Updated July 11, 2025
“By God’s design, Mary is crucial to the birth and growth of the Church,” said Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., to the congregation of the community of faith which bore the Blessed Mother’s name. “As she supported the first disciples with her presence and prayers, now she supports us in the same way.”
The Bishop served as principal celebrant of a Mass for the Feast of Mary, Mother of the Church June 9 in St. Mary Church, Bordentown. He and pastor Father Martin O’Reilly also presented papal blessings to four individuals selected for their longtime service to the parish and community. Among the honorees was Father Cesar R. Anson, parochial vicar, who celebrates his 48th anniversary of priesthood this year. Father Anson was assigned to Mary, Mother of the Church Parish in 2018.
Other parishioners who received papal honors were Joseph Delfino, Evelyn Kostrub and Robert Moore Parker Jr.
In his homily, Bishop O’Connell assured the congregation that Mother Mary “has true compassion for us” and “is not standing idly by watching us suffer.”
“She is in the trenches with us… As her heart was united to that of her Son on the cross, so her heart is united to each of us in our sufferings,” said the Bishop. “Her heart aches with our pain, and she gives us the courage and strength to follow after our Lord, carrying our cross, trusting that He will bring good out of everything. With Mary, we can continue to walk in faith and keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.”
Mary, Mother of the Church Parish was created in 2018 from the merger of St. Mary Parish, Bordentown, with Sts. Francis and Clare Parish, Florence Township. Today, Mary, Mother of the Church Parish has two worship sites – Holy Assumption, Roebling, and St. Mary Church, Bordentown.
“I have been loving every minute of it,” exclaimed Michele Belknap. The daily Mass-goer continued, “This is a beautiful community, and events like this increase morale. I am a bit older, but I saw the [papal blessings] recipients were all in their 80s, so they inspire me.”
Marlene Thompson added, “I know everyone here, and even since the merger, I have made many new friends from both churches. This is my home away from home.”
Fellow committee member Mary Smith noted the strong familial feel of the parish’s two worship sites and the growing numbers of faithful eager to serve their fellow members. “I am just a volunteer at the parish, but people joke I should set up a cot here. My Church family is an extension of my family.”
Evelyn Kostrub, left, Joseph Delfino, center, and Robert Moore Parker Jr., all of whom were presented with papal honors by Bishop O’Connell, participate in the recessional after the feast day Mass. Mike Ehrmann photos
Michael Ehrmann
About the Honorees
Father Cesar R. Anson, who this year celebrates 48 years as a priest, was ordained in his native Philippines in 1977. A decade later, he was invited to the United States by the Archdiocese of Newark to assist the Filipino community in Jersey City before beginning priestly service in the Diocese of Trenton in 1990. Father Anson has served in the parishes of St. Mary of the Lakes, Medford; St. Robert Bellarmine, Freehold; Blessed Sacrament, Trenton (where he was incardinated into the Trenton Diocese); Epiphany, Brick; St. Paul, Burlington, and St. Joseph, Toms River, while performing hospital ministry in that town’s Community Medical Center. He was assigned in 2018 to Mary, Mother of the Church Parish in Bordentown.
Joseph Delfino: born in Philadelphia, he quit school after 10th grade to work at a clothing manufacturing company to help support his large Italian family. Delfino attended Mass regularly and was an altar boy at Mother of Divine Grace Church serving in the Latin Mass. Drafted into the Army in 1952, he worked as a communications chief in Korea and was honorably discharged two years later. Delfino married his wife, June, and went to night school for his GED and a degree in electronics. After retirement, his family moved to Burlington County and joined Mary, Mother of the Church Parish. At 93 years of age, Delfino continues to serve as an usher.
Evelyn Kostrub: born in Trenton, she attended the city’s St. Peter and Paul Catholic Elementary School before her family’s move to Morrisville, Pa. She and her husband, George, moved to Roebling and raised a family while Evelyn worked for five years as a kindergarten teacher’s assistant at Holy Assumption School and for 20 years at N.J. Bell Telephone (later Verizon) before her retirement. Today, Evelyn (86) and her daughter, Stephanie, both serve as ushers Mass. She is also a member of the Altar Rosary Society.
Robert Moore Parker, Jr.: born in Allentown, he was baptized, received his First Communion and Confirmation in St. Mary Church in Bordentown. After high school, Parker worked for the Department of Defense at Ft. Dix for more than 41 years and was a member of the Army National Guard. Parker served as a baseball umpire for 47 years at high school and college games throughout Burlington County. He and his wife, Marjorie were married in St. Mary Church. Parker has been an usher since 1953; at the age of 14, he was asked to help with the collection and has continued in this ministry ever since.