About Our Lady of Perpetual Help [Ukrainian] · Lackawanna, New York
Our Lady of Perpetual Help is a Ukrainian Catholic (Byzantine rite) parish in Lackawanna, New York, just south of Buffalo. Established in 1926 as Holy Ghost Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church to serve Ukrainian-American steelworkers and their families in Lackawanna's First Ward, the parish was renamed in 1971 and moved into its striking modern Byzantine-style church on Ridge Road at South Shore Boulevard in 1974. Today it is one of four Buffalo-area parishes of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Stamford and, although geographically located within the territory of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo, it celebrates the Byzantine-Ukrainian Divine Liturgy rather than the Roman Mass.
- Established
- 1926
- Patron
- Our Lady of Perpetual Help
- Rector
- Rev. Andriy Kasiyan (Administrator)
- Diocese
- Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Stamford (geographic territory of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo)
Why belong here
Our Lady of Perpetual Help offers Byzantine-rite Ukrainian Catholic liturgy in English at a regular, easy-to-follow weekly schedule — Saturday evening and Sunday morning Divine Liturgies, plus weekday Liturgies. As one of the small Ukrainian Catholic parishes serving the greater Buffalo area, it provides an intimate worship community rooted in the traditions of the Eparchy of Stamford while remaining conveniently accessible at the corner of Ridge Road and South Shore Boulevard in Lackawanna. Confessions are heard before every liturgy, making sacramental life straightforward for parishioners.
Mass times at Our Lady of Perpetual Help [Ukrainian]
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Before all liturgies
Parish Identity & Byzantine Ukrainian Heritage
Our Lady of Perpetual Help is a parish of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Stamford, celebrating the Byzantine (Ukrainian) rite in English. Although its mailing address sits inside the geographic territory of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo, the parish's liturgy, traditions and pastoral authority follow the Eastern Catholic sui iuris church centered in Stamford, Connecticut.
- Diocese / Eparchy: Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Stamford
- Geographic location: within the territory of the Roman Diocese of Buffalo
- Rite: Byzantine (Ukrainian Catholic)
- Liturgical language published on parish schedule: English
History of the Parish
Founded in 1926 as Holy Ghost Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the parish first worshipped from a church on Wilkesbarre Street in Lackawanna's First Ward, serving Ukrainian-American steelworkers from the nearby Bethlehem/Lackawanna steel mill and their families. By the 1960s the original building was outgrown; head pastor Rev. Bohdan Ostapowycz acquired land in the more suburban eastern edge of Lackawanna for a new church. His successor, Rev. Ihor Pelensky, established the building fund in the late 1960s, and in 1971 the parish was renamed Our Lady of Perpetual Help at the cornerstone-laying ceremony. The present Byzantine-Modernist church was completed in 1974 and has served the community ever since.
- Founded 1926 as Holy Ghost Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
- Original location: Wilkesbarre Street, Lackawanna First Ward
- Land for the new church purchased in the 1960s under Rev. Bohdan Ostapowycz
- Building fund established by Rev. Ihor Pelensky in the late 1960s
- Parish renamed and cornerstone laid 1971
- Current Ridge Road church completed 1974
Architecture of the Current Church
The present church was completed in 1974 after roughly three years of construction. It is a Byzantine-influenced Modernist building set on the corner of Ridge Road and South Shore Boulevard. Inside, the spatial drama rises from front to back; outside, the building reads as a low, spreading lozenge from the street corner and then lifts toward a trio of symbolic towers at the rear.
- Style: Byzantine-influenced Modernist
- Footprint: shield- or lozenge-shaped, entrance facing the street corner
- Front portion: low and sprawling
- Rear portion: progressively taller roof vaults
- Three projecting column-like towers symbolizing the three crosses of Golgotha
- Side elevations: vertical window-columns in slanted recesses with fin louvers between
Sacramental Life
Confessions are heard before every liturgy, making the parish's regular Divine Liturgy schedule also the practical sacramental-confession schedule for parishioners and visitors.
- Confessions: before all liturgies (Saturday Vigil, Sunday, weekdays, and Holy Days)
Clergy & Leadership
The parish is currently served by an Administrator, as listed on the parish's published calendar and in local Ukrainian-community directories.
- Rev. Andriy Kasiyan — Administrator
Buffalo-Area Ukrainian Catholic Community
Our Lady of Perpetual Help sits within a wider network of Ukrainian Catholic parishes serving Western New York, all under the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Stamford. Together with neighboring parishes, it forms the local cluster of Eastern-rite Catholic communities across the Buffalo metro.
- St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church — 308 Fillmore Ave., Buffalo
- St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church — 3275 Elmwood Ave., Kenmore
- St. Basil Ukrainian Catholic Church — 3657 Walden Ave., Lancaster
- Protection of the BVM Ukrainian Catholic Church — 2715 Ferry St., Niagara Falls
Visit & Contact
The parish can be reached by phone or email, and the parish website (as listed by the parish and by community directories) is the online hub for the current bulletin and schedule.
- Address: 1182 Ridge Road, Lackawanna, NY 14218
- Phone: (716) 823-6182
- Email: [email protected]
- Parish website: OLPHUkrChurch.org
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Bohdan Ostapowycz
Head pastor in the 1960s; purchased the parcel of land on which the present church would later be built.
- Rev. Ihor Pelenskylate 1960s – 1970s
Successor to Fr. Ostapowycz; established the building fund and oversaw the construction of the current Ridge Road church, which was completed in 1974.