Diocesan News

Our Lady of Grace Parishioners Take Prayer Vigils to the Streets of New York City for Lent

March 23, 2026
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“It’s important for us to get out there to try to help everyone be aware of the importance of having Jesus in your life,” said Jen Acosta (left), who prays outside the A train station in Howard Beach alongside Mary Ann Higgins, Cynthia Ottomanelli, Leonida Aquino (left to right), and Father Dominick Dellaporte. (Photos: Paula Katinas)

HOWARD BEACH — Parishioners of Our Lady of Grace Church have taken their faith to the streets this Lenten season, hoping to bring their fellow New Yorkers closer to God.  

Each Friday during Lent, Father Dominick Dellaporte, the pastor of Our Lady of Grace, and a handful of parishioners spend time praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet aloud while standing on the sidewalk in front of a public place. On March 20, they prayed outside the entrance of the Howard Beach JFK Airport subway station. 

“We want to reach people and to do that we have to go where they are,” said Jen Acosta, as she stood outside the entrance of the subway station with Father Dellaporte and other parishioners. 

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The Friday prayer vigils have taken place precisely at 3 p.m. at different locations in Howard Beach. It all started on March 6, when parishioners gathered outside a Stop & Shop on Cross Bay Boulevard. The following Friday, March 13, the chosen location was a Capital One Bank, also on Cross Bay Boulevard. For the final stop on March 27, they plan to stand outside Our Lady of Grace Church on 159th Street. 

Father Dellaporte, who came up with the idea for the public prayer vigils, chose the locations. The purpose of the effort, he said, is to evangelize.  

The participants always set up a portrait of Jesus, along with a statue and an American flag, at the public places where they pray to let the public know their purpose.

“The season of Lent is a season where not only do we do penance and almsgiving and sacrifices, but it also has to be a time of evangelization,” he explained, noting that visibility is key. “We go to different parts of the parish. People see us and hear us, and maybe we raise their hearts and minds to the awareness of God.”  

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At each stop, the participants set up a small portrait of Jesus Christ, along with a statue and an American flag, and then prayed before the items. The sessions have attracted a variety of reactions from passersby, according to parishioner Mary Ann Higgins. 

“People stop and look at us,” she said. “Most people don’t say anything. But sometimes, you see someone making a sign of the cross.”  

“Bottom line is, our job is to raise their awareness to Christ,” Father Dellaporte added. 

The parishioners hope to serve as examples to others, Acosta said.  

“We bring our faith out to the street and then hopefully they’ll see that we’re regular people just like them and that if we go to church, so could they,” she said.