CLINTON TOWNSHIP — San Francesco Parish in Clinton Township is home to numerous Italian Clubs. Some of them are named after the patron saints of the Italian towns or regions from which its parishioners emigrated.
These clubs are venues designed to deepen the bond with the old country and to spiritually enrich their members by imitating the virtues of their favorite saints. The sentimental and spiritual ties extend to newer generations of Italians living in this area of Michigan.
The Assunta Society is, by far, the oldest club in the parish of San Francesco. It was founded in 1940. Its bylaws state the society was established to unite women of the parish "to strengthen their Catholic faith under the patronage of the Blessed Mother venerated as Assumed into heaven in all the components of her being." The society "aims to assist all its members in imitating the virtues of the Blessed Virgin Mary, especially through corporal and spiritual works of mercy."
The San Rocco Society is the parish's newest club, and its members are mostly from the Calabria region of Italy or are the descendents of people from that region. Its main purpose is to raise funds to donate to well-known charities in southeast Michigan.
This year, the two clubs held their celebration together on the same Sunday, Aug. 17, with a solemn Mass in honor of the Blessed Mother Assumed into Heaven and in honor of San Rocco. After the Eucharistic celebration, there was a procession with the statues of the Blessed Mother and of San Rocco. Many other clubs carried their banners and flags in the procession and joined in the refreshments that concluded the festivities.
(Photos and article provided by Fr. Dino Vanin, PIME)
