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At 50th, St. Mark in Ama grateful for staying power
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By Kim Roberts
Clarion Herald
Nestled along the Mississippi River on River Road in the small town of Ama, St. Mark Parish celebrated its 50th anniversary Nov. 2 with a Mass celebrated by Archbishop Gregory Aymond and concelebrated by Father Peter Akpoghiran, pastor.
The approximately 2,400-square-foot church hosted nearly 125 parishioners for the Mass, which also included the confirmation of three candidates by the archbishop, as well as a reception at the church’s family center.
Thankful to celebrate
"We are so thankful to be able to have this celebration,” said Mary Loup, director of religious education and music ministry. “We have talked about this for a long time and are so glad to see it come to fruition.
“We were one of the churches that were being considered for closure, but through prayer and proving we were viable, the Lord blessed us, and we are able to celebrate our 50th anniversary today. We feel truly blessed that we were allowed to remain open and are able to celebrate our 50th anniversary together as a parish.”
Father Akpoghiran said the parish dates back to 1898, when it served as a mission church of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary in Hahnville, which was established in 1877.
The parish limits of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary once consisted of the civil boundaries of St. Charles Parish on the West Bank. St. Mark in Ama became a mission of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary and is listed in the National Catholic Register.
St. Mark was established as a parish on Jan. 19, 1974, and the founding parish pastor was Father Donald Cote.
“Thank you all for being part of this 50th anniversary celebration as well as the confirmation today,” Father Akpoghiran said. “We are grateful. St. Mark was on the list of churches that was being considered to close. And we are still open today because of everyone here, and the archbishop’s intervention, who insisted this parish must remain open. We thank you very much.”
Archbishop Aymond offered prayers of thanksgiving for the St. Mark community and for all the efforts that had been made “in a very powerful way for the last 15 months.”
Archbishop confirms three
“It’s because of you that you kept your parish alive and well,” he said. “We also come together to celebrate the confirmation for three members of your parish community.”
Brenna Muller, Brenon Petit and Haley-Kate Doucet were confirmed during the anniversary Mass.
“We're grateful that they take this important step of being able to serve the Lord as a disciple,” Archbishop Aymond said. “I would like to say thank you to all of you for being able to be a part of this community and celebrate with us today. We are grateful. My sisters and brothers, as these young people stand before us, I ask you to bear in mind that throughout their lives, there have been many people who have encouraged and influenced them in the faith. Today, we want to give thanks to God for all of those people.”
Archbishop Aymond said he was happy to celebrate with the parishioners of St. Mark, and he played a game with the congregation that involved the authenticity of Christian identity.
He said sometimes circus clowns disguise themselves by hiding behind their painted faces, baggy clothes, big ears and red noses. But newly confirmed Catholics have no need to hide their real identity, he said.
“Clowns want to disguise themselves,” the archbishop told the newly confirmed. “The real difference is that no one knows who they are. Jesus had told the apostles during his life that they were supposed to go out and preach and teach and bring his presence to others. (Confirmation) is one of the most important events in your life. You’re building your relationship with God because you are making a decision to be a disciple of Jesus.”
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