RIP Jo Dereske

I first encountered Jo Dereske through Miss Zukas, specifically her novel "Miss Zukas Shelves the Evidence."  I was being facetious because Our Lady of Vilnius had its own Miss Zukas.  I read the book, loved it and read the rest of the series.  Dereske's Miss Zukas is a Lithuanian-American librarian living on one of the islands of Washington State.  She is smarter and tangier than the average "cozy mystery" heroine and the books share some pointed but subtle social commentary about gentrification.  She shares her Lithuanian heritage in the persona of Zukas's grandmother, who shares a very good recipe for kugelis in one of the novels.  There is even a Lithuanian Catholic church in Zukas's midwestern hometown.

I think one encounters a lot of Jo Dereske in Ms. Zukas and some of Ms. Zukas has filtered into me.  I now say "Oh, Faulkner" instead of the alternative and refer to any oppressors as "Dos Passos."

I had the pleasure of exchanging a few e-mails with her and learned of her passing via Google, as I was checking up on her because I had not written to her in a long time.

My condolences to all who are suffering her loss.

Here is her obituary:  Jo Dereske,  October 1, 1947 - July 5. 2025

A tribute from a friend on SleuthSayers blog: Farewell, Ms. Dereske

Playing Chess with the Archdiocese of New York: Church of the Most Holy Redeemer

When you hear that your church is being closed or your parish is merging with another it is news to you.  But it isn't news to the Archdiocese of New York.  They are playing a game of chess from a playbook of time tested moves.  The reasons put forward for closing or merging may be true, but they are not necessarily causal.  The standard reasons:

• Reduced attendance
• Shortage of priests
• Problems with the structure or condition of the church

The unvoiced causal reasons: the Archdiocese needs money,  a party expressed interest in the property, a party made an offer on the property, anticipated legislation forecasts revenue from the property.

Phyllis Eckhaus's piece, Battle to Save East Village Church Goes to the Vatican in the Village Star-Revue is a very readable introduction to the machinations used to close churches and the methods parishioners can use to save their spiritual home.

St. Mary's Needs Another Easter Miracle Because Last Year's Fizzled Out

Last year on April 16th News 12 aired an item announcing that the Vatican overturned Cardinal Dolan's decree changing St. Mary's from a parish to a secondary church in the Parish of St. Peter-St. Denis.  St. Mary's would once again be a parish.

That Vatican decree was issued on March 31, 2025.  In News 12's "Easter Miracle" piece a spokesman for the Archdiocese is on record saying that they are reviewing the notice from the Vatican and figuring out the next steps.  Here's what those steps turned out to be:

• Nothing:
• No new pastor appointed.
• No parish council created
• Mass schedule unchanged: still only 1 Sunday Mass at 10:00 AM
• Litigation against the City of Yonkers, et al, to remove landmark designation from St. Mary's Church, Rectory and Parish Hall continued.
• Issuing a repeat Decree of Merger with St. Peter-St. Denis on December 17, 2025.
• Ending the landmarking lawsuit with a settlement that removed landmark status from the Parish Hall, the Rectory and the inside of the church.  Only the exterior walls of the church are now landmarked: the very walls the Archdiocese alleged were in bad condition and in need of repair to the tune of $10 million.

Despite the recent disappointments in canon and civil law, the parishioners of St. Mary's continue to pour their hearts out in prayer at 10:00 AM Mass every Sunday.  On February 4th they sent an appeal of Cardinal Dolan's repeat decree to the Vatican.

St. Mary's Loses Most Landmark Protections - "Proposed Judgement" Now Final and Official

The proposed judgement, e-filed on 3/5/2026 by Jacob Amir representing the Archdiocese of New York was signed by Judge Melissa Loehr and filed with the County Clerk.   The now final judgement removes landmark status from the parish hall, the rectory and the interior of St. Mary's Church.  The document, signed by Judge Melissa Loehr and dated 3/6/2026, makes it official that now only the "exterior facade," outlined in pink on Exhibit A, above retains landmark protection.  

The protection that it now offers St. Mary's is as weak as a that pink outline on Exhibit A because the Archdiocese has previously alleged that the facade is in bad condition and would require $10 million in repairs.  

Now that the deal has been signed, sealed and delivered parishioners are stunned and and are trying to figure out why attorneys representing Yonkers signed a proposal that was so favorable for the Archdiocese.

Documents for the case are available online. Because this case was brought before the Supreme Court of Westchester County, you can use the WebCivil Supreme Case Search Form.  The index number for the case is 75204/2024.

Under Proposed Judgement Only 4 Exterior Walls of St. Mary's Church, Yonkers, Will Remain Landmarked

The proposed judgement, e-filed on 3/5/2026 by Jacob Amir representing the Archdiocese of New York, removes landmark status from the parish hall, the rectory and the interior of St. Mary's Church.  David Imamura signed the stipulation representing the City of Yonkers.  

The only element retaining landmark protection under this proposed judgement is the "exterior facade," of the church (incorporating the chapel) as outlined in pink on the image above, identified as Exhibit A in the document.

An interested party sent the proposed judgement to a parishioner last evening in response to a Facebook post.  It was like a bombshell, as many thought that landmark status was an unassailable golden dome assuring that St. Mary's would continue to stand forever.

The parishioners trying to save the church and have its status as a parish restored were shocked that the attorney representing Yonkers had signed a proposal that removed most of the protections from the landmark designation.  The City of Yonkers and its City Council had been staunch defenders of landmark protection for this beleaguered church.  

Documents for the case are available online. Because this case was brought before the Supreme Court of Westchester County, you can use the WebCivil Supreme Case Search Form.  The index number for the case is 75204/2024.

 

St. Mary's Landmark Status Threatened by Settlement Negotiations

The Archdiocese of New York and the Immaculate Conception corporation brought suit against the city of Yonkers, the Yonkers City Council and the City of Yonkers Landmark Committee on November 14, 2024.  The aim of the suit was to remove landmark status from the church.

A court document dated January 7, 2026 indicated that "the parties are negotiating a settlement to present to the court."

The last event logged for the case on legal intelligence database Trellis was January 19, 2026. No future events are scheduled.  A deadline of January 29, 2026 was set for the plaintiffs  (Archdiocese of New York, et al) to file their reply papers, if needed.

Today it was heard that the City of Yonkers settled, agreeing to rescind the landmark status of the church interior.  Later it was heard that the issue was discussed by the Yonkers City Council but not put to a vote.

No information about the negotiations and their outcome was made public by either the City of Yonkers or the Archdiocese of New York.

Stay tuned to learn what you can do to help save this beautiful historic church and home to a warm and  dynamic congregation.

St. Emeric Church and School To Become Development Site

And then there were none?

The fate of Catholic churches in the East Village is beginning to sound like an Agatha Christie mystery.  A Hoodline NYC item dated February 24 informs us that a DOB application has been submitted for a 206 foot-tall, 21-story building with about 350 apartments. The Archdiocese of New York sold the site in 2024 for $35 million.  

Read all about it: East Village Church Lot Set to Sprout 21-Story, 350-Unit Tower

The parish of St. Emeric was extinguished and the church became a secondary church in the parish of St. Brigid-St. Emeric in 2013, when the last Mass was held.  It was closed in and relegated to profane but not sordid use on November 4, 2020.  Relegation is the last canonical step before disposition of the property.

Church of Nativity, which had been attended by Dorothy Day was sold for $20 million in 2020 and demolished in 2022.   St. Brigid's and Most Holy Redeemer are still standing.  Most Holy Redeemer was closed on September 1, 2025.  Parishioners are working to save it.