For more than a decade, St. Albert the Great has had a Blessing of the Pets on the first Sunday of October in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of dogs and animals. The one o’clock pet blessing was about to begin, but the usual gathering of pets on the lawn was missing. This year the pet blessing took place as a drive-by. Cars began to line up at 12:45 p.m., after the 11:30 a.m. Mass. The drive-by concept was certainly different, but done due to Covid precautions. As the Church carillon chimed the one o’clock hour, there were about 100 cars lined up and ready for their pets to be blessed. It was “quite gratifying,” as Fr. Edward Estok exclaimed as he began the service via live streaming to the St. Albert web page. After the scripture readings and the formal blessing prayers, the cars advanced two by two, just like the loading the ark.
The sky was grey overhead and a bit threatening, but the only sprinkles were the holy water. Each car with its pet(s) drove up to either Fr. Ed Estok or Fr. Josh Trefney where they were blessed with a sprinkle of Holy Water. Helpers, including Fr. Mike Petkosek, who had finished the last Mass, distributed a prayer card, St. Francis medal, information about the Creation Care Ministry, and dog treats. The first to bring his people was Ziggy, a spry little guy who was a mix breed of everything but mostly friendly enthusiasm. His humans were Jen and Nate Oshaben and they drove to the rotary in front of the new Parish Life Center.
Dogs took their usual position at the windows, greeting everyone with wagging tails, barks, a few howls, or a calm and stately wait for a quick pat on the head. There were big dogs and small dogs, two kitties, one hamster, a fish and a bird. There was even a blessing for a dog in absentia because it wasn’t feeling well enough to travel. With the excellent planning and foresight in the design and use of the New Parish Life Center, the traffic circle made progress much quicker. Even the last few cars that were a bit late for the line were able to drive up and get the benefits of the blessing.
Fr. Estok and Fr. Josh were asked if they knew what an advantage the rotary drive would be to the parish. Fr. Josh answered, “It’s our Covid keeper; we can have drive-thru events as long as necessary.” Fr. Estok added, “It’s truly a fulfillment of a dream, the whole Parish Life Center has improved what we can do as a parish. The traffic is easier for our school buses and parents. It’s just wonderful. The pet blessing is just one example.” Volunteers from the parish that had everything prepped and ready, and North Royalton Animal Hospital that donated the dog treats, helped to make this one of the largest pet blessings. The video of the blessing can be seen on the website www. https://saint-albert.org pet blessing.
By LINDA KWARCIANY
Contributing Writer
