1987: ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA - HAMILTON NEW JERSEY

I won't even try to compute the number of columns I have written over the 32 years that I have been authoring history-nostalgia columns. Suffice to say it is in the many hundreds category. I have been going through some of these old timers and came up with this part 1 of a series I did back in 1987 outlining the history of the parish I call home. I found the end part of the column to be completely fascinating as I recalled the very austere conditions that were encountered by out Sisters of St. Francis.

1987: HAMILTON'S ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA CHURCH

From the time of my conversion to the Catholic faith back in 1962 until "the day the music died," I had been a loyal parishioner at St. Anthony's on So. Olden Avenue in Hamilton Township. It was here that I met humble, hard working men of God with whom I became fast friends including the late Msgr. Michael McCorristin, then Father Leonard Toomey, Father Liam Minogue, Father Dan Cahill, Father Dan Gowan and Father Joe Ferrante. My memories of those years at St. Anthony will be with me forever. To this day, many "old timers" (of which I am one now) still tell me they miss the beautiful music we sang those 10 or more years ago.