About St. Mary (Catholic Communities of Eastern Broome) · Kirkwood, New York
St. Mary's Church in Kirkwood, New York is one of four parishes that make up the Catholic Communities of Eastern Broome, a parish cluster in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse. Formally linked together in 2009, the cluster pairs St. Mary's in Kirkwood with Our Lady of Lourdes in Windsor, St. Joseph's in Deposit, and St. Joseph's in Sanitaria Springs. St. Mary's serves as the hub of the cluster — the joint parish office is located at the Kirkwood church, and the church hosts the weekly Wednesday midday Mass and the monthly Social Saturdays caregiver respite program. The parish is led by Parish Life Director Barbara Kane, with sacramental ministry provided by retired priests of the diocese, including Fr. Peter (Amaya-Akpala).
- Patron
- The Blessed Virgin Mary (parish is St. Mary's)
- Rector
- Rev. James P. Serowik (Canonical Pastor, per Diocese of Syracuse clergy directory)
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse
Why belong here
St. Mary's Kirkwood is the administrative and liturgical heart of a four-parish Catholic cluster serving rural eastern Broome County, so visitors can plug into a small, connected Catholic community rather than feeling like a face in the crowd. The parish offers the area's only Wednesday midday daily Mass (12:10 PM) and a Saturday vigil and Sunday morning Mass each week. Its Social Saturdays caregiver respite program, hosted in St. Mary's Parish Hall on the third Saturday of each month, opens the parish to seniors, caregivers, and anyone in the wider community looking for fellowship — no parish membership required. With the Diocese of Syracuse actively investing in the cluster model here, St. Mary's is a parish where Catholic life in the southern tier is being sustained and reimagined for a new generation.
Mass times at St. Mary (Catholic Communities of Eastern Broome)
Weekly Mass schedule
The Catholic Communities of Eastern Broome Cluster
St. Mary's Kirkwood is one of four rural Catholic parishes linked together since 2009 as the Catholic Communities of Eastern Broome County, a parish cluster in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse. The other three are Our Lady of Lourdes in Windsor, St. Joseph's in Deposit, and St. Joseph's in Sanitaria Springs. The cluster operates under a Parish Life Director — currently Barbara Kane — with sacramental ministry provided by retired priests of the diocese. The joint parish office is housed at St. Mary's in Kirkwood, making it the administrative center for the whole grouping.
- Our Lady of Lourdes, Windsor — Sunday 9:00 AM
- St. Joseph's, Deposit — Sunday 11:00 AM
- St. Joseph's, Sanitaria Springs — Sunday 8:30 AM
- St. Mary's, Kirkwood — Saturday 4:00 PM vigil, Sunday 10:30 AM, Wednesday 12:10 PM daily Mass
Clergy, Staff & Spiritual Counseling
Canonical Pastor for the cluster parishes is Rev. James P. Serowik, who also serves as Vicar Forane of Vicariate VII of the Diocese of Syracuse. Parochial Vicar is Rev. Peter T. Amaya-Akpala, OP, who assists across all four cluster churches. On Wednesday mornings, before the 12:10 PM daily Mass, Fr. Peter is available at the parish office for spiritual counseling by appointment. Day-to-day parish operations are coordinated by Parish Life Director Barbara Kane, who can be reached at the joint parish office.
- Rev. James P. Serowik — Canonical Pastor / Vicar Forane, Vicariate VII
- Rev. Peter T. Amaya-Akpala, OP — Parochial Vicar
- Fr. Peter — Wednesday morning spiritual counseling, by appointment
- Barbara Kane — Parish Life Director ([email protected])
Social Saturdays Caregiver Respite
St. Mary's Parish Hall hosts Social Saturdays, a monthly group respite program that provides social engagement for participants while giving their caregivers a break. The program is also open to area seniors who live alone and are looking for safe, friendly opportunities to socialize. Sessions are free, and guests do not need to be members of the parish. The St. Mary's session is held on the third Saturday of each month from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM.
- When: 3rd Saturday of each month, 11:00 AM–2:00 PM
- Where: St. Mary's Parish Hall, 975 US-11, Kirkwood
- Cost: Free; open to non-parishioners
- Contact: Barbara Kane, 607-775-0086, [email protected]
Parish Life & Ministries
The parish frames itself around the idea that the Eucharist is the heart of the community, but the parish family is the body. Members are invited to take part in liturgical ministries (choir, lector, altar server, Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist), social justice ministries (visiting the homebound, serving the poor, volunteering at food pantries, the St. Vincent de Paul Society), youth ministry, men's and women's parish groups, and the annual parish bazaar. Parishioners are also encouraged to suggest new ministries.
- Liturgical ministries: choir, lector, altar server, Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist
- Social justice: homebound visits, food pantries, St. Vincent de Paul Society
- Youth ministry
- Men's and women's parish groups
- Annual parish bazaar
Faith Formation
The parish describes faith formation as 'a vital element of the Catholic life' — not only for children but for everyone growing as Catholics — and points parishioners to its faith-formation opportunities as part of parish life.
History of the Eastern Broome Cluster
The cluster's roots lie in the Diocese of Syracuse's broader reconfiguration process announced in 2007 by Bishop James Moynihan in response to declining numbers of priests and population shifts in the seven-county diocese. Four Southern Tier churches — St. Mary of Kirkwood, St. Joseph of Deposit, Our Lady of Lourdes of Windsor, and St. Joseph of Sanitaria Springs — were directed to submit a joint pastoral plan by July 1, 2008. In 2009 the four were formally linked as the Catholic Communities of Eastern Broome County parish cluster, with the parish-life-director model chosen to keep all four rural churches open and active.
- 2007: Bishop Moynihan announces Southern Tier mergers
- 2008: Cluster parishes directed to submit joint pastoral plan
- 2009: Catholic Communities of Eastern Broome formally linked
- Model: Parish Life Director + retired priests providing sacraments
Visiting St. Mary's Kirkwood
St. Mary's sits at 975 US-11 (NY Route 11) in the Town of Kirkwood, just south of Binghamton along the highway that runs the length of the Susquehanna valley. The joint parish office is open through the cluster's main phone line, 607-775-0086, and the parish website provides directions via a 'Click Here for Directions' link for each of the four cluster churches.
- Address: 975 US-11, Kirkwood, NY 13795
- Phone: 607-775-0086
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: broomecatholics.org