St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Lake Ridge

By Irene Lagan
HERALD Staff Writer
(From the issue of 4/17/03)

As a veteran administrator of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Marie Pelletier is on the front lines of parish activity. On a typical day, Pelletier fields requests from parish committees, pays bills, processes requests for supplies and check requests for the bookkeeper and responds to a host of other items that come across her desk.

"It is hard to put what I do into a few words," Pelletier said. "Basically, I am in charge of the non-spiritual, day-to-day activities of the parish."

Father James S. Barkett, pastor, refers to Pelletier as the "mother of the parish."

"Marie is great," he said. "She takes care of the administrative business so I can attend to other developments and focus on pastoral duties."

As the wife of a military official, mother of an artist and herself an experienced businesswoman, Pelletier’s understanding, creativity and expertise have been invaluable to the parish. Administrative details, she said, are secondary to responding to people’s needs.

Pelletier has been an active member of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish for 16 years, first as a volunteer, and as administrator since 1989, when Father Daniel E. Hamilton, the previous pastor, requested her help "organizing parish affairs."

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish dates back to 1975 when then-Arlington Bishop Thomas J. Welsh asked Msgr. Roy R. Cosby, who served as pastor of Holy Family Parish in Dale City, to recommend sites for a new parish in Lake Ridge. With plans for a new church complex underway, Bishop Welsh assigned Father Philip S. Majka as founding pastor of the parish on Sept. 27, 1976. Father Majka celebrated the parish’s first Mass two weeks later at Rockledge Elementary School, with approximately 200 people in attendance.

An interim church, which now houses offices for religious education and youth ministry, was dedicated on Nov. 30, 1981. As the parish population swelled to more than 2,000 families in the late 1980s, Father Hamilton, who became the third pastor in 1987, inherited the task of building both a rectory and church. The new church, dedicated by then-Arlington Bishop John R. Keating on August 28, 1994, accommodates 1,200 people.

According to Pelletier, who served on the building and design committee, the church was designed to reflect the spirit of the parish as a place of reverence and dignity for God, and a place where visitors are welcome. In addition, the church could accommodate the large number of visitors that flocked to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in the early 1990s because of reported phenomena surrounding former associate pastor Father James C. Bruse and a weeping statue of the Madonna.

Pelletier said the phenomena, which lasted from January through July 1991, sparked a spiritual renewal in the parish.

"People became more aware of the presence of Christ and Mary," she said. "Many people returned to the Church after having been away for many years, and the number of people who attend daily Mass went from 15 to about 100, and has remained the same ever since."

Pelletier said that personally she is more conscious of Christ’s presence throughout each day. "Once you experience something like that, you are changed forever. Not a day goes by without my being aware that Christ stands at the door of my heart and knocks," she said. "A priest friend of mine told me to look beyond the miracle of the tears. If it is a matter of faith, hope and love then something good is happening. Once I began to take that seriously, my thinking changed and I began to trust more."

Devotion to Mary, daily Mass and prayer remain a central charism of parish life. Father Barkett, who assumed the role of pastor two years ago, said daily Mass held in a chapel adjacent to the main church is usually packed, sometimes with standing room only. There are three separate Legion of Mary groups, a contemplative prayer group that has met weekly for eight years, a charismatic prayer group and all-night adoration on first Fridays.

As pastor, Father Barkett tries to "lead people through example to greater trust in God and desire for holiness." The parish, he said, is a "unique, active parish."

"People in this parish are warm and generous. They take their commitment to Christ seriously," he said. "There is something for everyone here. We have a combination of people who are lifelong members of the parish and others, mostly military, who are more transient. But everyone takes ownership. The parish is part of their home and their life."

Father Barkett realized his calling to the priesthood as a college student at Florida State University. The Diocese of Arlington, which was home during his high school years, was a natural place to turn.

"At college I realized God was calling me to know him better. Dwelling on my relationship with him changed my life," he said. "I called a friend, a priest in the Arlington Diocese, and he encouraged me to go to the seminary."

Father Barkett’s playful humor and availability to parishioners have made his First assignment as pastor a great experience.

"Being a priest is great," he said. "There are always new things. I try to bring everything back to my relationship with Christ. There is no greater joy as a priest than having someone come back to Church after being away for years, or ministering to someone who is dying."

In recent weeks, Father Barkett, who calls himself an "Army brat," has ministered particularly to family and friends of military personnel. Parishioners have ties to both Quantico Marine Corps Base to the south and Fort Belvoir Army Base to the north.

"Almost every family has some connection to the military," he said.

Despite the busy schedules many parishioners keep, Father Barkett said it is an active parish. There are five choirs, including a teen choir, a children’s choir, and three adult choirs, and a very large youth ministry program. The human concerns committee is "one of the most caring groups in the parish." In addition to being committed to the poor and elderly of the parish, the committee works through Action in Community Service (ACTS), a local organization of several charities and churches that collaborate.

Father Jerry Wooton, associate pastor, runs the baptismal program and the charismatic prayer group. In addition, he works closely with many of the elders in the parish, some of whom reside at nearby retirement communities.

"We have a lot of fun things, too, like our three-day parish festival, a sock hop and an annual golf tournament," Father Barkett said. "We have a vibrant spirit and like to believe that we have a welcoming community."

At A Glance

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

12807 Valleywood Dr.

Lake Ridge, Va. 22192

Rectory:

12805 Valleywood Dr.

Web site: www.pwcweb.com/seas

E-mail: mariepelletier@erols.com

Pastor: Father James S. Barkett

Parochial Vicar: Father Jerry A. Wooton

Deacons:

Alvin R. McDaniel

Emil P. Myskowski

Mass Schedule:

Monday-Friday: 9 a.m.

Saturday: 9 a.m.; 6 p.m. (vigil)

Sunday: 7:30, 9, 10:45 a.m.; 12:30 p.m.

Holy Days: 7:30 p.m. (vigil); 9 a.m.; 6, 7:30 p.m.

Confessions: Saturday: 3:30-4:30 p.m.; Monday: 7:45 p.m.

After all Masses on first Sunday of the month

DREs:

Jackie Ezersky

Isabel Milligan

703/494-3966 or 703/494-8223

Fax: 703/494-8005

Youth Minister: Claudia Brown

703/4994-3966 or 703/494-8223

Parishioners: 10,280

Boundaries: Beginning at I-95 and Occoquan River — South on I-95 to Rte. 639 — West on Rte. 639 to Rte. 640 — Southwest on Rte. 640 to Rte. 642 — Northwest on Rte. 642 and Rte. 663 to Rte. 610 — North on Rte. 610 to Occoquan River — East along the river to I-95.

Read Other Diocesan Parish Profiles

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