From the Star of the Sea to St. Mark's Parish
St. Mark's Catholic Church, set on Kuhn Road in the northwest corner of the Town of Greece, traces its roots to a summer chapel that opened in 1907 on Edgemere Drive along the Lake Ontario shoreline. Local cottagers, many of them members of the west-side German parishes of Saints Peter and Paul and Holy Family, had asked Bishop Bernard J. McQuaid for a "chapel of ease" so that summer Sundays did not require a long drive into the city. In 1906, William Brayer approached Father Dietrich Laurenzis, the pastor of Holy Family, who relayed the bishop's permission to build at a cost of no more than $1,000. The committee raised twice that sum, and the Star of the Sea Chapel was blessed and opened in 1907 by Father William I. Rice on land donated by Anthony Kleinhans.
Through the middle decades of the century, the lakeshore mission was carried on by priests from Saint Patrick's Cathedral and especially by two seminary professors: Monsignor John Francis Goggin, who served the chapel from 1915 to 1956, and Monsignor Francis B. Burns, who succeeded him from 1957 to 1964. After the Second World War, the cottage community along the lake grew into a year-round neighborhood, and on June 27, 1964, Bishop James E. Kearney commissioned Father Joseph D. Donovan, then an assistant at Holy Rosary Church in Rochester, "to establish a new parish in the northwest sector of Greece. The parish will be called St. Mark's."
The first Masses were celebrated in the Star of the Sea Chapel on the last Sunday of June 1964, with 160 parishioners in attendance and a collection of $141.06. A fall fundraising drive led by New York State Assemblyman Charles F. Stockmeister raised more than $120,000, and on Ascension Thursday of 1965, ground was broken for a new church and hall on Kuhn Road. The first Mass in the new building was celebrated at midnight on Christmas, with an estimated 400 people present. The parish was formally dedicated on Thanksgiving Day 1966 by Monsignor James C. McAniff, Vicar General of the Diocese of Rochester. Father Donovan shepherded St. Mark's for twenty-one years, until his retirement in June 1985, when Don Riley, Supervisor of the Town of Greece, declared June 23, 1985, "Father Donovan Day." Father Thomas Erdle was installed as pastor on June 30, 1985. The parish's mission statement, drawn up by Father Donovan, has guided the community ever since: "Called by God's love to live the life of Jesus in our world."
Mass Times and Reconciliation
St. Mark's offers Mass every day of the week. The Saturday vigil Mass is celebrated at 5:00 PM. Sunday Masses are at 8:30 AM and 11:00 AM. Weekday Mass is celebrated Monday through Friday at 8:00 AM, with the Rosary prayed in the church at 7:30 AM each morning before Mass. All Masses are livestreamed on the parish's Facebook except the Sunday 8:30 AM Mass.
The Sacrament of Reconciliation is offered every Saturday from 3:30 to 4:30 PM in the Reconciliation Room off the Star of the Sea Chapel, and the sacrament is also available by appointment through the parish office. During Lent, Stations of the Cross are prayed in the church on Friday evenings at 7:00 PM.
The Seven Sacraments
As a parish of the Roman Catholic Church, St. Mark's celebrates all seven sacraments. Baptisms are normally held on the second Sunday of the month during the 11:00 AM Mass and on the fourth Sunday of the month at 12:30 PM outside of Mass; other times can be arranged through the parish office. The Anointing of the Sick is available on request for those facing surgery, serious illness, or the frailties of age; parishioners are encouraged to call the office before or after weekend Masses so a priest can visit. Marriage preparation begins with an initial interview with a member of the parish staff, after which a wedding date can be set; couples who are not registered members of St. Mark's, or who live outside the parish boundaries, need written permission from their own pastor before a wedding can be celebrated at St. Mark's. First Eucharist and Confirmation preparation follow the curriculum of the Diocese of Rochester.
Becoming Catholic through the RCIA
The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults at St. Mark's welcomes three groups into full communion with the Catholic Church: unbaptized adults who wish to be baptized, baptized Christians from other traditions who wish to become Catholic, and baptized Catholics who have not yet received Confirmation and First Communion. The process involves the parish community as a whole through a renewal of its own faith and culminates at the Easter Vigil with Baptism, Confirmation, and the Eucharist. The parish also adapts the process for children over the age of seven who have not been baptized. Inquiries are welcomed by Deacon Frank Pettrone.
Religious Education and Youth Ministry
The Religious Education program serves children from Pre-K through seventh grade during the school year, with a two-week summer intensive as an alternative for families whose schedules do not allow the regular program. A Home School program is available for families who prefer to teach the faith at home, and an intergenerational monthly gathering invites parishioners of all ages to learn the traditions of the Catholic faith together in a family-friendly setting. Curriculum follows the Diocese of Rochester's grade-level overviews, with materials on prayer, the sacraments, and scripture for use at home as well as in the classroom.
Youth Ministry, open to young people in grades six through twelve, aims to "empower our young people to live as disciples of Jesus Christ today and in the future." Activities gather middle schoolers and high schoolers around service, prayer, and fellowship, and the program is led by Kristine Burgio, the parish's Pastoral Associate.
Music at the Eleven O'Clock
"When you sing, you pray twice" is the parish's motto for music. St. Mark's adult choir sings at the 11:00 AM Sunday Mass, while the Saturday vigil and the Sunday 8:30 AM Mass are accompanied by piano. Three choirs serve the parish: an adult choir, a young adult choir, and a children's choir, and all are open to new members. Andrew Tantalo directs the music program.
