St. Vito's Church (Mamaroneck, New York)

St. Vito's Church
Map
40°57′26.7″N 73°44′27.7″W / 40.957417°N 73.741028°W / 40.957417; -73.741028
LocationMamaroneck, New York
DenominationCatholic Church
Websitestvitochurch.com
History
StatusParish church
Founded1911
DedicationSaint Vito
Architecture
Functional statusRegular use
StyleRoman
Administration
ArchdioceseArchdiocese of New York
ParishMost Holy Trinity-Saint Vito
Clergy
ArchbishopTimothy Cardinal Dolan
Pastor(s)Msgr. James E. White

St. Vito's Church in Mamaroneck, New York is a Catholic Church in the Latin Church parish of Most Holy Trinity-Saint Vito in the Archdiocese of New York. It is the parish church of the Parish of St. Vito and Most Holy Trinity.

History

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The parish of Saint Vito's was founded in 1911 to serve the Italian Catholic community of Mamaroneck,[1] which prior to this, was attended by priests from Our Lady of Mount Carmel in White Plains. Eventually, a small chapel dedicated to St. Anthony of Padua was constructed at Sheldrake Place.[2][3]

In 1908 Father Ferdinand Papale became the first resident priest and efforts were made to build a permanent church. Dedicated to St. Vito, it opened in April 1910. Designed by Anthony J. DePace, the new church building was completed in 1930.[2]

Father Del Negro was followed by Monsignor John Goodwine, who undertook the construction of a school, parish hall and a renovated convent. The church was heavily damaged in a flood that ravaged the Village of Mamaroneck in April 2007, but has since been restored.

To this day, the parish still maintains a large percentage of Italian-American parishioners. There are monthly devotions to Padre Pio every 4th Thursday at 7:30 p.m. The parish also holds an annual Festa Italiana in honor of its patron saint, which includes a procession with a statue of St. Vito.[4] Once a month, Mass is celebrated in Italian. There is also a Mass in Spanish on Sundays.[5] St. Vito's hosts the annual Mass before Mamaroneck's St. Patrick Day Parade.[6]

St.Vito's interior

School

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Initially, the Sisters of the Divine Compassion from White Plains provided religious instruction to the children of the parish. They were later followed by the Sisters of Our Lady of Christian Doctrine. St. Vito's Parish School operated from 1962 to 1986 and was staffed by the Dominican Sisters of Sparkill.[7]

Recent history

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On November 2, 2014, the Archdiocese of New York announced as part of its "Making All Things New" round of church closures that the Parish of Saint Vito would be merged with the Parish Most Holy Trinity also located in Mamaroneck, New York. As of August 2015,[8] the church is part of the newly formed parish of Most Holy Trinity-Saint Vito. The parish is served by the Knights of Columbus, Council 2247.[9]

James E. White is the pastor of Most Holy Trinity-Saint Vito Parish.[10]

On September 1, 2021, the church was again destroyed in a flood from the remnants of Hurricane Ida. The entire interior was submerged with several feet of water. Following the devastation, the church has not been used since.

Pastors

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  • Francis Cocozza, 1910-1927
  • Biaggio Del Negro, 1927-1959
  • John Goodwine, 1959-present

References

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  1. ^ Lafort, Remigius. The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X., Catholic editing Company, 1914, p. 411Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. ^ a b "Parish History". St. Vito and Most Holy Trinity (Formerly St. Vito) Main Church.
  3. ^ "Mamaroneck 'Italian Parish' Has Room For All Faithful - Catholic New York". www.cny.org.
  4. ^ "St. Vito's Festa Returns To Mamaroneck", Daily Voice, June 20, 2012
  5. ^ "Mamaroneck 'Italian Parish' Has Room For All Faithful - Catholic New York". cny.org.
  6. ^ "soundshoreparade". soundshoreparade.
  7. ^ "French-American School seeks to expand". The Mamaroneck Review.
  8. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-04-01. Retrieved 2016-06-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. ^ "Knights of Columbus Mamaroneck". Knights of Columbus Mamaroneck.
  10. ^ "St. Vito and Most Holy Trinity (Formerly St. Vito) Main Church". St. Vito and Most Holy Trinity (Formerly St. Vito) Main Church.
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