HUNTERSVILLE — Like many across the Diocese of Charlotte, parishioners at St. Mark Church in Huntersville celebrated the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Aug. 15, with a Mass and procession.
The Knights of Columbus led recitation of the rosary before Mass as well as the procession after Mass.
More than 200 parishioners participated in the procession that concluded at the church's fountain with the crowning of Mary.
—Photos and video by Amy Burger
Editor's note: Monsignor Anthony J. Marcaccio celebrated the 25th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood June 1. Born in Michigan in 1963 the youngest of four children, he grew up in Greenwood, S.C. He attended Francis Marion University and completed graduate studies at The Catholic University of America.
He is a member in the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, Knights of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, and is a Fourth Degree member of the Knights of Columbus. After he was ordained in 1991, Monsignor Marcaccio first served parishes in Charlotte and western North Carolina, then for five years served as priest secretary to Bishop William G. Curlin. He also served as the diocese's vice chancellor in 2002.
He has served as pastor of St. Pius X Church and School in Greensboro since 2000, and has led the parish during a time of unprecedented growth and activity. A new church was built in 2010, and later this year the parish will open a new parish center and enlarge its school.
Monsignor Marcaccio talks with parishioner Frances Giaimo at his 25th anniversary celebration June 5 at St. Pius X Church. (Photo provided by Terry Rumley)I was reflecting with some friends on the upcoming silver jubilee of my priestly ordination and someone asked, "What is your most satisfying accomplishment? What you built at St. Pius?" I corrected him and said, "It's not what I've built, but what we've built together at St. Pius."
Our conversation reminded me of the great British architect Sir Christopher Wren, who designed among many things the huge and beautiful Anglican Cathedral of St. Paul's in London. His memorial tablet reads in Latin: "If you seek his monument, circumspice – look around." I hope in 25 years, and then after another 25 years, someone looking for my greatest accomplishment and the legacy of my priesthood wouldn't point to a school building, or parish center, or even a church – but would be circumspect, look around, and see a vibrant Catholic community living its faith in love.
Monsignor Marcaccio talks with parishioner Frances Giaimo at his 25th anniversary celebration June 5 at St. Pius X Church. (Photo provided by Terry Rumley)During my pastorate here at St. Pius X we have built a lot, but it wasn't my original intention. The buildings flow from our mission. I didn't come to St. Pius X to build a school, but to help build future Catholic moral leaders for our society. The parish center isn't my personal legacy, but a purpose-driven project to provide us the space for hospitality and parish-wide learning. It will be a tool of administration for efficient and effective ministry to more and more people.
Our church, our most important building, was built big and beautiful to accommodate our growth. And while there always are things I would have done differently, I was proud to present it to the diocese for dedication.
The most beautiful aspect of the church is when we gather for liturgies, so I suppose I would be happy to say, "There, be circumspect, look around and see this church. Look around and see these people being the Church. Look around and see this church being and bringing Christ to the community."
One of those things I would do differently is to place a memorial inscription on the front door of our church that spoke profoundly to me when I first read it on a church door in Boston: "This is none other than the house of God and this is the gate to heaven."
I hope that after 25 years people would think of the success of my priesthood in Jesus Christ in terms of a living legacy – not brick and mortar, not a building, not even a church door, but as someone who helped them open the Door of Mercy, that Living Door, the Gate through which the people of our parish were able to pass and develop that deep, abiding friendship with God.
— Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio
CHARLOTTE — Police are investigating the recent disappearance of more than $13,000 from St. Joseph Vietnamese Church's weekly bank deposit.
According to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police report and an internal audit by the Diocese of Charlotte, $13,463 was reported stolen from the Charlotte parish's deposit sometime between April 3 and 5.
The missing funds will be covered by the parish's insurance policy and will not affect the parish's finances.
Parish and diocesan staff said they are unable to explain the loss.
The money – all cash – came only from the parish's weekly food fundraiser April 3, not the weekend Mass offertory. The Sunday afternoon fundraiser in the parish hall draws hundreds of people after Mass each Sunday to enjoy traditional Vietnamese cuisine, bringing in anywhere from $8,000 to $17,000 in revenue.
Later on April 3, the food sales revenue was counted and placed in a tamper-evident bag as usual. The money, along with the offertory collections from four weekend Masses and a collection for the Diocese of Charlotte's "Forward in Faith, Hope, and Love" campaign, was taken that afternoon to the night deposit box at the Wells Fargo Branch where the church has an account.
On April 5 parish finance council chairman Thinh Tran, who had deposited the six bags, reviewed the deposit online. The bank reported receiving only five bags, and the sixth bag containing the $13,463 in food sales had not been deposited.
The parish immediately alerted the diocesan finance office, which launched an investigation into the missing funds.
The diocesan audit found that the parish had properly followed diocesan financial protocols in handling the money, and that the "bag containing the funds from the fundraiser ... has been purposely or accidentally misdirected."
