Trio honored for support of Catholic education

Dozens attend outing honoring trio for supporting Catholic education

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Rockville Centre residents Nick and Cathy DeMartini were honored at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception’s 17th annual Seminary Golf Classic on July 19 for their support of Catholic education at several schools on Long Island. Bishop Andrzej Zglejszewski, who has served several Long Island parishes and the Diocese of Rockville Centre, was recognized as a co-honoree.

The day got off to a gloomy beginning, with cloud cover threatening the outing’s noon start time at the Garden City Country Club. But the clouds parted, and the participants completed their rounds, raising money for the seminary.

“People were so excited to return back to their routines,” Zglejszewski said. “As you can feel and see, there’s a great level of excitement, joy and happiness for us to come back to celebrate the greatness of the seminary, our faith and our Catholic identity.”

Refreshments were served around 5:30 p.m., and guests mingled amid a jovial atmosphere.

Zglejszewski (pronounced zglay-SHEV-skee) was born and raised in Poland, and studied philosophy and theology in Bialystok. He came to the U.S. in 1987, and completed his studies for the priesthood at the Immaculate Conception Seminary in Huntington. He was ordained by then Bishop John R. McGann of the Diocese of Rockville Centre in 1990.

After spending the 1990s and 2000s serving parishes across Long Island, Zglejszewski was named chaplain to the Pope in 2010. In 2014, Pope Francis appointed him an auxiliary bishop in the Rockville Centre Diocese. He now serves as the vicar of the Western Vicariate as well as the diocesan vicar for liturgy and worship.

He spoke of the importance of the Huntington seminary’s work for the diocese. “The seminary is the heartbeat of the diocese, so if we are here to protect and revamp our diocese after the pandemic, why not start with the heart?” Zglejszewski said. “And for me personally, the seminary was a home, so I wanted to give back to the seminary what they gave me when I came here from Poland.”

The DeMartinis are longtime supporters of St. Agnes Cathedral School, Sacred Heart Academy, Molloy College, St. John’s University and the seminary. “We are strong supporters of the mission of the seminary,” Cathy said. “We are devout, practicing Catholics who have an interest in educating our priests for the future.”

Nick has worked at the Fidelity National Title Insurance Company for over 15 years, and is now senior vice president and managing counsel. The company was one of the early sponsors of the golf outing.

The DeMartinis have been members of St. Agnes Cathedral Parish since 1997. Both went to Catholic schools, with Nick starting at Immaculate Conception Elementary School. Their two daughters, Grace and Clare, have attended Catholic schools as well.

“Both my husband and I were products of Catholic education in both grammar and high school, and that was an important part of our lives and families growing up,” Cathy said. “We were blessed to have parents that instilled in us the values and the importance of Catholic education, and we’re passing it on to our own children.”

After remarks from the honorees, there was a silent auction, another fundraiser for the seminary. Items on the list included Andrea Bocelli concert tickets, a signed New York Islanders jersey, a two-night stay at the Cliffside Resort in Greenport, and several golf outings for threesomes or foursomes at local courses.

Beverly Malone, of the seminary’s development office, said that this year’s event was one of the most successful in its history, with 34 foursomes on the course throughout the day. As of press time, the seminary had not added up all the money that had been raised.