Queen of Heaven Parish hosts 19th annual Nurses’ Tribute Mass

Nurses, nursing students and their families were honored at Queen of HeavenParish’s 19th annual Nurses’ Tribute Mass, which was sponsored by the nurses of the former St. Thomas Hospital in Akron.

Father David Durkee, Queen of Heaven pastor, was the celebrant. Concelebrants were Father  Ralph Thomas, who is in residence at Regina Health Center, and Father James Semonin, who is in residence at Queen of Heaven and who served 40 years as chaplain at Parma Community Hospital. Deacon Stephen Makara assisted with the liturgy. Father Thomas was the homilist.

In his homily, Father Thomas said the Mass celebrates a spirit of faith serving people in nursing homes, individual homes and hospital settings with patience while searching for what is good in the image of God. Nurses give hope, healing and thus joy, he said.

The St. Thomas Honor Guard and the NEO Nurse Honor Guard processed in prior to Mass. Louise Hellwig, an honor guard member, carried the memorial book listing the names of deceased nurses from Summit County and surrounding counties. Members of the honor guard  were dressed in uniforms of red, white and blue. They wore white nurses’ caps and traditional nurses’ cape.

The Peace Together Choir, an interdenominational group of vocalists and musicians, performed a prelude and led the congregation in songs during the Mass. 

The tribute to nurses was the idea of Bob Brodbeck who wanted to honor his wife, a nurse who died in 2006, as well as all nurses. Brodbeck shared his idea with Father Thomas, his pastor at St. Paul Parish in Akron. The first Nurses’ Tribute Mass was in 2007 at St. Paul Church.

The following year, Mary DiDonato, an alumna of St. Thomas Hospital School of Nursing, took over planning the liturgy at St. Paul’s Parish through 2016.  In 2016, a group of St. Thomas Alumni Association formed a committee to keep the tradition alive.

St. Thomas Hospital, which was located in Akron’s North Hill neighborhood, opened in 1928. It was operated by the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine until 1971.

Sister Ignatia Garvin, CSA opened the first treatment ward for alcoholics at St. Thomas in conjunction with the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous.

In 1989, it merged with Akron City Hospital to form Summa Health System. The original St. Thomas building was demolished in 2024.