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Martha Lachowska
ANSONIA PARISH CHERISHES "THE DIVINE MISS 'M'"
When others her age are taking stock of personal and career accomplishments, the 75 year old Lachowska is planning months ahead for elementary school functions, parish social activities, choral performances and liturgical music arrangements-in short, wherever she can lend a hand to her parish family. "Miss Martha: as she is know to most everybody at St. Joseph’s Church and School, has loaded both hands and feet and everything else in her tiny frame to the parish almost all her life. Currently in her sixth decade as organist at daily Mass, she juggles a host of other duties for the school, parish organizations and fellow parishioners. "She is the heart of the parish," said Father Marek Sobczak, pastor. "I think we wouldn’t know what to do if ever she went (into) retirement. She’s wonderful." Father Sobczak said Miss Martha has provided organ music daily for Mass faithfully since before her 15th birthday, except for illnesses and vacations. What’s more, she always descends from the choir loft afterward to pickup any trash that my be on the floors and to straighten out missals and kneelers. "And when she notices that there are no flowers at the altar and there should be flowers at the altar, she gets them herself. She brings the big, heavy pots or arrangements and places them at the altar. She’s very thoughtful about that, "Father Sobczak said. Miss Martha is thoughtful about many things, according to Father Sobczak and Carmel Brown principal of St. Joseph School, where Miss Martha taught full-time for 32 years. "If somebody’s birthday, or Secretaries Day, or Principals Day, or any kind of special occasion that somebody has, she comes in with something special," said Brown. "And no matter what we do, we can never pay her back. She’s always there for us, and we can never pay her back." "Miss Martha didn’t put it in so many words, but she doesn’t much like having to talk about herself or what motivates her altruism. Asked recently to do just that she tended to drop her sparkling eyes downward and raise a hand toward her short brownish curls as she hesitated ever so slightly before answering. On such subjects as the school children and music, however, Miss Martha became animated if not downright enthusiastic. With more spring in her step than many people 20 years her junior, she led a visitor through school hallways and ultimately into the church choir loft, chatting easily the whole way. Officially retired from her teaching position in 1965, Miss Martha is still very much a presence at the 135 student grade school. She ledodatki the full student body for 20 minutes of hymn practice every Monday morning at the church, and directs a dozen youngsters in a special all grade choir for an hour every Tuesday after school. "We have three first-graders, and oh, can they sing!" she reported. "Some children can carry melodies quite young. And we have four second-graders, and they sing, too." The choir, which Miss Martha has headed for more than a decade, also provides music for the 8:30 a.m. Mass at St. Joseph’s Church on the second Sunday of each month. The group, which also performed recently at the school Christmas pageant, a church-wide Christmas Eve supper and at a nearby mall, also shares its melodies at local convalescent homes and other venues during the school year. She views all her time with the kids as an extension of her role as teacher. "I’ve always like what I taught here. It gets the children to know God more because it’s important. It’s what we’re living for, right? I mean, our grand end is to see God,: she said. Miss Martha’s musical involvement doesn’t stop with the school children, however. She sings alto in a regional ecumenical chorale, which she said is yet another opportunity to evangelize. "With that, too, people hear it and they hear the words and it brings them closer to God. Like I always tell the children, you don’t know how far your song goes," she said. She’s also accompanist for the local Doyle Senior Center, a member of the adult Polish chorale organized recently at the predominantly Polish St. Joseph Church, and eagerly jumps in when just about anything musical comes her way. She sang in the shepherds’ chorus for St. Joseph Parish’s traditional Christmas Eve supper (Jaselka) event, held Jan.6. The daughter of Polish immigrants, Miss Martha recalled her father as a musically gifted man who played the organ and had "a good tenor voice." She said she started taking piano lessons with her brother when the lessons cost 50 cents each. She started playing the organ for daily Mass at St. Joseph’s at about 14, when, she said giggling, "I probably played more wrong notes than right notes." After attending Yale School of Music for a time, she began a full time teaching career at St. Joseph’s School that lasted 32 years. She picked up bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music education form Western Connecticut State University and taught piano privately along the way. Father Sobczak said Miss Martha’s musical contributions are only a fraction of her generosity to the parish. "She’s the first one (I call) if I need any help to organize something, and she’s always there to help. You saw how tiny she is, buts she’s a big woman in the sense that she tries to be helpful to everyone," he said. She has served numerous terms on the Parish Council and in one way or another involves herself in any undertaking by one of the parish organizations. The pastor said even when he is racing to keep up with the duties at hand, Miss Martha is way ahead on the next project. "Like at the end of Christmastime, she already thinks about Lent or Easter, what songs, what celebrations. When we’re done with Easter, she thinks about summertime. And when we’re done with summertime, she’s back to thinking about Advent,"Father Sobczak said with a laugh. Father Sobczak called Miss Martha the model of stewardship. "She is a sign of how people should be stewards of their time and talents, because she doesn’t do anything for herself," he said. "Whatever she does, she does it for the church. And when she talks to people, she expresses it. She says, "I’m doing this for God, I’m doing this for own parish." Miss Martha acknowledged that motive, but, typically, toppled any image of herself on a pedestal. "I enjoy it. Whatever I do, I enjoy. Especially music. I love to listen to music. I love to make music. I just wish I could do better at it,: she said with a laugh. |
