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Cardinal Timothy Dolan to bless St. Stephen's Pennings Field this Sunday

| 01 Aug 2012 | 04:12
    Photo by Roger Gavan This coming Sunday afternoon, Cardinal Timothy Dolan will bless the new soccer and ball fields at the Church of St. Stephen, the First Martyr, in Warwick. The property, which also includes a community vegetable garden, was donated to the parish by the Pennings family.
    Photo by Roger Gavan This coming Sunday afternoon, Cardinal Timothy Dolan will bless the new soccer and ball fields at the Church of St. Stephen, the First Martyr, in Warwick. The property, which also includes a community vegetable garden, was donated to the parish by the Pennings family.

WARWICK — This Sunday, Aug. 5, Cardinal Timothy Dolan will offer the 12:15 p.m. Mass for the parishioners of the Church of St. Stephen, the First Martyr.

Following Mass, the cardinal will proceed to nearby Pennings Field where he will bless the parish’s new ball fields and vegetable garden.

St. Stephen’s will also host its annual parish picnic on the church grounds that same afternoon.

Dolan has served as the Archbishop of New York since 2009. The following year he was elected president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. And earlier this year he was appointed to the College of Cardinals by Pope Benedict XVI.

Last September, the Rev. Michael McLoughlin, pastor of the parish of St. Stephen, the First Martyr, blessed the initial ground breaking of what would become the parish’s softball and soccer field located just across the road from St. Stephen’s - St. Edward’s elementary school.

The field, which had been donated to the parish by the Pennings family, also contains a community vegetable garden where volunteers, including students and teachers from St. Stephen’s - St. Edward’s elementary school, grow fresh produce for the Ecumenical Council Food Pantry.

The garden, consisting of raised beds, was constructed by Eagle Scout Philip Juliano.

This Sunday there will be no parking in the gravel lot on Pennings Field. And those attending the 12:15 Mass are cautioned that the school parking lot and St. Stephen’s Lane will be closed off and remain closed until after the blessing.