CHURCH MERGERS: Five area priests receive pastor assignments

Local News

January 26, 2008

Staff Reports The Lockport Union-Sun %26 Journal Sat Jan 26, 2008, 01:39 AM EST

Five area priests have received new appointments as a result of church mergers in the Journey in Faith and Grace.

Over the past few weeks, The Most Rev. Edward U. Kmiec, bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo, announced local pastor placements, as mergers and closings continue.

• The Rev. John J. Leising was named senior parochial vicar at Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Harris Hill. Previously, Leising was the pastor at St. Bridget in Newfane and Our Lady of the Rosary in Wilson.

• The Rev. Robert A. Wozniak was appointed pastor of the new parish formed by the merger of St. Bridget in Newfane, St. Charles Borromeo in Olcott and Our Lady of the Rosary in Wilson. Prior to this appointment, Wozniak served as pastor at St. Edmund Parish in Tonawanda.

• The Rev. James A. Waite previously served as administrator of St. John the Baptist Parish in Lockport. He was named pastor of the same church, but with the addition of the merged parish of St. Mary of Gasport. Waite’s assignment is effective June 21.

• The Rev. Joseph E. Vatter will now be the pastor of the new community formed from the merger of three parishes: St. Stephen in Middleport, as well as St. Mary and Sacred Heart of Jesus, both in Medina. Vatter’s appointment is effective July 12.

• Beginning March 31, The Rev. James F. Hassett will be the pastor at two churches in Niagara and Orleans counties. St. Patrick in Barker and St. Joseph in Lyndonville will link for a year before merging.

All of these appointments are for a term of six years. Some appointments are already in effect, while others will take place over the next few months.

When two parishes merge, the position of pastor is open to any priest for application. Priests who were pastors in the original churches are not guaranteed a job in a merged parish that results.

For current parish changes, visit www.buffalodiocese.org/directory.

Text Only

Local News

Reform agenda touted
Empire State Development Corporation executive Sam Hoyt visited Lockport on Wednesday to tout Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s state budget and government reform plans.
Changing the way the state does business will bring fiscal relief to counties, cities and towns, eventually, Hoyt suggested.
It’s too bad the reforms won’t kick in before municipalities like the City of Lockport begin confronting fiscal crises, Mayor Michael Tucker said in response.

February 9, 2012 2 Photos
Tucker: 'Best days lie ahead'
The City of Lockport government is smaller than it was 18 months ago but is in a stronger financial place, Mayor Michael W. Tucker said in his annual State of the City address.

February 8, 2012 1 Photo
Trio of new classes proposed for Newfane
Newfane High School could have three new business courses in the fall, one of which would center on video game design.

February 8, 2012
Municipalities take wait-and-see approach on SPCA funding
The City and Town of Lockport are each withholding payments to the Niagara SPCA, while other Eastern Niagara County towns are taking a wait-and-see approach.

February 7, 2012 1 Photo 2 Stories
Rocky II
Friends of Deputy Craig Beiter of the Niagara County Sheriff’s Department plan a benefit on Feb. 26 to raise money to buy and train a new dog for the K-9 Unit.
Beiter’s German shepherd, Deputy Rocky, was killed while on duty in December, and the sheriff’s department is close to getting a replacement.

February 6, 2012 1 Photo 2 Stories
Basket Factory closes
The Basket Factory has gone out of business.
The owners, Julie Thompson Riegle and Dawn Thompson, made the difficult decision last Monday and put the sign on the door Tuesday.

February 6, 2012
No snow is no problem
Unseasonably warm weather didn’t keep Roy-Hart Winterfest from being a fun day for the families who came out to Roy-Hart Elementary School on Saturday.
More than 500 people attended the third annual festivities, which Gasport Lions Club officials said was a big increase from last year. The halls of Roy-Hart Elementary were filled with vendors, programs and movement as excited children rushed from one activity to another.

February 6, 2012
Shovel-ready park has perks
At first glance, the big, orange road sign announcing vacant property on Lockport Road as a “shovel ready certified” building site seems a bit gratuitous.
To companies looking for new places to launch a business, it’s not. The sign in their eyes is a welcome mat, for in three words a community pronounced itself ready, willing and able to make a deal quickly.

February 3, 2012 1 Photo
Roy-Hart to play the big stage
A group of local students will be performing this month at Kleinhans Music Hall just before a BPO concert.
The Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra will welcome the Royalton-Hartland High School Mixed Chorus as part of the BPO’s Community Spotlight program on Feb. 19 at Kleinhans in Buffalo. The chorus will perform under the direction of Carolyn Unitas Roos and accompanied by Janice McKinney.

February 3, 2012
Former NFTA cop sentenced
A former Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority police officer will spend six years on probation for sending a sexually explicit photo to a teenage girl, a girl he later had a sexual encounter with.
In addition, John W. Ingham will spend 25 weekends in the service of the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office Work Program. Ingham was sentenced Thursday by State Supreme Court Justice Richard C. Kloch, Sr. Ingham will also register as a sex offender.

February 3, 2012
More Local News Headlines

Local News

Search Results

CHURCH MERGERS: Five area priests receive pastor assignments

Site Map

Contact Us