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Record amount offered to carry Our Lady of Mount Carmel statue
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saturday@newsitem.com
SHENANDOAH — The bidding wasn’t what one would call fast and furious, but when the final announcement of “Going three times” was called out, the winning bid to carry the statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel through the streets of Shenandoah last Sunday was a record.
The record: $7,500.
The tradition continued at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church as the large statue was brought to the top of the steps of the church after the 9 a.m. Mass for individuals and families to bid for the honor to carry the large statue of the Blessed Mother with the Child Jesus as part of the 94th annual Our Lady of Mount Carmel Italian Festival.
Before the bidding began, parishioner and auctioneer Chris Sacco introduced the feast committee chairman, Joseph “BuBu” Tancredi.
“This is probably the last feast and last procession as we know it in this church, so I want everyone to get involved here,” said Tancredi. “Anyone can bid on this statue and the canopy in honor of your parents, grandparents, or a special intention. You don’t have to be Italian, though of course it would be nice if you were. You don’t have to belong to the church. You don’t even have to be Catholic. We welcome everyone here to walk in the procession, even if it’s only for a block. Thank you for all of the years. God bless all of you.”
Turning the microphone over to Sacco, who was assisted by his 3 1/2-year old granddaughter, Alexandra Zippo, he called for the first bid. The first bid was for $2,000, followed by another for $2,500. After a short silence, another bid was made for $3,000.
It looked as though the $3,000 bid would be the highest, but after another short silence, someone called out “In memory of Marie Vatalare, Marion Chapley and Louis DeCrease, and the 50th wedding anniversary of Francis and Marjorie DeCrease, $7,500.”
The crowd responded to the bid with loud cheering and applause. Sacco called the bidder to the steps, noting that Francis DeCrease was his cousin. DeCrease read the names again for the crowd, breaking into tears as he announced them.
“That’s the highest bid we ever received,” said Tancredi to Sacco, who repeated the milestone fact.
The bidding was then called for the canopy, which is carried over the statue. Only one bid was received for $1,500 for the canopy by the Bindi, Andruconis, Talerico and Grabowski families.
DeCrease was thrilled for the honor of his family carrying the statue. A native of Shenandoah, he currently lives in Saint Clair, Mich., located near Detroit.
“You have to remember that our family, the Vatalares, the Saccos, the Bells helped build this church,” said DeCrease, “and they were on the committee that started this procession. I figured that our family was there for its birth, and we might as well be there for its death. There is a birth and a death. Both should be happy.”
“And this being our 50th wedding anniversary, everything just came together this year,” said DeCrease.
When the bidding was completed, families took their small shrines called “cintas” and prepared to carry them in the procession. Smaller cintas were carried on the top of the head, while the larger ones were carried by several people. The Our Lady of Mount Carmel statue and canopy were carried by the winning bidders. As the procession progressed, led by the Upper Schuylkill Marching Band and children carrying a large rosary, the statue would stop along the way to allow people to pin a donation to the statue. Volunteers also distributed the Brown Scapular to anyone who wanted one.
In the evenings during the three-day event, Washington Street between Chestnut and Gilbert streets was closed for the festival, which included entertainment and lots of homemade Italian food. The festivities closed at 10 p.m. Sunday with a spectacular fireworks display by Zambelli International Fireworks Co.
SHENANDOAH — The bidding wasn’t what one would call fast and furious, but when the final announcement of “Going three times” was called out, the winning bid to carry the statue of Our Lady of Mount Carmel through the streets of Shenandoah last Sunday was a record.
The record: $7,500.
The tradition continued at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church as the large statue was brought to the top of the steps of the church after the 9 a.m. Mass for individuals and families to bid for the honor to carry the large statue of the Blessed Mother with the Child Jesus as part of the 94th annual Our Lady of Mount Carmel Italian Festival.
Before the bidding began, parishioner and auctioneer Chris Sacco introduced the feast committee chairman, Joseph “BuBu” Tancredi.
“This is probably the last feast and last procession as we know it in this church, so I want everyone to get involved here,” said Tancredi. “Anyone can bid on this statue and the canopy in honor of your parents, grandparents, or a special intention. You don’t have to be Italian, though of course it would be nice if you were. You don’t have to belong to the church. You don’t even have to be Catholic. We welcome everyone here to walk in the procession, even if it’s only for a block. Thank you for all of the years. God bless all of you.”
Turning the microphone over to Sacco, who was assisted by his 3 1/2-year old granddaughter, Alexandra Zippo, he called for the first bid. The first bid was for $2,000, followed by another for $2,500. After a short silence, another bid was made for $3,000.
It looked as though the $3,000 bid would be the highest, but after another short silence, someone called out “In memory of Marie Vatalare, Marion Chapley and Louis DeCrease, and the 50th wedding anniversary of Francis and Marjorie DeCrease, $7,500.”
The crowd responded to the bid with loud cheering and applause. Sacco called the bidder to the steps, noting that Francis DeCrease was his cousin. DeCrease read the names again for the crowd, breaking into tears as he announced them.
“That’s the highest bid we ever received,” said Tancredi to Sacco, who repeated the milestone fact.
The bidding was then called for the canopy, which is carried over the statue. Only one bid was received for $1,500 for the canopy by the Bindi, Andruconis, Talerico and Grabowski families.
DeCrease was thrilled for the honor of his family carrying the statue. A native of Shenandoah, he currently lives in Saint Clair, Mich., located near Detroit.
“You have to remember that our family, the Vatalares, the Saccos, the Bells helped build this church,” said DeCrease, “and they were on the committee that started this procession. I figured that our family was there for its birth, and we might as well be there for its death. There is a birth and a death. Both should be happy.”
“And this being our 50th wedding anniversary, everything just came together this year,” said DeCrease.
When the bidding was completed, families took their small shrines called “cintas” and prepared to carry them in the procession. Smaller cintas were carried on the top of the head, while the larger ones were carried by several people. The Our Lady of Mount Carmel statue and canopy were carried by the winning bidders. As the procession progressed, led by the Upper Schuylkill Marching Band and children carrying a large rosary, the statue would stop along the way to allow people to pin a donation to the statue. Volunteers also distributed the Brown Scapular to anyone who wanted one.
In the evenings during the three-day event, Washington Street between Chestnut and Gilbert streets was closed for the festival, which included entertainment and lots of homemade Italian food. The festivities closed at 10 p.m. Sunday with a spectacular fireworks display by Zambelli International Fireworks Co.
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