Tablet TALK

Tablet TALK

sju-Clarke-popeSJU Prof Gets Birthday Blessing

Forget cake and balloons! What better present could John P. Clarke have received on his 80th birthday than to meet Pope Francis? Clarke, professor and chair of the Law Department in The Peter J. Tobin College of Business at St. John’s University (SJU), Jamaica, was among 75 SJU alumni, faculty, students and trustees who met the pope at a private audience opening a two-day conference on international religious freedom, sponsored by St. John’s Law and the Libera Università Maria SS. Assunta in Rome. Clarke’s friends at his former parish, Holy Name of Jesus, Park Slope, and present parish, St. Aidan, Williston Park, L.I., were glad he was able to celebrate his special day in this way.

Love the theatre? Forget the commute to Manhattan. Head over to Maggie’s Little Theater at St. Margaret Church, Middle Village, to catch a performance of Summer Serenade: A Musical Revue. The performances are as follows: Saturdays, July 19 and 26 at 8 p.m.; and Sundays, July 20 and 27 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $18 for adults, $15 for seniors and $12 for children age 11 and younger. Proceeds benefit St. Margaret’s parish hall renovation. For tickets, call 917-579-5389 or visit maggieslittletheater.org.

Celebrate the feast of Jesus’ grandmother, St. Ann, at St. Ann Church, Flushing. Auxiliary Bishop Raymond Chappetto will celebrate the 5 p.m. Mass on Saturday, July 26. A reception follows in the church hall.

St. Francis Xavier School, Park Slope, will be celebrating its 100th anniversary/ reunion on Sept. 21. The school is looking for lost alumni. If you are a graduate and have not been in touch with the school, contact the Alumni Association by calling 718-857-2559 or email reunionsfx@sfxparkslope.org.

This week’s Tip of the Tablet TALK Top Hat goes to the Polish School that meets at St. Matthias parish, Ridgewood. The school generously donated $5,000 to the church and $5,000 to the parish school. Bóg zapłac!

Tablet TALK readers, if you lived in Flushing circa 1940, we need your help and wealth of knowledge. We received a letter from a lady named Christina in Ireland who is looking for distant relatives who once lived in Flushing. The surname was Kennedy and the family lived at 36-18 193rd St. According to the 1940 U.S. Census, the family consisted of Phillip, age 28; Petrina, his Italian-born wife, age 25; and their three children: Phillip, age 4; Patricia, age 3, and Thomas, age 1. Phillip Sr. and Christina were second cousins. The family members would be advanced in age by now. They no longer reside at the aforementioned address, and Christina has no idea where her relatives may be. Perhaps you knew the family from the neighborhood, school or church? If you have any information about the Kennedy family, contact Tablet TALK at 718-499-9705 ext. 326 or megiossi@desalesmedia.org.

Tablet TALK Quote of the Week:The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.” — Marcel Proust

Cafiero KnightsMsgr. Cafiero Council Celebrates 35 Years

The Msgr. Salvatore Cafiero Council No. 7236 of the Knights of Columbus at Our Lady of Grace Church, Gravesend, is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. The council has 70 members, many of whom gathered for an anniversary dinner, held earlier this year at Gargiulo’s Restaurant in Coney Island. Past Grand Knights Gabe De Canio and Carl Bergonzo were honored with plaques. The council is always looking for more men to become Knights and women to join its Columbiette Auxiliary. For details, call the parish at 718-627-2020. (Photo courtesy Mary Ann De Luca)