Lansing's St. Casimir church celebrates its final Mass

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Parishioners of St. Casimir Catholic Church lined Sparrow Avenue on Aug. 2 getting one last sight of the parish many called home for decades.

Bishop Earl Boyea tied a red ribbon around the doors, leading the crowd of parishioners in prayer one last time.

“I now pronounce this church closed,” Boyea said.

The ribbons tied on the church’s doors marked the end of the parish’s nearly 100-year history, according to the Lansing State Journal. Parishioners celebrated St. Casimir’s last Mass, witnessing the final moments of a church known as a neighborhood fixture in Moores Park.

“It’s awful sad,” said Edward Kulpa. “It’s been a good parish.”

Kulpa, 92, has been a parishioner almost his whole life. He and his wife were married at St. Casimir and his six children grew up in the parish.

For Kulpa and many others, the closing service marked the end of an era.

St. Casimir’s Parish Council voted this spring to close the church, citing changing demographics and the loss of a priest that has not left the parish sustainable.

“I felt at home here,” said Kathy Passariello, a 40-year parishioner and active member within the church. “This was my home.”

“We’re going to miss the friendships,” she said.

Given that St. Casimir was right in the Moores Park neighborhood and served the residents there, it gave the parish a particular flavor, the Rev. Karl Pung said.

“They’re going to miss having a church there,” Pung said. “They knew it as part of their neighborhood.”

Greg Perkowski has been a parishioner since he was about 3 years old. His parents went to St. Casimir, his children attended the parish, he’s been an altar server and a lecturer.

“It’s been a real sense...