Jacoba Kenna says it fills her heart with joy to be a member of the Altar Rosary Society because it brings people together in love for the Blessed Mother and one another.

PHOTO GALLERY: Regional Altar Rosary Society Mass

“We share the Good News,” said Kenna of St. Raphael-Holy Angels Parish, Hamilton. “I think we need to have a bond to continue to honor Jesus and Mary and the family.”

Kenna was among the more than 150 Altar Rosary Society members from Burlington, Mercer and Ocean Counties who gathered for a regional Mass Oct. 26 in St. Raphael-Holy Angels Church. The Mass, which was celebrated by Father Gene Daguplo, pastor of St. Raphael-Holy Angels Parish, began with recitation of the Rosary and procession.

Several members of Altar Rosary Society took time to reflect on what their participation in the day meant to them, and the importance of their ministry.

“We take care of the parish community,” said Patricia Culton, parishioner in St. Isadore the Farmer, New Egypt. An member for 18 years and past president, Culton said her daughter has followed in her footsteps. “It’s a sisterhood. It’s a nice feeling, belonging together,” she said.

Jacoba Kenna, parishioner in St. Raphael-Holy Angels, Hamilton, has been a Rosarian since 1975, as have many of her fellow Rosarians – dating back to a request from then pastor, Msgr. Michael Walsh.

“At the time, my son was in first grade, and Msgr. Walsh [during] a PTA meeting said. ‘I encourage you mothers to get involved in the church and become Rosarians,’” Kenna reflected.

Responsible for forming the regional relationship in 2004, Mary Griggs has since moved to Florida, but still continues to return annually for the event she helped found 15 years ago. The regional meeting and Mass came about when she, as president of the Altar Rosary Society in Our Lady of Sorrows-St. Anthony Parish, Hamilton, in 2002, discovered a regional meeting in Bayonne – but couldn’t find something similar in her region of the Trenton Diocese.

“I wrote a letter to every parish ARS in the area and asked them if they would be able to meet and share ideas, to see what works and what doesn’t,” Griggs explained. “It’s become a strong devotion to our Blessed Mother.”

When Griggs was preparing to move south, she enlisted the leadership of Kathleen Mitchel, then-president of the society in St. Gregory the Great, Hamilton Square.

“She asked if I would step up to take over the regional ARS, and I said I would be honored,” Mitchel recalled. “It’s not me [who organizes the event] – I’m just the facilitator… It always comes together, and it’s always beautiful.”

The 12 parishes represented at the Oct. 26 Mass were Incarnation-St. James, Ewing; Mary, Mother of the Church, Bordentown; Our Lady of Sorrows-St. Anthony and St. Raphael-Holy Angels, both Hamilton; St. Gregory the Great, Hamilton Square; St. Anthony of Padua, Hightstown; St. Hedwig and Sacred Heart, both Trenton; St. Isidore the Farmer, New Egypt; St. Paul, Princeton; St. Vincent de Paul, Yardville.

Culton, an Altar Rosary Society member for about 18 years, said the heart of the ministry is why she chose to join: the devotion to the Blessed Mother. “She’s the mother of our Church, and she’s the one we really devote our intentions to – and she brings us to her Son, Jesus.”

Second to that is the connection with other faithful in ministry, she said. “We get to see what other societies do, share ideas and find out what really works, how we can help each other. It’s a great bond we have with one another – basically our goas are all the same.”

Video interviews by Rich Hundley contributed to this report.