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07/13/2016 08:30 AMWhen Mary Bernard moved to East Haven with her husband Eddie 50 years ago, she joined St. Clare Parish and she has been volunteering ever since. After several years of being involved with the Ladies Guild, she stepped back for a time when she had her son and daughter.
“I love where I am right near the shore, I love the people in town, and I love my church,” says Mary, who will celebrate her 60th wedding anniversary this September. “I’ve met a lot of very good friends from the Ladies Guild and people in the church.”
When Tracy Landino started the church’s carnival 13 years ago, Mary got involved right away. She leads the effort in making the frozen dipped bananas that are sold at the carnival.
In the week leading up to the carnival, which runs from July 13 to 16, she and a crew of seven or eight ladies meet at the church to prepare 200 bananas. Mary starts by checking for supplies and stocking up on what’s needed before the three cases of bananas are delivered.
“All day Saturday, the girls and I peel them, put them on a stick, put them in bags, and freeze them—all day we peel and freeze bananas,” says Mary. “They freeze overnight and we all come back to dip them in chocolate or cherry, bag them again, and freeze them again. The whole thing takes two or three days.”
While Mary enjoys spending time with her crew preparing the bananas, her favorite part of the event is selling them each night at the carnival. She likes working in the booth and seeing those who visit.
“I love being around people,” says Mary. “Everybody I work with and everybody who comes down is so nice and now that I’m getting on in age, they’ve been very helpful.”
Mary is 84 years old, but she credits her active lifestyle for remaining so healthy. She still does all of her own cleaning, shopping, and cooking.
Baking and cooking are also Mary’s passions. She always enjoyed working in her kitchen, but when her kids were in school, she got a job in the East Haven school system. She spent 23 years working in the schools, first as a cook at the middle school and then a baker at the high school.
“I learned a lot while I was in the school,” says Mary, who noted the high school students’ favorite dessert was her apple crisp. “We did all our own baking—our own breads and our own cakes—and cooked everything from scratch.”
Mary has used her experience in cooking and baking in big batches with her volunteer work at the church over the years. In addition to the frozen dipped bananas, she also helps cut the onions and peppers for the pepper and sausage grinders.
As part of the Ladies Guild, she often cooks or bakes for their events and fundraisers. The Ladies Guild, which has more than 40 members, meets once a month throughout the year, hosting events such as cake sales, card games, and flea markets to raise money for the church. It also hosts an installation dinner and a Christmas party every year.
The Ladies Guild also hosts the church’s Christmas Fair. Mary used to run the “Cookie Walk,” a sale of a variety of homemade cookies, but when the woman who used to make the clam chowder for the fair got sick 10 years ago, Mary took over.
Mary also makes clam chowder for St. Clare’s annual Lobster Bake, which is scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 14. For $25, guests get a cup of Mary’s clam chowder, a steak or a lobster, corn on the cob, baked potato, dessert, and a cold drink.
“It takes me about two days to make it all—about 125 cups of clam chowder,” says Mary, who has two children, six grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. “It’s a fantastic event.”
In addition to volunteering for the many events at her church, Mary has been volunteering at Connecticut Hospice twice a month for the past 15 years. After a friend’s husband died, her friend began volunteering and then asked Mary if she was interested.
“I love going to Hospice—I enjoy it very much,” says Mary. “I’ve met a lot of people there. The nurses and staff are all fantastic people and are very giving.”
Mary is disappointed that she will have to temporarily cut back on volunteering at the end of the summer because she is having cataract surgery. She plans on returning as soon as she is healed.
“My husband and I are both blessed that we are very healthy and we have a lot to be thankful for,” says Mary. “Being involved with the church has really done a lot for me. If I didn’t do that, I’d just be sitting around. I’m always there and try to be involved with everything. It keeps me young and it keeps me going.”
13th Annual St. Clare Summer Carnival
Open at 5 p.m. through July 16
$25 ride wristbands
21st Annual Lobster Bake
Sunday, Aug. 14 at 5 p.m.
For tickets ($25), call 203-467-5136 by Aug. 8.
St. Clare RC Church is at 234 Coe Avenue, East Haven. For information, visit st-clareparish.org or facebook.com/saintclareparish.