When the first anniversary of Superstorm Sandy arrives Oct. 29, the doors of Holmdel’s St. Benedict Church will open wide to welcome faithful to a Mass of recovery, hope and renewal.

The Mass will be celebrated at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 29 at the parish which became, and continues to be, a focal point of help and devotion to the communities of the Bayshore. Refreshments will follow in the gathering space.

A prayerful response is the only one possible as this milepost, is marked, said Father Daniel A. Swift. It’s a way of recognizing the great and all powerful hand of God in all that has happened and in the recovery that still needs to come, he said.

Scores of residents throughout the Bayshore are still out of their homes stressed Father Swift, who is an active member of the Monmouth County Long Term Recovery Group. Care, compassion and material help is still needed for far too many people, he pointed out.

St. Benedict Parish has been an active partner in the ongoing recovery efforts which began with an immediate response of setting up the St. Benedict School gymnasium as a clothing center for those who had lost everything, and soon included serving up hot meals for them in a local elementary school.

Once begun, he noted, the effort of the parish never flagged.

Working in collaboration with the parish St. Vincent de Paul Society and the RAINE (Reaching All in Need Everyday) foundation, St. Benedict Parish established “Beacon of Hope,” a distribution center in a vacant store for the necessities of life which morphed, when the time was right, into a Santa’s Workshop throughout the Advent season.

Father Swift envisions setting up a distribution center again during the Advent Season to make Christmas brighter for families still struggling to make their way back from the effects of the storm.

The Mass, he said, is but one way of letting the community know that the care and concern that began Oct. 29 is ongoing. “It’s one more way of letting people know that we are still here for them,” he added.

For more information, call 732-264-4712.

In Ocean County, the Long Term Recovery Team is commemorating the anniversary. The group will sponsor an event entitled “One Year After Sandy” Ocean County People Coming Together on Oct. 27 in the Ocean County College Fine Arts Center, Toms River.

Participants will be able to share hope and healing and community agencies will be available to provide information for residents affected by Sandy. For information, contact the long term recovery team at [email protected].