A Vatican letter renews hope for parishioners fighting to keep St. John Vianney Church open.

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — A letter from the Vatican seems to be bringing a renewed sense of hope to parishioners at St. John Vianney Church in Orchard Park, who’ve been fighting to keep their church open. 

James Drzymala, a parishioner and procurator for St. John Vianney, confirmed the parish recently received word from Rome that the Dicastery for the Clergy is formally reviewing their materials. 

“We appealed to the Dicastery in Rome two months ago and we were waiting to hear from them and we did hear from them just this week,” Drzymala said. “We heard from the Vatican and they have suspended the bishop’s activities of what he’s doing to our parish…“Suspending the activities means that the bishop is not supposed to do anything else until the Vatican investigates.”

For now, that means St. John Vianney remains open.

“Yes, absolutely,” Drzymala said. “And our goal is to keep it open into perpetuity.”

Drzymala is representing more than 350 parishioners who signed parish mandates as part of the formal appeal. As procurator, he acts as their voice in all communications with the bishop and the Vatican. He described the moment the Vatican letter arrived as emotional and energizing. 

“Oh, we were elated. Everybody that heard it was just—anybody I told, they’re like, ‘You just made my day.’ So that was a huge, a huge event for us,” Drzymala said.

“Yeah, it definitely brings a lot of hope to our parish and it really re-energizes us and we’re going to go at it like gun blazers and we’re going to do everything we can to save our church.”

Even if the Vatican ultimately sides with the bishop, Drzymala says they’re prepared to take it to the next level.

“Well, ultimately, we can appeal to the Vatican Supreme Court and we are prepared to do that if necessary,” Drzymala said.

Drzymala says the parish is still healing from the unexpected closure of its school, which was announced in June. He says families, faculty, and staff were left blindsided.

“Oh my goodness, that was devastating, especially the way it was closed at the last minute. What it did to the students here, what it did to the teachers here, the principal and all the other faculty and staff—it was just devastating for them to find out a few days after school ended that their school would not be reopening in September. It didn’t have to happen that way,” Drzymala said.

Despite the challenges, Drzymala says the community is rallying — and looking ahead to what comes next.

“I think the future looks bright for St. John Vianney. The way I look at it is right now, we’re kind of at a low point. It’s been difficult for us. “Like you mentioned, Courtney, we’ve been on the closing list for well over a year. And when people hear that, they just automatically think we’re closed, and we are not closed. We are very much open and alive.”

One of the church’s most anticipated annual traditions — Summerfest — returns this weekend. It’s the parish’s largest fundraiser of the year and comes at a critical time, as the church continues paying off expenses from the recently shuttered school.

“This is definitely our biggest fundraiser of the year. I’ve been a parishioner here for 20 years, and we’ve been doing it for the 20 years that I’ve been here.”

Sumerfest kicks off Friday at 5 p.m. with Cruise Night and a live country band, Hazard County. A beer tent, games, vendors, and food will be available throughout the weekend.“

It starts, the festivities start Friday at 5 p.m. We have cruise night. And then we have our country music band, which is Hazard County. They’re going to be here Friday night. We also have a beer tent, which I think country music and beer go together. That’s what I’ve been told.”

On Saturday, festivities begin after 4 p.m. Mass and continue with more live music — including an 80s vs. 90s Battle of the Bands, May Day, and Double Shot. Sunday starts with a pancake breakfast and Mass on the Grass.

“On Sunday, we’ll be beginning with a pancake breakfast at 8 a.m., 8 to 11. We have 11 a.m. Mass, mass on the grass. And then after that, our beer tent will be opening at noon. You can grab a Ciabatta’s chicken dinner, grab a cold beer, sit under the tent, enjoy some good company and fun, and know that you’re helping a good cause here at the church at St. John Vianney.”

Drzymala says 100% of Summerfest proceeds are going to pay off the school’s remaining bills — even though the school is permanently closed.

“We still have lots of bills that have been budgeted for. So that’s where the bulk of the money is going to be going. If not all of the money at this point is to pay for those school bills,” he said.

He’s also reminding the community: the parish is still here, and it needs their help.

“Absolutely. We need donations. As you can see that the grounds that we have here, it costs money to run the grounds here. Now would be not, now’s not the time to stop donating. We need your continued parish support. And if you’re thinking about going to church, we ask you to come to St. John Vianney. Give us a try. I think you’re really going to love it here,” he said.

And for those who want to give back beyond a donation, there’s still time to volunteer. “If anybody does want to come out and volunteer, we can still use volunteers, whether you want to be at the basket raffle or in the beer tent or anywhere in between.”

Through it all, Drzymala says the parish remains united — fueled by faith, and determined to survive.

“I’m passionate because the Eucharistic presence is here at St. John Vianney Parish in Orchard Park. And that’s what it’s all about for us Catholics. And it’s even more than that. This is a community. It’s not just a church. It’s a community. We have lots of different ministries going on here. And we’re hoping to continue that into perpetuity,” he said.

A spokesperson said the Diocese of Buffalo received from the Dicastery for Clergy at the Vatican notification that St. John Vianney’s recourse had been accepted for review by the Dicastery. They say it was expected and is another step in the process.