St. Mary Our Lady of the Rosary

Below is a letter to our parishioners announcing the upcoming changes in parish leadership and its impact on us.

January 19, 2025

Dear Parishioners,

            While we strongly and firmly believe each of our three parishes has a viable future and are committed to continuing the needed Catholic presence in Voluntown, Preston, Griswold, and Jewett City in fulfillment of our parish mission, we have reached the conclusion that our present leadership model is no longer sustainable and needs to change for two major reasons:

1. While we presently have a full-time parochial vicar and a pastor who splits his time between pastor and Judicial Vicar for the Diocese, it has become apparent that a full-time Pastor is needed in place of an almost full-time one as more expectations and responsibilities have been added to the pastor’s position.
2. While the financial situation at Ss. Thomas & Anne Parish has improved significantly in the past year-and-a-half, overall it has not improved at St. Catherine Parish or St. Mary Parish.  While we have tried to pay all of our bills each year without a deficit, out of the past thirteen fiscal years, Ss. Thomas & Anne has paid all of its bills without a deficit in seven of those years; St. Catherine in three; and St. Mary in one (and the longer term debts of the parishes go back even further).

            Since April of 2023, the two of us have worked and reworked the income and expense numbers and have jointly reached a plan that we presented to Bishop Cote last year and again in October to our Apostolic Administrator, Archbishop Coyne, who recently informed us that he accepted and approved the plan.

            Effective February 1, 2025, Fr. Ted will step down as pastor and will be assigned to full-time Diocesan Tribunal work as Judicial Vicar. Fr. Ted will continue living in residence at St. Mary rectory in Jewett City providing weekend assistance with Masses through the end of June, unless diocesan needs dictate otherwise.

Effective February 1, 2025, Father Tom will become the Administrator of our three parishes, a position that has many, but not all, of the powers of a Pastor.

With these changes, the daily Mass schedule will be impacted immediately.  Effective February 3, 2025, the temporary daily Mass schedule will be:

            Tuesday at 8:00 a.m. – St. Mary (Parish Center Chapel)

            Thursday 10 a.m. – St. Catherine Church

            Friday 8:00 a.m. - Saints Thomas & Anne Church

            A new weekend and weekday Mass schedule will be developed in the next weeks and months in consultation with the three parish Pastoral Councils.  We will keep you apprised of progress and present a proposal to you for your feedback before a final schedule is implemented.

Please know that this was not a plan or decision we arrived at lightly or without exploring many other options, but it is the best current option to ensure the viability of each of our parishes by working to align our expenses with our income.

With God’s help and your understanding and assistance, we will make these parishes all that we know they can be.  Please pray for all of us as we embark in this new direction.  

Very Truly Yours,

Fr. Ted Tumicki                                                          Fr. Tom Griffin