The Most Precious Blood Parish will celebrate 65 years of priesthood for their Pastor Emeritus, Father Vincent Termine, at the El Caribe Country Club, 5945 Strickland Avenue in Mill Basin, June 14 from 2−6 p.m.
Father Termine served as Most Precious Blood’s pastor for 27 years. He started his priesthood when he was 24 years old at Saint Michaelâ„Saint Edward’s Church in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn.
Some of his duties were acting as chapel for Brooklyn and Cumberland hospitals, as well as for the Raymond Street Jail.
Over the years he has been assigned to Saint Rocco, Saint Mark in Sheepshead Bay, Saint Blaise in Crown Heights for five and a half years, and Saint Francis Paola for 10 and a half years.
In 1967 he was transferred to Most Precious Blood Church, becoming its pastor the following year. During his tenure at MPB, Father Termine served as the New York City’s Department of Sanitation’s Chaplain, and was also credited with the building of the new MPB church.
The old foundation−less type country church was in near collapse due to meandering fresh water streams beneath, and the roof was in danger of falling, so Father Termine closed it down, moving Masses to the auditorium of MPB School directly across the street; the roof collapsed shortly after.
The Rosarian Society, Holy Name Society, PTA of MPB School and the Feast of the Assumption, held annually in August, all helped raised the million dollars needed to build the new modern church.
At 75, Father Termine retired in 1995 from the church, fulfilling his priestly duties at MPB.
While he is a devoted opera aficionado, and personally knew many opera greats, such as Metropolitan Opera’s Prima Donna Licia Albanese, Father Termine’s chief joys were always the children of the parish, and he was delighted to serve First Communion again after 14 years this past May at 89 years of age.