowa Church – Center Avenue at Oliver Street
Theme & features: The Polish Parish
Established as a parish on May 3, 1903, by Polish immigrants who had arrived in North Tonawanda as early as 1880. The first pastor of Our Lady of Czestochowa Church was the Rev. Peter Letocha. The first church was a wooden structure leased from the Presbyterian community and located on the site of the present Grotto. The first school was opened September 10, 1903, and was located on the site of the present church building. The school was destroyed by fire on March 9, 1919, and construction of a new school building began the same year, opening October 13, 1920.
A groundbreaking was held for the new church building on September 25, 1927, and the new church building was blessed on December 9, 1928. The Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa was dedicated on June 22, 1980. Construction of the shrine to Saint Jude and the Saint Francis Peace Garden took place in 1992. The Peace Garden contains many varieties of trees and shrubs. Garden Stations of the Cross were erected in 1996.
The Wurlitzer Company, in 1923, installed a nine rank pipe organ in the choir loft of the church. An additional rank was added a short time later. In 1989, a complete renovation of the organ was performed by the Heritage Pipe Organ Company, adding three new ranks—a total of thirteen ranks.
There is a beautiful Grotto area, built and dedicated September 1965 as a memorial to all deceased parishioners at the right of the church building.
Photo: Our Lady of Czestochowa Church 2005,
courtesy of Museum member & volunteer Betty Brandon
North Tonawanda Parish Celebrates Centennial Anniversary
A woven blanket, made by an outside company, lines the couch in the living room of Our Lady of Czestochowa's rectory in North Tonawanda. Featuring images of the Black Madonna, the convent, the school, the grotto, the rectory, and the original and current incarnations of the church, the blanket matches the rest of the room in tan brown shades. It's there to commemorate the centennial anniversary of the parish in 2003.
But while many parishes throughout the diocese have celebrated, or will be very soon, their 100th anniversaries, few of them have the kind of tradition and history OLC has behind it. The parish began when Polish immigrants Joseph Januszewski and Peter Jesella went to Bishop James E. Quigley on behalf of the community to plead for their own church in 1902. Fifty Polish families resided in North Tonawanda at the time and they felt the need to practice their heritage along with their faith. Bishop Quigley agreed, and soon appointed Father Peter Letocha as OLC's first pastor. Using a former Protestant wooden church building on Oliver and Center streets, the first Mass was celebrated on May 3, 1903, a date that also happens to be the anniversary of the Polish constitution of 1791.
The parish also saw a need for religious education, leasing a building next to the church and enlisting the help of the Sisters of St. Joseph to educate 93 children that September. Father Letocha was able to soon purchase the building and, after a brief stint with other religious orders of women, entrusted the school to the Felician Sisters in 1908.
Over the years, the Polish tradition remained strong at OLC, and even today one Mass is celebrated in Polish on Sundays. The tradition of its parishioners remains as well, as Father Dennis Fronckowiak, pastor of OLC since 1995, and Judy Smolka, granddaughter of Januszewski, are helping to plan a year-long series of events. It started in August on the feast day of Our Lady of Czestochowa and will continue with events nearly every month, concluding with an anniversary Mass with Bishop Henry J. Mansell and dinner dance at Classics V on Niagara Falls Boulevard on May 3, 2003.
Smolka herself is helping to organize a special school alumni reunion on Nov. 30. Over the years, the school merged with Ascension Parish, and later St. Joseph's and St. Albert the Great, and was renamed North Tonawanda Catholic. Despite the various name changes and new parishes being assimilated, all former students are invited to the social.
While Smolka expects out-of-state people to attend the event, she's getting a good reaction from the locals. It's not much of a surprise. Until this generation; many people who belong to OLC and the school have stayed in the area, even in the same neighborhood.
“The people who belong here are committed to this parish,” Father Fronckowiak said. “They believe in its presence in the community.”
“A lot of people stayed here because they were able to get jobs,” Smolka said. “This is their parish.”
The church is one of the last remaining diamonds in the rough patches of Oliver Street, which has taken a downturn from its prosperity decades ago. In its heyday, North Tonawanda was flourishing with industry, with the entrance to the Erie Canal providing many opportunities for this lumber city. North Tonawanda lived up to its small city reputation, with neighbors becoming friends, and friends becoming family. The quality of life and the vibrancy of the community allowed families like Smolka's to stay and live in the area, sometimes only a few blocks away.
