Sloane Martin posted on January 14, 2013 13:00
More than 700 parishioners marked the closing St. Anthony’s Church in Batavia.
The century-old church, founded by Italian immigrants, was closed Sunday in a final mass celebrated by Bishop Richard Malone.
St. Anthony’s merged a few years ago with Sacred Heart and became what is now known as Ascension Parish. The church closed due to budget constraints and so the parish as a whole could focus more on ministry efforts, not operation expenses.