St. Peter Church of Watervliet, NY Marks Anniversary
06 October 2011
By Paulette Doudoukjian
"Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the lands!"
It was Psalm 100 that started off the 112th anniversary celebration for St. Peter Church in Watervliet, N.Y. Dn. Garo Derian, parish council chair, welcomed everyone to the banquet and read the entire Psalm in his opening remarks of this spectacular day that began with the Divine Liturgy celebrated by Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Eastern Diocese.
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Following the Divine Liturgy, seven young people were ordained to the rank of acolyte, including first-year seminarian, Eric Vozzy. He returned to his home parish to receive the blessings of Archbishop Barsamian in a very moving liturgical ceremony.
The banquet, which was held at Michael's Banquet House in Cohoes, N.Y., had more than 150 people in attendance. The day's festivities were organized as a cultural celebration with the Antranig Dance Ensemble performing several exquisite routines.
Additionally, four young adults in the community—Rita Guleserian, Raffi Moroukian III, Thomas Nevins, and Nora Derian—gave moving remarks of what this milestone in the St. Peter Church means to them.
As Rita appropriately noted, "Each year our church celebrates an anniversary is a blessing. It shows the devotion and perseverance of our faith and culture. Each year, more leaders are born. I am just one—but there have been many before me and many more to follow in the footsteps of our forefathers. Every one of us can lead by example and show the new generations what dedication it takes to ensure the future of our faith, culture, community—and even more specifically of our St. Peter Church."
But the real highlight of the afternoon came with a surprise presentation by Archbishop Barsamian when he presented beautiful Diocesan khatchkar plaques of recognition to two of St. Peter's own: the Honorable Harry Tutunjian, Mayor of the City of Troy, whose highly-successful two-year consecutive terms will end with the next election; and Richard Hartunian, who was appointed in 2010 as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of New York by President Obama and became the first Armenian-American to receive this prestigious and high appointment.
Archbishop Barsamian spoke of their leadership as examples of pride for the Armenian community. Both Mayor Tutunjian and Honorable Hartunian have been long time members of the St. Peter Church, serving on the parish council, being involved with ACYOA, and supporting the needs of the community.
Fr. Stepanos Doudoukjian, parish pastor, addressed the crowd and reminded all that a milestone such as this is a time for a community to rejoice, reminisce, and renew. In the spirit of reminiscing, Fr. Stepanos acknowledged that on this day of the church's anniversary, Charlie and Alice Chorbajian, faithful parishioners of St. Peter, are also celebrating their 51st wedding anniversary.
"Charlie and Alice, you, as well others of your generation, have been great role models of love and devotion to God and St. Peter Church throughout your life. May the parishioners of St. Peter follow your lead in service and participation in the life of our very special St. Peter Armenian Church," he said.
Archbishop Barsamian concluded the magnificent event by congratulating the St. Peter Community on 112 years of proud service by generations of faithful. The Primate stated that "St. Peter Armenian Church is one of the oldest communities in our diocese. And it is a strong church family because of its determination and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ."
He continued, "I was especially moved to see so many young people in church during the celebration of the Badarak. Seven young people today were ordained to the rank of acolyte and 20 more youth were blessed as candle holders and readers. This is a sign of great life in this community, especially as we celebrate the year of the 'Ministry of the Faithful.'"
With that, more dancing ensued by attendees to the sounds of DJ Sayat of Northern New Jersey. Indeed, the St. Peter Church parishioners then made a joyful noise to the Lord as gratitude for guiding them on a 112 year path of faithful service in His name.
Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the lands! Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the LORD is God! It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him, bless his name! For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 100