Children's Liturgy of the Word is offered at the 11:00 AM Sunday Mass, giving younger children the opportunity to follow the Scripture readings at their own level before returning to the congregation for the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
Social Ministry and Parish Outreach
The Social Ministry committee coordinates the parish's response to human need both in the Town of Greece and beyond, taking as its charge the verse, "Whatever you do for one of these the least of my brethren, you did it for me." The work is wide-ranging. The St. Mark's Food Cupboard collects non-perishables in the narthex every week and delivers them to the Greece Ecumenical Food Shelf every other Monday. St. Pauly's Shed, a clothing donation drop behind the church, is organized on Mondays and Wednesdays, and its contents are distributed to local charities or held for the parish garage sale. At Thanksgiving, the committee collects Aldi gift cards and monetary donations for the Ecumenical Food Shelf.
Year-round, the parish takes part in seasonal drives: a Blue Star Mothers care package drive for deployed service members each May and June, a summer charity project collecting items for the Catholic Family Center, the Cross Catholic Outreach Box of Joy each September, a winter coat drive in November, an Advent Giving Tree for the Catholic Family Center, a Sock and Mitten Sunday in early January, and a Souper Bowl collection the weekend before the Super Bowl. The Advent Giving Tree, a parish tradition begun in December 1985, gathers Christmas gifts for those in need. Walking with Moms in Need accompanies pregnant and parenting women with material and spiritual support.
Walking with the Grieving, the Homebound, and the Hospitalized
St. Mark's Bereavement Ministry gathers on Thursdays from noon to 2:00 PM in the parish Family and Children's Room, with members spending the first half hour in silent Adoration in church on the Thursdays that fall before First Fridays. The group's purpose is to "discover that grieving and mourning can be a grace-filled journey where we listen attentively and support one another wherever we are, from week to week, and moment to moment." Both short-term participants and long-term companions are welcome, and inquiries can be made through the parish office.
Hospital Visitation is coordinated by Deacon Frank Pettrone; parishioners are asked to call the parish office when a loved one is in the hospital or scheduled for surgery, so that a priest can visit and administer the Anointing of the Sick. Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion bring the Eucharist to those who are homebound, in hospitals, or in residential care.
Men, Women, Seniors, and the Library
The St. Mark's Men's Club meets on the first Tuesday of each month for a homemade meal and fellowship, and all men of the parish are invited to join. The Rosary Society, the parish's women's organization, has long sponsored devotions to Our Lady of Fatima. The annual women's retreat, held each fall at Notre Dame Retreat House in Canandaigua, gathers women of the parish around a theme of holiness. "That Man Is You," a parish-hosted men's program meeting on Zoom every Thursday morning from 6:15 to 7:30 AM from January through April, is designed to help men encounter Jesus Christ and grow as husbands, fathers, and leaders.
Seniors on the Move, a fellowship of parishioners and friends that has been meeting for more than fifteen years, gathers every other week at the parish for lunch, with occasional day trips and guest speakers. The parish's Star of the Sea Library, located in a side room off the Parish Hall, holds a circulating collection of Catholic books, and the parish's own Book Marks book club meets in the library on the first Thursday of each month, September through June, to discuss a title selected by the group. Copies of the chosen book are placed on hold at the Greece Public Library four weeks before each meeting.
Daily Devotions and Parish Programs
The Rosary is prayed in church every weekday morning at 7:30, before the 8:00 AM Mass. Monthly Eucharistic Adoration is held on the Thursday before the First Friday of each month, with Exposition beginning at noon and Benediction at either 4:00 or 7:00 PM. The parish also offers a weekly Adoration team that commits to a regular hour of prayer in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament; Peter Blind coordinates the team.
Families are supported by the Family Zone newsletter, which contains a weekly Gospel reflection, age-appropriate lessons, prayer, online resources for catechesis, and family activities. The parish subscribes to FORMED, a Catholic digital platform with videos, movies, and study programs; parishioners can sign up by selecting St. Mark's Church at 54 Kuhn Road. Online giving is available through WeShare, allowing parishioners to set up recurring weekly gifts without envelopes.
Stewardship and the ROC Catholics Northwest Family
St. Mark's participates in the God's Love Unites Us stewardship renewal, encouraging parishioners to share their time, talent, and treasure in the life of the parish and the wider community.
St. Mark's is one of seven parishes in the ROC Catholics Northwest family, a collaborative effort that also includes Holy Cross, Our Mother of Sorrows, St. Charles Borromeo, St. John the Evangelist, St. Lawrence, and St. Leo the Great. The collaboration shares resources, communicates Mass times and online worship options across parishes, and presents a common welcome to newcomers in the northwest corner of the Rochester area.
The Pastoral Team
Father Louis Sirianni serves as Parochial Vicar of St. Mark's, and Father James Hewes serves the parish as a Senior Priest in residence. Deacon Frank Pettrone is the parish's Pastoral Administrator, and Deacon Gerard de la Fuente serves as Parish Deacon. Kristine Burgio is the parish's Pastoral Associate, coordinating Religious Education and Youth Ministry, and Stephanie Oswald is the Catechetical Coordinator. Andrew Tantalo directs the Music Ministry, overseeing the adult, young adult, and children's choirs. The parish office is open Monday from 8:30 AM to noon and 12:30 to 3:00 PM, and Tuesday through Thursday from 8:30 to 11:30 AM; the office is closed on Fridays and national holidays.