In the years that followed, North Tonawanda suffered the way much of the Western New York community did. Much of the industry that kept the area alive left, and eventually, younger people also hit the road in search of employment opportunities. It's no different at OLC. Smolka has three children, but only one lives in Western New York; specifically, North Tonawanda neighbor, Wheatfield. But the OLC tradition in her family, that started when her grandfather became a founding trustee and donated the original baptismal font with his wife, to her late aunt, who was born during the parish's founding and passed away when the centennial celebration began, continues as all of her grandchildren were baptized at the parish and two of them attend North Tonawanda Catholic School.
A graduate of the school herself, Smolka remembers the many sisters who taught the students years ago. While some sisters teach at the school — four live in a convent across the street — there are fewer than there were in Smolka's educational years.
“It was very good discipline,” she said of her teachers. “Religion was a way of life. At the time, you felt it was very strict. Maybe we need some of that today.”
Even now, with her grandchildren attending, the school holds a lot of memories for Smolka. She picks her grandkids up outside the building and can visualize her memories of the school when she was there.
“I remember standing out there cleaning erasers,” she said. “We would help out the sisters. If you were chosen to help, you were on their good side. We enjoyed helping out there.”
Smolka also remembers being so close with the OLC parish that her family walked to Mass every week when she was younger. Father Fronckowiak concurs, explaining that the tight community was just the way of life.
“The church in those days was the center of life,” Father Fronckowiak said. “People didn't have all these organizations we have now. It was the center of their social life and religious faith.”
Smolka hopes that center will hold as they plan the school reunion. A Mass, social and school tour is planned for the Thanksgiving weekend event. Father Fronckowiak is expecting a good turnout and a good time.
“These people that attended OLC are extremely dedicated, even if they live away from here,” he said. “Whenever there's anything going on with the school, they're very proud of the fact the school is still here.”
Article: November 2002, Western New York Catholic,
by Mark Ciemcioch
Photo: Commerative Centennial Mass Card, courtesy of Museum member and former Trustee, John L. Paczos
Our Lady of Czestochowa
Our Lady of Czestochowa,
North Tonawanda, New York
Address: 64 Center Avenue
North Tonawanda, N.Y. 14120
Telephone: 716-693-3822
Fax: 716-693-3882
Founded: 1903
Pastor: Rev Dennis Fronckowiak
Mass Schedule: Saturdays 4 PM;
Sundays 8 AM (Polish), 9:30 AM & 11:30 AM
Parish census: 980 Families
School: Parish School closed in 1970
OLC building used for Pre K - 2nd grade
Year Built: 1928
History
North Tonawanda is known as the Lumber City in our area, once having a large number of saw mills and wood products plants. This industry and others drew Poles to begin settling here at the turn of the century. In 1902, upon the request of the Bishop, Rev. Peter Szulc was sent to investigate and count the number of Polish families now in this sector of the diocese. The report presented to the Bishop proved a need for a Polish parish in North Tonawanda, with the Bishop sending Rev
. Peter Letocha to serve as organizer and first pastor.
In 1903 an old Baptist church located at Oliver and Center Streets was purchased and renovated for their house of worship, followed by the purchase of a brick structure a short distance away to serve as a parish school in 1907. The Felician Sisters took charge of the educational program in 1908 and continued until 1970 when the grammar schools in the area were consolidated.
Under the pastorship of Rev. Ben Bendkowski, the parish embarked on a building campaign to erect a new church. It was dedicated on Dec 9, 1928 by Rev William Turner, Bishop Ordinary of Buffalo. The Rev. Michael Walek, served twenty years at the North Tonawanda parish during which time many societies and organizations existed in the parish and surrounding neighborhood. The numbers over the years have dwindled, the old community not the same as it was, but the diehard parishioners of the church remain steadfast. Polish is still in use, though to a much lesser degree; financially still stable, the parish looks forward to celebrating its 100th anniversary in the new millennium.
History: courtesy of Polish Genealogical Society of New York State founder
Mike Drabik
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First Row:
Donna Sobocinski, Eleanor Winiatowski, Father Michael Walek, Father Bogumil, Louise Ziolkowski, Violet Sosnowy Second Row: Fourth Row: |
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From e-mail of Laura Rusin - dated Thu 6/3/2004 6:27 PM Top: OLC's 1944 9th grade graduates. Father, Joseph Rusin, is in the top row - last one on the right. Bottom: Joseph Rusin 9th grade graduation 1944 OLC class from L. Weronica Rusin, Helen (Gasior) Rusin, Joseph and father John photo taken at 103 14th Ave. |
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1938 Graduating Class. Roman Litwin is in the third row, fifth from the left. |