Multiple people were involved in counting the money and preparing the deposit on April 3, the audit found. A review of the bank's surveillance video of the night deposit box did not provide any evidence to explain the loss.
According to the auditor's report, Tran said he dropped the fundraiser moneybag in the night deposit box first because it was the largest, then he dropped in the remaining five bags. He told the auditor "the lever was making a 'different' noise than it usually does. It was like a creaking sound."
Wells Fargo conducted its own investigation, according to diocesan officials, and insisted that the sixth moneybag containing the $13,463 was never received.
The diocesan auditor recommended an external investigation, so Charlotte-Mecklenburg police were notified.
Father Tri Truong, pastor, informed parishioners of the missing money during all Masses June 11-12, noting that he, the parish finance council and the diocesan finance office "are all cooperating with the police to try to figure out what happened to this money."
Father Truong said he was thankful that the parish's insurance coverage will replace the funds if the missing moneybag is not located.
"The good news is that we have insurance coverage and in the end either this money will be found or the insurance company will reimburse us," he said in a statement to parishioners.
He also noted, "I deeply regret having to bring this matter to your attention. Most of you know that during my five years at St. Joseph I have worked diligently to make sure that there is a clear accounting for all of our finances. I can assure you that I will keep you informed of any new information in this matter."
— Patricia L. Guilfoyle, editor
SHELBY — Members of St. Mary, Help of Christians Church in Shelby gathered around fellow parishioner Bessie Thompson Aug. 13 to honor her life of service, devotion to God and love for all as she celebrated her 100th birthday.
At a reception in the parish social hall after Mass, Thompson was presented with framed congratulations from President and Mrs. Barack Obama, North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory and Shelby Mayor O. Stanhope Anthony III.
Bessie Walton Thompson was born in Oconee, Ga., on Aug. 12, 1916. Around 1919, her family moved to Buffalo Street in Shelby. She attended Cleveland School, although her education was cut short after the eighth grade because of financial difficulties.
After her mother died, she moved in with her grandmother on Pinkney Street. It was there she met Jay Giles “JG” Thompson, her next-door neighbor and future husband.
She began working when she was very young, at first helping her grandmother with her laundry work. She also worked several jobs in and around Shelby, including a few summers at Ridgecrest Resort, where she especially enjoyed meeting people from all over the world.
After she and JG Thompson were married on Oct. 22, 1941, they were employed as a team in many different jobs. They worked at the Ogontz School for Girls, spending the school year in Pennsylvania and the summers with the students in New Hampshire and Maine. (The Ogontz School is now part of Pennsylvania State University.)
The young couple decided that the constant traveling was too much, so they settled down for a while in Cape May, N.J., where they worked at the Hotel Congress Hall. Thompson also worked at a Girl Scout Camp in East Hampton, N.Y.
In 1958, the Thompsons flew to Washington, D.C., and adopted a baby boy when he was only a few days old. They named him Danny Jay “Chip” Thompson.
The family of three then moved back to Shelby on Miles Street, where the Thompsons worked at Cleveland Country Club, First Baptist Church, Camp Thunderbird, Cleveland Hospital and Shelby High School.
After growing up Baptist and joining her husband in the Methodist Church after they were married, Thompson took instructions from Father John Huston around 1970 and joined the Catholic Church. At that time St. Mary, Help of Christians Church was located at Graham and Beaumonde streets. Thompson says she still has a special love for the old stone church.
Thompson worked as a housekeeper for several of the pastors at St. Mary's, helping to clean the church and working in the nursery watching the children.
She retired from her parish job to care for her husband and her aunt and uncle, and later her ailing son, but her devotion to serving others did not diminish.
After the death of her husband in 1992, Thompson joined the Foster Grandparent Program in Shelby. She also continued volunteering at Marion and Graham schools until around 2014.
Today, Thompson enjoys good health, independent living, visits from her family, church family and friends, and she still does all her own shopping.
— Giuliana Polinari Riley, correspondent
BELMONT — Brenda, 65, became infected with HIV after exchanging needles. She did not know where to turn until three years ago, when she found the House of Mercy.
“It was the hardest thing in the beginning, but I’m fine now,” she says. “I feel like this is my home.”
For the past 25 years, people like Brenda have found a refuge of peace and hope at the House of Mercy.
It all began in 1991, after the Sisters of Mercy stepped up to respond to the growing HIV/AIDS epidemic. With the help of a $100,000 donation and a $100,000 loan from the Diocese of Charlotte, they opened the House of Mercy to provide persons living with AIDS with unconditional love and full-time medical care.
Since 1991, the House of Mercy has welcomed 323 low-income people living with HIV/AIDS.
Each receives personalized care. Some come to the House of Mercy to live and die in peace; others choose to aggressively treat AIDS. Some return to independent living. Services include helping obtain medications and coordinating services such as physical therapy, speech therapy and occupational therapy.
Caring for people who have AIDS is a “sacred ministry,” says Mary Wright, the first president of the House of Mercy.
