Two longtime secretaries from Holy Family Parish in Steuben and Livingston counties have retired, effective as of late July. They were honored with a gathering at the parish office in Wayland on Monday, July 25.
Carole Ann Schwingel has ended her 36-year affiliation that began when she was hired as secretary of the former St. Joseph’s School in Wayland. Within months she was asked to also take on parish secretarial duties, and that evolved after a few years into a full-time position in the parish office.
“I never dreamed I would be here for 36 years. I am so grateful for all the great priests I have worked with and learned from, for all of the volunteers who were so faithful and, most of all, for the many parishioners who have been part of my life on this marvelous journey,” Schwingel wrote in the July 24 parish bulletin.
Katie McGovern, the longtime secretary at St. Mary’s in Dansville, has retired after 32 years of service. For the past seven years she and Schwingel were part-time staff members of Holy Family, a cluster involving both St. Joseph’s and St. Mary’s that became a single parish beginning in 2004.
“Little did I realize 32 years ago when I asked about the secretarial position at St. Mary’s, how much it would change my life,” McGovern remarked in the July 24 bulletin. “The many priests I’ve gotten to know, the many parishioners that have come just to talk, but especially the many life situations that you have shared — all this has profoundly changed and filled my life.”
Father Michael Schramel, pastor of Holy Family, praised both women in his July 24 bulletin column, stating, “While computers have changed how everyone works, what hasn’t changed over the years is their love and commitment to the church and the people of our parish.”
