A Church enlivened,
a people at home
By Christie L. Chicoine
CS&T Staff Writer
DARBY — Strolling the streets of Darby with two children in tow
one summer evening six years ago, Linus and Joy Ugorji, natives of Nigeria,
came across Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Darby.
New to the area and in search of a Catholic church, they knocked on
the rectory door at 1101 Main St., anticipating they’d be asked
to return to register during business hours.
But fortunately for them, Father Joseph M. Corley, pastor of B.V.M.
Parish, answered the door. “He didn’t know us, but he welcomed
us as if he knew us for many years,” Linus Ugorji said.
“Since that time, he has been very helpful to us,” Ugorji
said. “Before we bought our car, he would drive us from our house
to the church for Mass. After Mass, he would take us back to our house.”
And when he couldn’t drive them, he found a parishioner who could,
Ugorji added.
“Father Corley is a very good priest. B.V.M. Church is a very
good parish. Apart from our close relations, they are the people that
give us a head start in this country,” he said.
Ugorji, 47, was an auditor in Nigeria. Now, he works two maintenance
jobs — one at Little Flower Manor in Darby — while pursuing
a bachelor’s degree in accounting and business administration
at Neumann College in Aston. He went back to school, he said, because
he couldn’t find a job in his field with his foreign degree.
In Nigeria, Joy was a nursery school teacher. She hopes to go to nursing
school in the future.
At B.V.M., Ugorji is an extraordinary minister of holy Communion. Joy
is a lunch room manager at B.V.M. School and a volunteer at both the
parish and school.
They are now the parents of four children, ages 10, 8, 4 and 2. Their
two oldest children attend B.V.M. School. Rita, 10, sings in the youth
choir.
“We are blessed,” Joy said.
“The Catholic Church is universal and B.V.M. is a very good example
of the universality of the Church,” Ugorji said. “We realize
we found our home.”
They’re not alone. According to Father Corley, 33 of the 90 families
who have registered in the parish since 2006 are from Africa.
“This is the Church — the mixture of the whole world’s
here,” he said.
“They’re devoted to the Church,” Father Corley continued.
“They know the Church. They expect to be involved with the Church
and to participate. You don’t have to ask them twice.”
In the fall, B.V.M. holds an international night that includes fellowship,
food and festive dancing.
Father Corley was quick to credit his parishioners and Mercy Sister
Mary Elizabeth Burke, a nurse who heads B.V.M.’s outreach services,
for nurturing the immigrant parishioners. “I am very proud and
just admire what they’ve done,” he said.
Patrick Bull, 54, a native of Sierra Leone who works for a non-profit
organization that serves individuals with disabilities, joined B.V.M.
10 years ago.
“I prayed to my God, ‘Help me to get a deeper understanding
of my faith, get more involved in the activities of my church’
— and as time went by, became a lector and then was voted into
the parish council,” he said.
“B.V.M. is very accommodating,” Bull said. “We are
all one in the name of the Lord. That’s the reason why I am there.”
Lawrence Eburuoh, 45, a real estate agent and his wife, Rita, 40, a
family physician — also natives of Nigeria — became B.V.M.
parishioners nearly five years ago.
They have five children — ages 10, 9, 6, 3 and three months. The
oldest three attend B.V.M. School and the youngest was baptized at B.V.M.
Church in late February.
Eburuoh, who holds a master’s in finance, is a member of the parish
finance council and an extraordinary minister of holy Communion.
“B.V.M. is a great place to be,” Rita said. “You have
that fulfillment when you go to church on Sunday, and our kids are happy
in the school. What else do you want in life?”
CS&T Staff Writer Christie L. Chicoine may be reached at (215) 587-2468
or cchicoin@adphila.org.