Mildred Jellig

I read with interest in the Long Island Catholic, July 30, 1997 that St. William's has a web page and that "part of the essence of a parish is our history and our stories." I would like to add a bit of history.

My aunt and uncle, Anna and George Lunz, moved to Seaford from Ridgewood, Brooklyn in 1933. They bought the first house on Gilmartin Lane, which is diagonally across the street from the church. Fr. Garvey was the pastor and since there was no school built at the time, my Uncle George would drive each Sunday morning to Amityville to bring to St. William's the Dominican Sisters who would teach the Sunday morning religion classes for the children. He would also bring the Sisters back to Amityville when the classes were finished for the day.

I also remember helping my Aunt Anna clean the vigil lights that I understand she and the Altar Guild did weekly. We would remove the burnt wick, scrape off all the wax on the sides of the glass and thoroughly wash and dry each glass container before putting in a small amount of water in which the vigil light would float.

I also remember that in the early '50's, my husband Vincent who was a commercial artist, repainted the chips that had marred a statue of the Sacred Heart that stood in the sanctuary near the pulpit.

Incidentally, my Uncle George died in 1938 and three years later Aunt Anna married Joseph Devorack who for years was very active in St. William's.

Respectfully yours,
Mildred Jellig