But it wasn’t easy at first. The sisters had to work to overcome the shame and misconceptions associated with the disease since it first emerged in the 1980s in the homosexual community.
“It was very challenging,” Wright explains. “To even think of doing something for people with HIV/AIDS, it took an incredible amount of education on many fronts to overcome the stigmas. Plus, “there wasn’t any housing with people living with AIDS. It was hard to figure out what to do and how to do it.
“I always felt it was sacred ground, being located on the grounds of the Sisters of Mercy. It was back in the woods at the time. As we were clearing the field, I had hoped we were clearing the stigmas that were involved with AIDS.”
During her years as president, the residents taught Wright about faith, hope and love, she says. “I always said if you combined unconditional love with spiritual and physical nutrition, people will thrive. And they did.”
“There was another stigma at the time that people were coming there to die. I always said, ‘No, you’re coming here to live. If you coming here to die, you can die anywhere, but you’re going to live here.’”
“This really is a call,” says Shirley Stowe, House of Mercy’s current director of nursing who has worked there since 1998. “We are here because we want to be here. We know this place is special. The impact that we can make on our residents’ lives – it is an extension of our family. We are a family here.”
Perceptions about people living with AIDS have changed profoundly, Stowe notes, as have treatment options. She recalls that there was only one drug to treat the disease back in the early 1990s. Now there are more drugs for treatment and if the disease is diagnosed early, it can be managed effectively.
“I want people to know that we love our residents unconditionally from the time they come through that door for the first time,” Stowe says. “We do not need to look back. We don’t need to know what brought them here. We are here to give anyone that comes through those doors a chance – a chance to physically heal, spiritually heal and emotionally heal.”
“We hug here,” she adds. “I am not afraid to ask (family or visitors) the question, ‘You know it’s OK to touch and hug someone (with AIDS)?’”
A dedicated team of volunteers and supporters help the sisters make the House of Mercy an inviting home.
“I originally met with the volunteer coordinator at that time and she told me the residents love to play Bingo, so that’s what we do,” says Carolyn Rose, who has been volunteering for over a year. “I call the games and the residents get quite involved, playing for candy prizes. We have lots of laughs along the way.”
“I just enjoy the residents tremendously! I don’t know much about them except that they have AIDS and seem glad to be living at the House of Mercy.”
“It took time for me to gain their trust,” she says. “I remember that early on, one of them asked me why I wanted to be there. I told her I thought any organization that offered support to AIDS patients was a very worthwhile place to spend time. And, it’s just fun.”
“I volunteer because I am passionate about sharing my love and faith with those who are in need of joy and comfort in their lives,” adds Maggie Baucom, who is the chair of the House of Mercy board. “I was educated by the Sisters of Mercy on the same campus where the House of Mercy is located and I find great joy and honor in being a steward of their generous and compassionate mission.”
“Many of our residents experience dignity and mercy for the first time in their lives at the House of Mercy, and that knowledge is one of the most rewarding and fulfilling gifts of my life,” she says. “To be a part of a ministry that affords another person the simple gifts that I have been blessed with for a lifetime is humbling and certainly grounds me as a person of faith.”
Stan Patterson, president of the House of Mercy, has worked with the sisters for more than 30 years, first at Mercy Hospital in Charlotte, then for the past 19 years at the House of Mercy.
“The House of Mercy represents a community success,” Patterson says. “It’s been an effort to provide services for those who really are needy. The community has stepped up in a significant way. We feel that it has been very successful in terms of taking a very difficult situation and making it manageable for many of our residents, and the community is a reason for making that happen.”
Much of the funding for the House of Mercy’s $700,000 annual budget comes directly from the Sisters of Mercy. There are also grants, fundraisers like the annual Walk for AIDS in downtown Belmont, and private donors who have kept the home running over the past 25 years, Patterson says.
“One of the most important aspects of the House of Mercy, in addition to providing care for those who are definitely in need, is the opportunity for our volunteers and those who want to get involved to develop their own spiritual life by being involved with the ministry,” he says. “It really affords an opportunity for those who wish to give funding or give time, to benefit personally themselves. I think this sometimes gets lost – that the donors themselves benefit from participation.”
Working with the House of Mercy and the sisters has enriched Patterson’s life, he says.
“It’s been a great experience to be involved with the ministry and with the sisters. It is an opportunity to develop my spiritual path. At times it has been challenging, but it has been a rewarding experience for me personally.”
Residents including Brenda agree that the sisters and the House of Mercy have made their lives better, treating them like family in a home filled with mercy and love.
“I like their recreation, going bowling and going to the movies and playing Bingo,” Brenda says. “I love them (the staff). They are just perfect.”
— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter
Learn more
House of Mercy is named after the home that Catherine McAuley, foundress of the Sisters of Mercy, opened in 1827 for unemployed and poor girls in Dublin, Ireland. Board members are currently needed and volunteers are always welcome. Learn more about how you can help at www.thehouseofmercy.org , or contact Stan Patterson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or
704-825-4711.