PRELATE LEADS WEEKEND OF DEDICATION AND CELEBRATION IN WHITINSVILLE

Soorp Asdvadzadzin Church of Whitinsville, Massachusetts, had a momentous weekend honoring heritage, community, and faith. On Saturday, November 2, His Eminence Archbishop Anoushavan, Prelate, along with Rev. Fr. Mikael Der Kosrofian, Pastor, and Archpriests Fr. Gomidas Baghsarian and Fr. Aram Stepanian, led a prayer and dedication ceremony for the newly erected Armenian Heritage Monument at the local Pine Grove Cemetery. Attending the event were Northbridge Selectmen (as members of local boards of most New England towns are called), State Representative David Muradian, and many parishioners and friends of the Prelacy church.   

The monument stands in memory of Armenian Genocide survivors who settled in Whitinsville (an unincorporated village within the town of Northbridge) and the Blackstone Valley. In a formal gesture, the Town of Northbridge presented a proclamation declaring November 2 “Armenian Heritage Day.”  

On Sunday, Archbishop Anoushavan celebrated the Divine Liturgy, marking the 67th anniversary of the church’s founding. His Eminence read an encyclical from His Holiness Catholicos Aram I, granting Fr. Mikael the honor of wearing the floral pilon (mantle), a distinctive element of Armenian clerical attire, in appreciation of his dedicated service. Following the Divine Liturgy, parishioners gathered for the annual Thanksgiving dinner and celebration of the 67th anniversary of the church.   

The Prelate congratulated the community of Soorp Asdvadzadzin Church on their continued progress and commitment to service and expressed his gratitude to everyone for leading by example.