PRELATE IN NORWOOD

Archbishop Cushing Confirms 283; Blesses New School And Hall

His Excellency the Most Rev. Richard J. Cushing, Archbishop of Boston, visited Norwood yesterday afternoon to administer the Sacrament of Confirmation to a class of 283 candidates at St. Catherine of Siena Church. The event marked one of the largest Confirmation classes in the parish’s history and drew parishioners, families, and clergy for a solemn and joyful occasion.

Before the ceremony, Archbishop Cushing bestowed his blessing on the parish’s new school and hall, a milestone in St. Catherine’s continued growth as one of the region’s most vibrant Catholic communities.

The Archbishop was welcomed upon arrival by the Rt. Rev. Msgr. Jeremiah F. Minihan, pastor of St. Catherine’s. He was accompanied by Msgr. Robert K. Lee of St. John’s Church in Canton, along with the Norwood clergy. As the procession moved from the rectory to the school, the children of St. Catherine’s School lined both sides of the hall, witnessing the blessing of their new educational home.

The Confirmandi

Below is the complete list of those confirmed, preserved exactly as recorded.

Boys

Leonard Acker, George Anderson, Arthur Armour, Francis Babel, James Baldwin, William Balfour, Edward Barrett, Gerd Bond, John Bowler, Thomas Brannelly, William Buckley, Richard Burke, Pierre Burns, David Butters, Ronald Cameron, James Carolan, Robert Carolan, John Clancy, Joseph Clancy, Paul Ciancerelli, Stephen Clem, John Clinch, John Colwell, Martin Connolly, Michael Connelly, Peter Connolly, Matthew Connolly, William Connolly, John Connors, Joseph Consintino, Joseph Corbett, Gerald Corcoran, Paul Costello, David Curley, John Curran, Nicholas Curran, David DeCosta, Paul DeLisle, Robert Desmond, Robert Devine, John Devine, Peter Dixon, John Donohue, Robert Donnelly, Francis Doran, Leo Doucette, Brian Drummey, Robert Drummey, John Dulkis, David Dulkis.

Philip Fanning, Peter Farioli, Chester Flocchen, John Folan, Joseph Franciosi, George Franklin, George Frazetti, Charles Fricci, Robert Gaboury, Richard Gemelli, Robert Gianusso, Daniel Gillis, Richard Giordano, Francis Giorgio, James Gordon, Kenneth Gore, Rocco Grasso, Robert Grazado, Daniel Greenwood, John Griffin, Anthony Grinivac, James Grover, Anthony Gugliolla, Kenneth Hayes, Michael Hemingway.

Thomas Hopkins, David Houghton, Edward Keefe, Peter Keller, Denis Kennedy, James Kelliher, Richard Kenney, Anthony Lorusso, John Lukko, Raymond Lungo, Michael Leyden, Thomas Lynch, John Macci, John MacEachern, Scott Massey, William McAuliffe, John McDonough, Francis McGuire, Daniel McKenna, James Miranda, George Monahan, John McMorrow, William Moynihan, Charles Mullen, Paul Murphy.

Robert Murphy, Hugh Nichols, John Noonan, John O’Donnell, Richard O’Gorman, Robert O’Keefe, Dennis O’Leary, Malachy O’Riordan, Brian O’Sullivan, Leon Padduck, William Paine, Carl Palsick, Ronald Park, Robert Parker, John Parker, Edward Pearl, Augustino Purpura, William Quinn, Richard Quinn, Francis Raftery, James Reynolds, Michael Rizzo, Charles Romeo, Paul Rass, Stephen Reardon.

Richard Mitchell, Robert Mariano, Michael Rooney, Robert Rowe, William Ryder, George Sanborn, William Sandell, John Schultze, David Seeman, Daniel Septelka, Richard Shea, Robert Sierachi, Frederick Smith, Richard Smith, Daniel Smith, Edward Stonis, Charles Slonis, Joseph Tessieni, James Thomas, Kevin Thornton, Robert Thornton, Peter Tomasello, Arthur Twomey, Henry Twomey, William Wall, William Welch, George Usevick, Bernard Zimlicki.

Girls

Mary Abel, Jean Abreu, Mary Balfour, Paula Barry, Judith Barss, Joan Barton, Miriam Bayer, Donna Bigelow, Louise Berkbeek, Margaret Brannelly, Catherine Broderick, Kathleen Burke, Maureen Burke, Ann Burns, Rosemarie Cady, Lucille Carchedi, Edith Carlson, Ellen Carlson, Mary Carpenter, Margaret Casey, Marlene Cerella, Mary Chully, Margaret Clancy, Judith Collins, Susan Collins.

Judith Condran, Elinor Conger, Jean Connolly, Sheila Connolly, Carolyn Corso, Joanne Cotter, Mary Ann Coughlin, Corrine Croteau, Rosemarie Croteau, Barbara Cummins, Mary Lou Curran, Judith Dempsey, Mary Devine, Josephine Donohue, Elizabeth Donavan, Elizabeth Doyle, Helen Eckhardt, Anita Ferrara, Patricia Ferrara, Barbara Ferrick, Kathleen Folan, Diane Foley, Eleanor Forrest, Elaine Galanti, Lawrice Gallagher.

Joanne Gearty, Mary Gibbons, June Grazado, Della Graham, Catherine Graney, Maureen Grenham, Janet Hayes, Suzanne Hennessey, Virginia Hoar, Dorothy Hogan, Evelyn Hanscom, Marie Ioanelli, Gretchen Johnson, Anne Kelley, Sheila King, Mary Kinsman, Margaret Krol, Evelyn LeGay, Patricia Maguire, Pauline Maguire, Elizabeth Mahar, Ruth Martin, Julianne McAuliffe, Janet McCarthy, Mary McCarthy.

Joan Pudsey, Grace Purpuro, Eleanor Quattrucci, Mary Rinalli, Helen Regan, Margaret Reynolds, Janet Runci, Julie Ruotolo, Gloria Ryan, Judith Ryan, Susan Sanders, Cynthia Sankey, Carol Sarno, Sally Scanlon, Frances Sceeberger, Geraldine Shagoury, Phyllis Socci, Marie Stupak, Margaret Sullivan, Martha Sullivan, Diane Sutherland, Leslie Swift, Julianne Taylor, Barbara Thomas, Joanne Vail, Joanne Wall, Diane Waters, Jane Welch, Nancy Wenstrom, Joan Yelapi.

A Milestone for St. Catherine’s

The day marked not only a major sacramental celebration but also the formal blessing of the parish’s new school and hall—symbols of the growth of Catholic education in Norwood. With Archbishop Cushing presiding, Msgr. Minihan leading the parish, and hundreds of families gathered, the event stands as one of the most significant in St. Catherine’s mid‑century history.