On June 24, the Church of St. Rocco in Glen Cove welcomed a new pastor as Monsignor Domenick Graziadio left to serve the parish of Sts. Cyril and Methodius in Deer Park. Father Aaron T. Vellaramparampil, formerly the pastor of St. Raphael's in East Meadow, will be serving the spiritual needs of the St. Rocco's parish family. Upon coming to St. Rocco's in June, he found many volunteers busily preparing for the 24th annual "Best Feast in the East." The feast, under the chairmanship of Vincent "Jimmy" Suozzi, will be held from Tuesday, July 28 through Sunday August 2 this year.

Father Aaron is a native of Vayala, Kerala, India and speaks fluent Italian, German, Spanish, English, Latin, four Indian languages, Hebrew and Greek. In 1971, he was ordained in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome and served with missions in India before coming to Long Island in 1979. Father Aaron became a priest of the Diocese of Rockville Centre in 1989. During a recent interview with this reporter Father Aaron said he enjoys working with people and sharing in their joys and sorrow. He sees St. Rocco's as being an extended family and is eagerly looking forward to serving them in Glen Cove which he calls "a beautiful place". Father Aaron said every day he admires Monsignor Domenick's work more and more. "He has done a perfect job here. It will be a challenge to continue the Monsignor's great job. It will take time, but the job will get done. I wish him well as the journey continues....the church belongs to Christ and the people," said Father Aaron. Nothing will change in the St. Rocco parish life. Mass will still be celebrated on Friday and Saturday, (and on Sunday, of course, with Mass in Italian at 9 a.m.), with prayer services and memorials said in Italian and English as needed. The youth programs will continue as before.

Father Aaron was born in the southern part of India in a state which has had a large Christian population for 2,000 years. It was St. Thomas who traveled to India bringing with him Christian teachings. Kerala boasts a 5,000 family Catholic parish that is ministered by 300 priests with 1,000 priests and nuns working as missionaries. Father Aaron is one of eight siblings; one of his brothers is a priest serving as rector of a minor seminary in northern India and one sister takes care of people suffering with leprosy. Father Aaron has several hobbies, not the least of which is gardening. He also has a great sense of humor which became evident as he explained his rather long last name. (This reporter doesn't consider Father's last name long at all, considering the series of letters in my last name). "You see, in India the houses don't have street numbers so the last name describes exactly where one comes from. Vellaram is a variety of rice; 'param' means field; and 'pil' means 'in.' Therefore, to find me and my family you would go to Kerala, to the house near the field in which vellaram is grown. That's easy, right?"

The feast begins on Tuesday, July 28 at 6 p.m. at St. Rocco's. The times are: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday from 6-11 p.m.; Friday from 6-midnight; Saturday from 3 p.m. until midnight and Sunday from 3 p.m. until 11 p.m. After the 10:15 a.m. Mass on Sunday, Aug. 2, the Traditional Procession with the statue of St. Rocco will take place on the street surrounding the church plaza. A service will be held at Rose Marangiello's open lot adjacent to Mary Marangiello's home at 4 Marangiello Street. The six days of family fun and entertainment include a "more than pasta" ristorante; the famous pastry plus pavilion; rides; games; outdoor casino; nightly 50/50 raffle and live musical entertainment. The entertainment for this year's feast includes the participation of the Don Michaels Band on Tuesday and Wednesday night from 8:30-10:30; Phil Vollaro on Thursday night from 8:30-10:30; the Ralph Mirabelli Band on Friday night from 8:30-11:30; the Sounds of Dino Rosi on Saturday night from 8:30-11:30; and Gino Di Napoli on Sunday night from 8:30-10:30. Come down and join the fun.