CARROLL GARDENS — In 1951, a young woman immigrated from Bari in southern Italy to the U.S. where she found work as a seamstress in Brooklyn. 

Bari, a port city on the Adriatic Sea, depends on shipping and thus produced lots of sailors, along with tradesmen in the attendant shops and warehouses. Those who settled in Brooklyn found similar jobs on the waterfront stretching from the Brooklyn Navy Yard to Red Hook. Many settled nearby in Carroll Gardens. 

And so did the 27-year-old seamstress, Pasqua Gaudiuso Cama. She married and raised her three children to be humble yet filled with faith. 

She died in 2015, but her family honored her legacy on Sunday, Dec. 17, by donating a statue of St. Nicholas of Bari to the historic Sacred Hearts & St. Stephen Parish, Carroll Gardens.

A dedication for the statue was attended by her eldest son, Domenick Cama, joined by his wife, Wendy, and their three adult children and spouses. 

“She believed very much in her family, and she believed very much in her faith,” Domenick Cama said. “I attribute my own successes to the values that my mom created. And those are the principles that we raised our children with.” 

Bishop Emeritus Nicholas DiMarzio celebrated the Mass that included the statue’s dedication. Deacon John Heyer of the parish worked with the family to arrange the event. 

He said Bishop DiMarzio was asked to celebrate the Mass because he is named after St. Nicholas. The retired bishop happily accommodated the Camas because they are longtime supporters of the diocese, Deacon Heyer said. 

During his homily, Bishop DiMarzio recounted several narratives of St. Nicholas, including his becoming the model for the secular character, Santa Claus. 

The saint was born in 270 to prosperous Greek parents in a Roman-controlled area that today is part of Turkey. They were Christian, even though their faith was persecuted by a Roman emperor, Diocletian. 

That changed when a new emperor, Constantine, converted to Christianity around 311 and allowed the faith to flourish in the empire. 

Nicholas became bishop of Myra, also in modern-day Turkey. He subsequently earned the reputation of a covert gift giver, mimicked by the secular Santa.

In one instance, St. Nicholas rescued three girls from grim futures by secretly leaving sacks of gold at their home, Bishop DiMarzio said. 

The money was given humbly and without fanfare. Still, Bishop DiMarzio said, the gift enabled the girls’ father to pay their wedding dowries, which spared them from their only other option — becoming prostitutes. 

Several miracles are attributed to St. Nicholas, including the reviving of three murdered children back to life, Bishop DiMarzio said. 

The saint died at about age 73 in Myra. In 1087, his relics were rescued from hostile Turks by Italian sailors who brought them to their hometown — Bari. 

People sheltered the relics in what today is known as the Pontifical Basilica of St. Nicholas in Bari. There, the faithful celebrate his feast day on Dec. 6, which includes anointings from a fragrant oil known to seep from the relics. 

“He’s a great intercessor,” Bishop DiMarzio said during the homily. “I pray to him a lot to get things done in difficulties. He’s unfailing in his assistance.” 

Domenick Cama said his mother was an example of the humility and powerful faith of St. Nicholas. 

Eventually, she moved to Bensonhurst, but her ties to Carroll Gardens never broke because of the numerous family and friends — people from Bari — who belonged to Sacred Hearts & St. Stephen Parish. 

Thus, her family chose to donate the statue of St. Nicholas in her honor to the parish.

To pay for it, the family agreed to use the money originally set aside to purchase favors for guests at the wedding of Domenick and Wendy’s daughter, Nicole. 

“She was very special to me,” Nicole said of her grandmother. “I love cooking so much because she ignited that in me.”

The couple’s honeymoon included a stop in Bari.

“It was our favorite part of our trip, just getting to see Bari’s life and their culture,” Nicole said. 

She echoed her father’s appreciation for her grandmother’s devotion to family and the faith. 

“Those were very big priorities that carried through my father and through me,” she said.  “I hope to pass them on to my children as well.”