Maternity B.V.M. launches capital campaign
NADIA MARIA SMITH
CS&T Staff Writer
PHILADELPHIA — Maternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish has long been a presence in the Bustleton section of Philadelphia — a presence that the pastor and parishioners hope to continue for years to come.
That is why they are in the beginning stages of a three-year capital campaign to raise at least $750,000 for renovations and additions to the church.
“We have a rich heritage here and a rich legacy of faith that we want to make sure continues so our faith is proclaimed, the Gospel is announced, the sacraments are celebrated, the faith is taught and the people can encounter the living Christ in His Church,” said Father George A. Majoros, pastor. Along with the parish council and parish finance committees, he initiated the project on March 15.
To date they have raised $300,000 in pledges from parishioners.
The money raised will go toward installing an elevator to make the church wheelchair accessible, repairing the roof, refurbishing the pews and professionally restoring the stained glass in the church.
The lower part of the church will be renovated to include a chapel in the front half of the space, and meeting rooms for the growing parish organizations in the back. Any amount raised over the minimum will go toward additional improvements to the school.
“The generosity of our parishioners shows what can be done when good people work together,” Father Majoros said. “The people [of the parish] are good, faithful, hardworking people who love their community and their church,” much like the early parishioners of B.V.M.
The cornerstone for the first church was laid in 1870, on land donated by a non-Catholic mill owner from the area. At that time the area was rural, with farmlands and small industries, but a budding Catholic community formed to start a “building from God.”
At the church’s 75th anniversary, the neighborhood had changed dramatically as ex-servicemen and their families moved into the area at the end of World War II. The influx of Catholics created a need for a school that doubled in size within 10 years.
By 1966, the current church was dedicated, and a year later the current school building was added. In 1988 a new parish social hall was dedicated.
Through the years each building was remodeled and modernized to meet the challenge of a growing parish — a challenge that continues today.
The thriving parish reflects the changing face of the area — a mixture of cultures and ethnic heritages. But what hasn’t changed is the parishioners’ desire to safeguard the faith.
Although Father Majoros will be leaving the parish because he has been named the Regional Vicar for Delaware County [see story page 28] and pastor of Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Secane, he is confident that his successor, Father Paul S. Quinter, the former English-edition editor of the Vatican’s L’Osservatore Romano and a former editor of The Catholic Standard & Times, will “not skip a beat with the people or the campaign.”
“To have a priest friend, someone I have great esteem for, coming as my successor is really a privilege,” Father Majoros said. “I have every confidence, knowing how gifted he is.”
CS&T staff writer Nadia Maria Smith can be reached at npozo@adphila.org or (215) 965-4614.